Page 51 - 2021-22 By-Laws

Rule 9 - Contests

RULE 9 – CONTESTS
These GENERAL RULES apply to all interschool Contests.
9-1 Contests Must be Sanctioned by Principal
No games, meets, or tourneys, shall be played by a member School without the sanction of
the principal.
9-2 Contests Subject to IHSAA rules and Policies
Interschool athletic Contests shall be subject to the rules of the Association.
9-3 Contests to be Under Supervision of Participating Schools’ Principals
All athletic games, meets, tourneys, and interschool athletic Contests participated in by
the member Schools belonging to the IHSAA must be held under the direct supervision,
management and auspices of the Schools concerned or under the direct supervision,
management and auspices of the IHSAA.
NOTE: It is strongly recommended that a licensed physician be present or on call during
all Contests.
9-4 All Organized Athletic Contests are Considered a “Contest”
Participation of students in an organized athletic Contest during the Contest Season with or
against players not attending their School constitutes a game. An unauthorized organized
scrimmage or practice during the Contest Season by student athletes with or against teams
or players not belonging to their school is considered a game. It is not considered a game
when players are from a junior high school and its parent school.
9-5 Official’s Decisions are Final
In all Contests the decisions of the officials shall be considered final and binding.
9-6 Member Schools Limited to One Tournament Series Team; Students May Only
Represent Their Own School
Member Schools may maintain any number of teams in the same sport, but only One (1) team
may represent a School in an IHSAA Tournament Series. Students may represent:
a. only the School in which they are presently Enrolled;
b. only One (1) School in any sport during a Tournament Series; and
c. only One (1) team in an IHSAA Tournament Series.
9-7 Unsanctioned School Athletic Activities Shall Not Be Combined with IHSAA
Sanctioned Contests
High school intra-squad scrimmages and athletic Contests shall not be conducted as
preliminaries, curtain raisers or double headers to non-school sponsored athletic team sport
events.
9-8 All-Boys Teams May Not Compete Against All-Girl Teams
All-boys teams and all-girls teams shall not participate against each other in an interschool
athletic Contest.
9-9 Participation in Interscholastic Competition on Single Gender Sport Teams.
The IHSAA recognizes boys baseball, boys basketball, boys cross-country, football, boys golf,
boys soccer, boys swimming, boys tennis, boys track & field and wrestling as Single Gender
Sports offered just to male students and recognizes girls basketball, girls cross-country, girls
golf, gymnastics, girls soccer, girls swimming, softball, girls tennis, girls track & field, and
volleyball as Single Gender Sports offered just to female students.
a. A student’s interscholastic participation in a School’s program in a Single Gender Sport is
limited to students whose Birth Gender matches the gender of the Single Gender Sport.
b. A student whose Birth Gender is male may not participate in a Single Gender Sport program
for female students.
c. A student whose Birth Gender is female may not participate in a Single Gender Sport
program for male students.
d. Exception:
(1.) During the Contest Season: if a School has a boys’ program in baseball,
basketball, football, soccer or wrestling, but not a comparable girls’ program
in those sports (for the purposes of this section baseball and softball are not
comparable sports), a female student may participate in the School’s boys’
program in baseball, basketball, football, soccer and wrestling.
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