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CYO TRACK & FIELD RULES

All CYO rules for track and field will follow the National Federation of State High School Association’s “Track and Field Rules” unless specifically covered in the following rules:

PARTICIPATION

Age-based divisions exist for grades K-8, boys and girls, with the divisions consisting of the following grade levels (grades K-2, grades 3-4, grades 5-6, grades 7-8). The age limit for each division is as follows:

  Grades K-2: Must not be 9 before September 1st of this school year.

  Grades 3-4: Must not be 11 before September 1st of this school year.

  Grades 5-6: Must not be 13 before September 1st of this school year.

  Grades 7-8: Must not be 15 before September 1st of this school year.

In order to particpate in the CYO City Championship Track Meet, all schools must submit a roster of team members for each division to the CYO office. In any division, a team member may be moved up by only one division. Once they are on that upper team’s roster, they may not be moved back down before the end of the season. No team member will be allowed to move down to a lower division, or participate in more than one division level at the same time. Each participant may compete in up to three events. They may be all running, all field, or a combination.

FOR GRADES 5TH - 6TH and 7TH - 8TH

A team may enter up to four participants per event, however only the first two members of a team in an event are eligible to qualify for finals in a sprint event, to win awards for an event and/or to be included in team scoring for that event. Only one relay team per event per school team may be entered. No individual may participate on more than one team. If any school wants to field more than one team in any division, their 1st team must have a minimum of 8 participants. If any school wants to field more than two teams in any division, all teams but the last team must have a minimum of 8 participants each.   At the CYO City Championship Meet, teams will be divided in two divisions based on the strength of their track programs.

EVENTS

The order of events for each division are as follows:

Grades K-2: 50M Dash, 200M Dash, 75M Dash, 400M Relay 100M Dash, Softball Throw, Long Jump

Grades 3-4: 400M Dash, 100M Dash, 800M Relay, 50M Dash, 400M Relay, 75M Dash, 200M Dash, Softball Throw, Long Jump, High Jump

Grades 5-6: 100M Dash, 800M Relay, 75M Dash, 400M Relay, 400M Dash, 100M finals, 800M Run, 75M Finals, 200M Dash, 1600M Relay, Discus, Long Jump, High Jump, Shot Put.

Grades 7-8: 100M Dash, 800M Relay, 1600M Run, 400M Relay, 400M Dash, 100M finals, 800M Run, 200M Dash, 1600M Relay, Discus, Long Jump, High Jump, Shot Put.

At the CYO City Championship Meet, girls running events will be held first while boys compete in field events first. At the completion of the girls running events, boys running events will commence while girls compete in field events.  The order of boys and girls events at invitational meets is at the discretion of the invitational meet directors.  The events are listed in the order that they are to be contested, as set by the NFSHSA track and field rules. Grades K-4 are amended for CYO. In grades K-4, stickers are needed for field events only. In grades 5-8, stickers are needed for all events.  For relays, all four runners must be listed on the sticker, which the anchor runner wears.  If there is more than one team per school in a division, the school team must be listed on every sticker for the purposes for scoring.  If the scoring participant does not have the school team designated the team will not be awarded points for that participant. Every sticker should include NAME, SCHOOL, TEAM, DIVISION, EVENT

EQUIPMENT AND UNIFORMS

Any violation of the following rules will result in a disqualification from the event. Spike shoes of any type will not be permitted. Gym shoes are recommended. No participant will be permitted to run in their bare feet. No starting blocks are permitted. The members of the relay teams are required to wear the same color uniform shirts. This is also strongly recommended for every team as a whole.

SCORING AND AWARDS

In all divisions, the decision of the head finish judge is final in determining the finish place of the runners in their heats.

Grades 1-4: All participants receive ribbons. No team scoring or awards.

Grades 5-8: Individual awards given to the top 6 final places. Team points awarded for first 6 places as 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, 1.  For the CYO City Championship Meet, trophies are awarded to the top three teams in each division. In the event of a tie between teams, the higher place team will be awarded by counting the number of 1st place finishes in all events. The team with the higher number of 1st places wins the higher team award for the meet.   Awarding of team trophies at invitational meets is at the discretion of the invitational meet directors.

FIELD EVENTS

Grades 1-4: For large invitationals (15 or more schools), it will be acceptable to allow 1 practice and 2 measured attempts in the long jump, shot put, and softball throw. If there is a smaller number of participants, use the standard of 2 practice and 3 measured attempts.

              For the high jump, the starting height is 3’0”

Grades 5-8: In the long jump, shot put, and discus, all participants receive 2 practices and 3 measured attempts. If a foul is committed, it counts as an attempt.

              For high jump, the starting heights are as follows:

                            Girls 5-6 = 3 feet 0 inches

                            Boys 5-6 = 3 feet 6 inches

                            Girls 7-8 = 3 feet 6 inches

                            Boys 7-8 = 4 feet 0 inches

              For shot put weight, Grades 5-6: 6 lbs, Grades 7-8: 8 lbs.

              For discus: Grades 5-6: 1 kg, Grades 7-8: 1 kg. (1 kg is standard girls high school size)

For the high jump in grades 3-8, all jumpers must take off from one foot. Failure to do so is considered a missed attempt. There are 3 attempts to clear a height. In the event of a tie, the number of attempts needed to clear the height will be counted to determine the higher place. If an athlete is in another field event besides the high jump, the athlete should check in at the other event first, then go to the high jump. The high jump must receive priority over the other field event. If the other field event is ready to close, the high jump competition will be stopped to allow the athlete to compete in the other field event and will be resumed upon return. At no time will the bar be lowered after competition has started. Latecomers will begin at the height where competition is during the time of entry.

PROTESTS

The proper procedure must be followed in any situation that may have cause for dispute. Only coaches are allowed to submit a protest to the meet director or starter / official. All parents are required to go to their coach with concerns. At that time the coach will bring the matter to the attention of the meet director and/or official who will make a decision in the matter. That decision WILL BE FINAL.

Once a meet has started, the rules must not be changed.