Sanctioned Tournament Application

RECEIVE A SUBSIDY FOR ALL APPROVED SANCTIONED TOURNAMENTS

Important Notes for Completion of Application

ALL players participating in a Pickleball Canada – sanctioned tournament MUST be Pickleball Canada members.
Tournament sanctioning MUST be applied for and approved before registration opens.
All tournaments must use DUPR as the official rating system.
Pickleball.com is Pickleball Canada’s official tournament software and must be used for all sanctioned tournaments.
When completing a tournament sanctioning application, responses must be included for each required question.
- Even if the question doesn’t apply, “N/A” will be required as a response for the form to be accepted/submitted.
For all events, the Pickleball Canada International Player Policy is in effect. If a sanctioned tournament includes international participants, they must sign a liability waiver acknowledging they are not covered by Pickleball Canada’s insurance, and that this waiver must be collected before the start of competition.
Tournament subsidy amount varies depending on the sanctioning tier.

Major Championships: Reserved for Provincial/Territorial Tournaments. All medal matches must be officiated by Level 2, or Certified referees. Participants must be Pickleball Canada Members. DUPR must be used as the ranking system.

Tier 1 – Premier Tournaments: Reserved for standard level competitive tournaments. All medal matches must be officiated by Level 2, or Certified referees. Non-medal matches are encouraged to be officiated. Participants must be Pickleball Canada Members. DUPR must be used as the ranking system.

Tier 2 – Associate Tournaments: Reserved for associate tournaments but looking to still be competitive. All medal matches must be officiated by Level 1 or higher. Non-Medal matches are encouraged to be officiated but not required. Participants must be Pickleball Canada Members. DUPR must be used as the ranking system.

Tier 3 – Affiliate Tournaments: Reserved for smaller community or developmental tournaments. Referees are encouraged but not required. The tournament is encouraged to provide referees where possible. Participants must be Pickleball Canada Members. DUPR must be used as the ranking system.

CLICK HERE FOR APPLICATION

Sanctioned Tournaments

A Sanctioned Tournament is one which, upon request from the Tournament Director, has been endorsed by Pickleball Canada as meeting standards defined by the international rules of pickleball and Pickleball Canada. To be ‘sanctioned’ by Pickleball Canada means an event meets those standards, is well-organized, fair and safe for competitors, and follows the rules and regulations set by the governing bodies.

Purposes of Sanctioning

To optimize the operation of pickleball tournaments across Canada.
To challenge tournament organizers to host top-quality events that will showcase pickleball to the membership of Pickleball Canada, the public and the media.
To ensure that tournaments are delivered in a safe and developmentally appropriate fashion consistent with the Long-Term Development Plan approved by Canadian Sport for Life Society and Pickleball Canada.
To ensure alignment and consistency across provinces and territories.
To share responsibilities between Pickleball Canada and provinces/territories, where Pickleball Canada sets the criteria/requirements, and the provinces/territories assist in the execution and monitoring. This includes recruiting an Affiliated Club to work with an independent tournament director, where possible.

Benefits of Hosting a Sanctioned Tournament

Benefits for the Tournament:

Receive up to a $600 subsidy to go towards any costs/expenses the tournament may have
Posting the Tournament on the Sanctioned Tournament Calendar on the Pickleball Canada website
Use of the Pickleball Canada Sanctioned Logo for promotion of tournament
General liability insurance for the event
Increased participation because the tournament is recognized as a high-quality experience
Public acknowledgement that your tournament supports Pickleball Canada, governing body of Pickleball in Canada

Benefits for the Player:

Consistent standard of tournament experience
Opportunity to obtain and progress their DUPR ratings.
Greater number of matches with referees
Sport accident insurance for the player as Pickleball Canada members and Athlete accident claim report

Criteria for Sanctioning

For a tournament to be granted sanctioning, the tournament director must follow the application process and abide by all sanctioning requirements listed below. These requirements must be met prior to the date of tournament registration. It is highly recommended that sanctioned tournaments involve an Affiliated Club as either the tournament host or partner.

The criteria for sanctioning are laid out in Section 12-Sanctioned Tournament Policies of the Official Rulebook – International Edition for all Pickleball Canada sanctioned tournaments.

Additionally;

All players must be Pickleball Canada members for Pickleball Canada sanctioned tournaments.
The tournament should avoid dates already established for other sanctioned tournaments in that Province/Territory or conflict with a Provincial/ Regional Championship within the region.
The Tournament Director (TD) must complete and submit a Pickleball Canada Tournament Sanctioning Application at least 15 days prior to the scheduled event registration opening.
The TD shall include a letter of support from the respective provincial/territorial pickleball organization. Support may only be withheld where there is a date conflict or concern as outlined in the Right of Refusal clause.
The TD must follow all Official Tournament Rules for all Pickleball Canada sanctioned tournaments.
The TD must declare the make and model of the ball that will be used. The ball must be listed on the list of Approved Balls for all Pickleball Canada sanctioned tournaments. Nationals and Provincial Tournaments are required to use Franklin balls.
The TD must ensure the safety conditions outlined in the Tournament Director’s Guide are followed.
The TD confirms all government requirements and protocols for health and safety will be implemented and enforced for the duration of the tournament.
Within one week of the end of a tournament, complete results must be uploaded to DUPR for all Pickleball Canada sanctioned tournaments.
The tournament shall be open to all players who meet the general requirements of any tournament, such as age or skill level. Entries may be limited by geographical locations such as city, county, regional, or province of residency.
Wheelchair Players – In accordance with the requirements of the Canadian Human Rights Act, Pickleball Canada will not discriminate against qualified individuals with disabilities on the basis of disability in its services, programs or activities. Rules for wheelchair players are in the Official Rulebook – International Edition.
A TD who applies for and receives sanctioning agrees to meet and abide by all the sanctioning requirements. If all sanctioning requirements are not met, consequences will be applied, up to and including results being disqualified from DUPR ratings and the host club and or TD being barred from future sanctioning requests.

Pickleball Canada Right of Refusal

Pickleball Canada reserves the right to refuse to sanction tournaments, and not list tournaments on the Pickleball Canada website/calendar if the TD/organization requesting sanctioning has failed to comply with all Pickleball Canada policies, including the Pickleball Canada Policy – Code of Conduct, or has committed an infraction as defined in the Pickleball Canada Policy – Complaints and Discipline. This decision would be communicated to the applicant in writing and subject to appeal. The appeal process will follow the complaints review process outlined in the Complaints and Discipline policy.

Tournament Tiers

Tier	Description	Referee Requirements	Subsidy Amount	Rating Requirement	Pickleball Canada Membership Requirements
Major Championship	Provincial/ Territorial Championship	All Medal Matches must be officiated by Level 2 or Certified Referees Non-Medal matches are encouraged to be officiated	TBD	DUPR	100%
Tier 1	Premier Tournaments	All Medal Matches must be officiated by Level 2 or Certified Referees Non-Medal matches are encouraged to be officiated	$600	DUPR	100%
Tier 2	Associate Tournaments	All Medal Matches must be officiated by a minimum Level 1 Non-Medal matches are encouraged to be officiated	$300	DUPR	100%
Tier 3	Affiliate Tournaments	Provide referees where possible	$200	DUPR	100%

Note:

The Tournament Directors should follow Pickleball Canada’s Officiating Program minimum payment guideline;
currently $7 for Level 1, $10 for Level 2 and $15 for Certified Referees.

Approved Scoring Options

The recommended tournament scoring option is best 2/3 games to 11 points, win by 2 points.
Other options include:
- Best 2/3 games to 11 points, 1 game to 15 or 1 game to 21. All formats win by two points.
- Round robin brackets may also use 1 game to 11, win by two points, if the bracket has six or more teams.

Approved Skill and Age Events

Skill Rated Events

A skill rated event is open to players of any age, including Juniors, Adults, and Seniors. A Senior skill rated event is open only to players who are 50+.
All participants in a sanctioned tournament must have a DUPR account.
- Should both players choose to, they may play up ONLY a 1.0 rating level from their current DUPR.

Combining Age/Skill

Note: Sanctioned Tournaments will not allow events to use an “and under” skill requirement (e.g Skill 4.0 and under), with the exception being for events with a skill requirement of 3.0 (where tournament directors would have the option of running a Skill 3.0 and under event, allowing players with a minimum skill of 2.0 to participate).

Combined Skill/Age Events consist of Approved Skill Levels broken down into Approved Age Groups. It is age groups within skill levels.

Age levels within each skill group can be merged by the Tournament Director as needed. As an example, 2.5 19+ may be combined with 2.5 35+. This would be a 2.5/19+ event.
Any player or team in a skill/age tournament requesting to play up in a skill level higher than their rating will be allowed to do so only to a 1.0 skill level higher.
Any player or team in a skill/age tournament requesting to play down in age group will be allowed to do so at the discretion of the tournament director. For example, a player or team with the youngest player 64 years old and a 3.5 rating may request to enter any an age bracket that is lower than 65+. and/or any skill level at or above 3.5.

Age Determination

A Player’s age for the entire tournament year shall be determined by his/her age on December 31st of the tournament year in question.
There are three major age groupings:
- Juniors -18 and under
- Adults -19 to 49 (minimum required)
- Seniors – 50 and above (minimum required)

Events by Age

Juniors

Boys and Girls
Singles, Doubles, Mixed Doubles
10 and under, 12 and under, 14 and under, 18 and under

Adults

Men and Women
Singles, Doubles, Mixed Doubles
Age 19 – 49 years

Seniors

Men and Women
Singles, Doubles, Mixed Doubles
Age 50 and above

Events by Skill

Men and Women
Singles, Doubles, Mixed Doubles
Open, Seniors
2.5, 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, 4.5, 5.0

Concussion Protocols

Tournament directors shall:

Agree to abide by the Pickleball Canada Concussion Protocol during their sanctioned tournament
Agree to share an electronic version of the the Concussion Protocol – Pre-Tournament Package as part of the player information package, and have available the incident report and letters below.

Concussion Protocol – Pre-tournament Package

Incident Report

Medical Assessment Letter

Medical Clearance Letter

Athlete Tournament Waiver

Waiver and Acknowledgement – International Players