Page 109 - Judge Manual 2017

procedures or to augment the hearing procedures.

Penalizing a Support Person, Rule 64.4(a)

When the protest committee finds in the hearing, that a support person has
broken a rule, rule 64.4(a) permits the protest committee to take action against
the support person. It may issue a warning, which has historically been the
outcome in most cases. More serious breaches will result in more serious
actions, such as excluding the support person from the event or venue, or
removing any privileges or benefits. This exclusion may be for a limited time,
such as one day, or for an extended period up to the end of the event. Consider
also whether to exclude the support person from social events within the venue
or outside of the venue. Decide further whether the support person would be
permitted to return to the venue after the event to pack up gear. Before
removing accreditation from a support person, be sure whether it is needed to
access meals that have already been paid, or to enter the athlete’s village to
sleep. The protest committee may also take other action within its jurisdiction
as provided by the rules.
Penalizing a Boat for a Breach by a Support Person, Rule 64.4(b)

NOTE: World Sailing recognizes that the rules regarding support persons
will benefit from clarifications and also that there is some uncertainty about
applying the rules in their current form. This may lead to minor changes to
the RRS in January 2018. However, World Sailing is of the opinion that
following the guidance provided in this manual will ensure compliance with
the RRS as they are currently written, and ensure due process.

New rule 64.4(b) permits the protest committee to penalize a competitor for the
breach of a rule by a support person. The penalty may be given whether or not
the competitor or boat broke a rule, if the conditions of rule 64.4(b)(1) or (2) are
satisfied. It is, therefore, wise to consider if the boat also broke the rule or if the
protest committee believes that a penalty against the boat is a reasonable
possibility.

A hearing under rule 60.3(d) about a support person is not a protest hearing
because a protest is defined as an allegation that a boat has broken a rule.
When the protest committee calls a hearing to consider whether a support
person has broken a rule, the protest committee can also protest the boat
associated with the support person. If possible, the rule alleged to have been
broken in the protest will be the same rule the support person is alleged to have
broken. If the rule alleged to be broken by the support person is not a rule that
a boat can break, the protest committee can use an associated rule. For
example, if a support person breaks a coach boat restriction in the SIs which
may have helped his or her sailor, the protest against the boat could cite rule
41.

Because the protest and the rule 60.3(d) action arise out of the same incident,
they can be heard together in the same hearing. The support person is a party
under clause (e) in the definition Party and the boat is a party under clause (a)
in the definition Party.
The benefit of protesting the boat as well as calling a hearing about a support
person is that it allows the boat that is subject to a penalty under rule 64.4(b) to