Orienteering Federation of South Africa

Rules

Code Of Conduct For Athletes

General
  1. All competitors must abide by the SAOF Rules of Competition for events in South Africa.
  2. All competitors competing overseas must abide by the IOF rules of competition and the rules of competition of the Federation in whose country they are competing.
  3. All competitors must also comply with any special rules/instructions issued by the Controller for a specific event.
  4. Competitors disobeying any of the above rules are not only liable to disqualification from a particular event but are also open to possible sanction from the SAOF (or in the case of IOF sanctioned events, the International Orienteering Federation).

Official South African Teams
All athletes selected for official South African Orienteering teams are subject to the following:

  1. The athlete must confirm acceptance of selection by the date specified in writing. If required, they must also pay a non-returnable deposit to affirm their commitment to the team. In the event of failure to comply with either condition without good reason, the SAOF reserve the right to withdraw the nomination of that person.
  2. The athlete must inform the SAOF (or Team Manager if one has been appointed) immediately of any injury or deterioration in their fitness level which may affect their chance of competing to the best of their ability.
  3. The SAOF reserves the right to request that any athlete undergoes a fitness test to confirm his/her ability to represent the Federation to the best of their ability.
  4. Athletes must assemble at the required time and place prior to a competition and/or training camp unless agreed otherwise with the Team Manager.
  5. As representatives of the SAOF and South Africa, athletes must conduct themselves properly at all times.
  6. During a competition/training camp the Team Manager has absolute authority over the athletes. He has the right to impose any sanction that he/she might see fit for breach of this code of conduct. However, the SAOF has the right to impose further sanction should the athlete’s action warrant this.
  7. Athletes will be informed of the cost of participation in a particular event and when accepting membership of the team they accept the financial implications of such participation.
  8. No athlete will be selected to represent South Africa if they owe money to SAOF.
  9. Athletes agree to wear such clothing and use such equipment as is specified by the SAOF. Where any of the cost of this must be borne by the athlete, this will be clearly specified before final acceptance is required.
  10. Athletes must use accommodation and transport arranged by the SAOF during official competitions and/or training camps unless agreed with the Team Manager.

Doping Abuse

  1. Athletes are subject to the IOF and IOC rules on anti-doping.
  2. It is the responsibility of the athlete to ensure that he/she does not ingest any prohibited substances. Updated lists of these substances are available on request from the SAOF.
  3. Athletes can be requested to provide samples for testing on request of the SAOF at any time.
  4. All procedures for taking and testing of samples will be carried out in accordance with the IOC guidelines. Samples will be tested at an accredited laboratory.
  5. Athletes must also agree to provide samples during any competition at the request of the organizers.

Penalties

  1. Penalties for infringing any of the above rules include (but are not limited to):
    1. removal from a specific team
    2. non-selection from future teams
    3. banning from competition for a certain period
    4. banning from competition for life
    5. removal of subsidy/sponsorship
  2. For positive doping tests, penalties will be in line with national and international norms of the relevant sports bodies (IOF and IOC). In addition, the athlete will be responsible for repaying any subsidy or sponsorship that he/she has received from the SAOF over the past 12 months.

Hearings
In the event of any alleged breach of the above Code of Conduct, the athlete has the right to a fair hearing. He/she has the right to call witnesses in defence of the allegations. The Chairman of such an appeal will be either the Team Manager (if outside South Africa) or one of the SAOF executive committee members (if in South Africa).

Should the athlete be unhappy about the outcome of the hearing, they have the right to appeal against the decision. This appeal will be heard by a panel of two SAOF executive committee members (which will not include the executive committee member involved in the original decision). This appeal can only be heard in South Africa. The decision of this panel shall be binding and final.