Divisions
Team Scoring
Eligibility Standards
Frequency of Participation / Records
Ties and Tie Breakers
Uniforms and Bib Numbers
Protests
Track Events - General
Qualifying Times
Lane Assignments
Individual Races
Relay Races
4x100m Relay
Three-Lap Sprint Relay
Sub-Master's Sprint Relay
4x200m Relay
Sprint Relay
Senior's Relay
Pyramid Relay
Sub-Master's Distance Relay
Executive Relay
Women's Relay
President's Relay
Master's Relay
Distance Relay
Team Races
Women's 800m Team Race
Men's Mile Team Race
Road Races
Men's 5K
Women's 5K
Men's 10K
Women's 10K
Field Events
Team High Jump
Team Long Jump
Team Shot Put
Team Discus Throw
Decathlon Scoring for Field Events

Divisions:

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Division 1:

companies with over 50,000 employees.

Division 2:

companies with 10,000 to 50,000 employees. Division 2 will compete with Division 1 in all events. However, Division 2 will score and medal separately from Division 1.

Division 3:

companies with fewer than 10,000 employees. Individual Division 3 companies may compete in Division 1 or 2. Division 3 companies may combine with up to four(4) other Division 3 companies to compete in Division 3 together as one team, provided the combined employee base does not exceed 10,000. Combined teams are permitted to compete only in Division 3; no team can combine to compete in Division 1 or 2. Combined companies must compete as a team and pay the appropriate team entry fee.

Corporations are not allowed to enter any "B" teams in any event at the National meet.

The minimum number of athletes to qualify as a “team” is two (2).

Points awarded for each event are shown in the table below.

For Divisions 1 and 2, the seventeen (17) highest Event scores will be used to determine final team standings – twelve (12) highest for Division 3 – along with the appropriate Individual Race scores.

For Divisions 1 and 2, the eight (8) highest Individual Race scores – four (4) highest for Division 3 – will be used to determine final team standings along with the appropriate Relay, Field Event and Road Race scores.

If a team has multiple places of the same score, and one or more of those scores will be discarded from their final point total, the last score(s) of the same value will be the discarded score(s). Scores are sorted by the date and time of the corresponding event with the oldest event first.

If a team finishes an event in the preliminaries but gets disqualified, they will receive last place points for that event. If two or more teams are disqualified from the preliminaries, they will be tied for last place in that event. (Note: This assumes that they competed with a legal team. If not, the team receives zero points.)

If a team qualifies for the finals, but then is forced to scratch or is disqualified from that event's finals, they will be automatically awarded last place points in the finals for that event. If more than two teams scratch or are disqualified from the finals, then their position is determined based on their time from the preliminaries (but they can place no better than one place behind the slowest team that finishes in the finals). No additional teams will be added to the finals if one or more team scratches.

If a team is disqualified from the preliminaries but is later re-instated, it will be added as an additional team to the finals based on its time from the preliminaries.

Teams must start an event with a legal team to receive the participation point.

Teams may sign up for additional events on race day but must sign up before the first heat of that event is run; such a team will be assigned to whichever heat is needed to achieve balanced heats; if heats are balanced the team will be put in heat one in the next available lane.

All team members must fall into one of the following four (4) eligibility categories:

1. Employees:

Must have been employed continuously by the corporation forty-five days prior to the start of the National meet. They must be working 20 hours or more per week (for each of the six plus weeks leading up to the Nationals), and be on the corporation's payroll and have taxes withheld by the corporation.

2. Contractors:

Must be under contract with the corporation six months prior to the start of the National meet. Must be working 30 hours or more per week, for that corporation, for the entire six months. Eligible contractors comprise independent contractors; outsourced former employees who continue to perform the same work for the corporation, and staff who have long-term service commitments with the corporation, who take direction from corporate employees, and who work to fulfill corporate business objectives, even if they are paid through payroll or temporary staffing agencies. Employees of outside consulting firms who are assigned to client corporations on task assignments are not eligible to compete for those client corporations (example: Andersen Consulting employees on assignment to Hughes may not compete for Hughes). Contractors are not eligible to compete as alumni.

3. Retirees:

Must be pension eligible, former employees, with five or more years of service to the corporation and whose age plus years of service equals fifty-five years or more. Years of service accumulated with a business divested, sold or spun off from the parent corporation may be included in the calculation. Retirees must not be in the full time employment of another USCAA competing corporation. Retirees may not run in either the Executive Relay or President's Relay events, even if they still reside on the Board of Directors for that company. There is no limit on the number of retirees who may compete for a corporation.

4. Alumni/Spouses/Others:

Up to five ex-employees who have previously competed for a team in at least one USCAA National Track & Field Championship are eligible to compete for that team, provided they are not employed by another competing USCAA team. They may not run in either the Executive Relay or President's Relay events. No more than two ex-employees can come from a single company. Ex-employees who participated in Nationals exclusively as summer interns or as contractors are not eligible to compete under the alumni provision. Divisions 2 and 3 may substitute up to three spouses/significant others of participating team members for alumni under this provision.

If a corporate merger takes legal effect within the ninety days prior to a National championship, a participating company may enter the event under its pre-merger Division status. If a new corporate entity spins off from a larger corporation, athletes who have competed for the parent corporation at previous National Championships are eligible to compete with that corporation for up to six months after the effective date of the corporate split. This provision shall not apply if the new corporate entity enters a team in the subject event. Athletes participating under this "corporate split" provision may not run in the Executive or President's Relay events.

Employees who are dedicated to joint venture partnerships with another company or companies, but who are paid and receive benefits through their original employer, may compete only for their own employer. A company's joint venture partners are not eligible to compete on each other's teams so long as joint venture employees continue to be paid and receive benefits through their original employers. For example: Zebra Corp. and Kimodo Inc. form a joint venture; employees dedicated to this effort continue to be paid by Zebra and Kimodo, and are thus eligible to compete only for their company's respective team. If Kimodo does not field a team, its employees are not eligible to compete for Zebra. If a joint venture partnership becomes a corporate entity itself, and joint venture employees are paid and receive benefits through this new entity, employees may not compete for their original employers but may form a new team representing the new corporate entity, drawing on all employees of said corporation. For example: Zebra and Kimodo's joint venture becomes its own company, Striped Lizzie, and now has former Zebra and Kimodo employees on its payroll and benefits. Striped Lizzie employees may not compete for Zebra or Kimodo, except as otherwise provided under the alumni rule provisions.

In all age-restricted events, a participant's age is determined as of December 31 of the current year.

If a participant in a particular event does not meet the event's eligibility standards, the team will be disqualified from that event.

For all Divisions, each athlete may compete in a maximum of 4 prelims and/or a maximum of 4 finals, not to exceed a total of 6 events overall. Each field event will count as 1/2 against an athlete's tally.

If an athlete is a member of an event team that either DNFs or is disqualified in either prelims or finals, ALL athletes on that team will be charged for that event toward the event participation ceiling of 4 finals and 2 prelims (3 prelims for Division 3).

An individual may not run more than one leg in an event.

Event records must be set in a race for that Division. That is, if a Division 3 team opts to compete as a Division 1 team, that team can only set Division 1 records. If they bring in a performance that would have set a Division 3 record had they been competing in that Division, that record will not count. However, if the Meet Director decides to run the two Divisions together for a particular event, then each team's records will count in the Division for which the team is running.

At the discretion of the Meet Director, exhibition teams may compete as long as they do not impact the other teams in the finals (4 x 100 Relay only).

Overall team score ties will be broken using the following sequence of tie-breakers:

1. Head to head wins in common events, which both (all) teams included in their scoring. If more than two teams are tied, continue to use only the events in which each of the tied teams competed and included in their scoring events. In the case of multiple tied teams, score one point for beating the other tied teams, zero points for all other places. In the event that a team has multiple places of the same score, and one or more of those scores will be discarded from their final point total, the last score(s) of the same value will be the discarded score(s).
   
   
2. If still tied, the winner is determined by the highest number of first place (overall) finishes, then second places finishes, etc. (using only the scored events) until the tie is broken.
   
   
3. If unable to break the tie using these methods, the tie remains.
   
   

Track event ties:
If there is a tie in a Team Relay (most events), then the Fully Automatic Times (FAT) will be used (with totals to the hundredths, then thousandths if needed) to break the tie. If there is no FAT, then the official hand times will be added (truncated, no rounding, to the tenths) to break the tie. If a tie still exists, then the place remains a tie.

If there is a tie in a Team Race (Women’s 800m Team Race, Men’s Mile Team Race), for the team's total time, then the FAT times will be used (with totals to the hundredths, then thousandths if needed) to break the tie. If there is no FAT, then the official times will be added (truncated, no rounding, to the tenths) to break the tie. If a tie still exists, then the winning team will be determined by the fastest individual runner in that event.

If there is a tie in an individual race, when timed to the hundredths, then the FAT to the thousandths will be used to break the tie. If there is no FAT, then the place remains a tie.

Each tied team or athlete will receive the points for the tied place. For example, if two teams tied for third place in a Division 1 event, they will each receive third place points. In such a case, the next place receives fifth place points.

Road race ties:
Road race ties will be broken in the following manner:

1. Best individual age group place
   
   
2. Next best individual age group place
   
   
3. And so on, up to the required team scoring size
   
   
4. If a tie still exists, the best individual time in the race among the scoring team members, as determined using age-graded WAVA standards, will break the tie.
   
   

Field event ties:
Field event team ties will be broken by using the highest individual point score for a single field event among the scoring team members.

Each team should strive to have all participants wear matching jerseys/singlets and shorts with the company name prominently displayed on the front of the singlets.

The bib/race number, if used, must be attached to the front of the singlet, especially during road races, and must be entirely visible.

Each individual, for the Road Races, will be assigned a specific race number. Each runner must compete with his/her designated race number or be subject to disqualification.

If and when a discrepancy is ever found in either individual performances, event races or overall team scores, due to data entry errors or incorrect information given by teams, the official scorer is required to make any such adjustments, updating or revising event and/or team standings in the meet as appropriate, within fourteen days after the results are considered final.

Team Captains have 30 minutes to file a protest after results have been posted. For road races, Team Captains have 30 minutes to file corrections with the head scorer after initial results are posted, with an additional 30 minutes to review revised results postings before the results become final.

Any protest involving USCAA rules will be handled by the Protest Committee. Team captains should submit their protests on an official Protest Form, and return this form to the Announcers' table, after which the Protest Committee will be called to order. Protest Forms will not be considered if received more than 30 minutes after posting of the results is announced. When submitting a Protest Form, a $25 deposit (check made payable to the USCAA) must be submitted concurrently. If the protest is upheld, the $25 will be returned. If the protest is denied, the $25 will be forfeited to the USCAA. Protests regarding track infractions must have a USCAA Nationals event meet official as a witness in order to be reviewed by the Protest Committee.

Use of video stream may only be used to determine order of finish for road races and track events. Only meet officials' video stream may be used, and only for the express purpose of determining finishing order.

• On a metric track, all distances will be run in meters, with the exception of the Men's Mile Team Race. On standard tracks, all distances will be run in yards with the exception of the Women's 800 Meter Team Race.
  
  
• Athletes may compete in their assigned age group or a younger age group. An athlete may not compete in an older age group.
  
  
• Sign-in forms must be submitted to the check-in area at least 30 minutes prior to the start of the event.
  
  
• Teams/Individuals must check in at the check-in table at least 10 minutes prior to the start of the event.
  
  
• Each team must provide its own legal relay baton. A team must have a baton at all times during relay races or may be disqualified.
  
  
• There will be no disqualifications due to false starts unless, in the judgment of the Meet Official, it becomes excessive.
  
  
• Anyone exchanging out of the zone may be disqualified if judged by a Meet Official as gaining an advantage that affects the race results.
  
  
• USATF rules will apply, except where otherwise noted here, and with the proviso that "No material advantage, no foul."
  
  
• Teams qualify for final events as teams; individual athletes may be substituted.
  
  
• It is the discretion of the Meet Director to use a Box Start or Staggered Start in order to accommodate a single-section final.
  
  
  

Preliminaries:

In Divisions 1 & 2 (combined), if thirteen or more teams are entered, twelve teams advance to the finals. In Division 3, eight teams advance to the finals. (See the table below for team advancement.)

• For events with no qualifying standard: In a two-heat prelim the top 2 from each heat advance, with the next 8 fastest times.
  
  
• For events with a qualifying standard: If there are 8 to 12 teams, the fastest 8 will automatically advance to the finals. Teams finishing 9th through 12th may also advance to the finals if they meet the qualifying standard.

• Eleven teams: six teams in the fast heat; five teams in the slower heat
• Ten teams: six teams in the fast heat; four teams in the slower heat
• Nine teams: five teams in the fast heat; four teams in the slower heat.

Division 3:

Where prelims are held, teams wishing to advance to the finals must run the prelims. If fewer than 8 Div. 3 teams are entered 21 days prior to Nationals, no prelims will be held.

• Standard lane assignments are: 4 - 5 - 3 - 6 - 2 - 7 - 1 - 8
• Waterfall lane assignments are: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7 - 8
• Box start lane assignments are: 4/5 - 3/6 - 2/7 - 1/8 - etc. (4/5 - 3/6 ...)

If Preliminaries are not run, Finals lane assignments will be selected by random. If a need arises for a second heat in the same age group due to a large team turnout, heats will be selected by random. Every effort will be made to keep all runners in a division in the same heat. For example, if there are 5 D1 teams, 4 D2 teams, and 4 D3 teams entered in a race, the 5 D1 teams would be in one heat and the 8 D2 and D3 teams would be in the other heat.

Each team is allowed only one athlete per event, per age group. Individual events for all Divisions are:

200m Men 18+
200m Men 50+
200m Men 60+

400m Men 30+
400m Men 40+

200m Women 18+
200m Women 40+
200m Women 50+

400m Women 30+
400m Women 40+

All Individual events will use standard lane assignments (see below).

An athlete may run in multiple age groups for different individual races. For example, if a 50+ male decides to run in the 200m Men 18+ age group race, he may then come back and compete in the 400m Men 30+ age group race. Athletes may compete in their assigned age group or a younger age group. An athlete may not compete in an older age group

Relays With An Opening 100-meter (or 110-yd) Leg:

4x100m Relay:

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Four runners, two females and two male, with one man and one woman 40 years or older, each running 100m in the following order: 40+ woman, open woman, 40+ man, open man.

Relays With An Opening 200-meter (or 220-yd) Leg:

Three-Lap Sprint:

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Four runners, with at least one woman, running in order: 200m, 200m, 400m, 400m.

Benny Brown Sub-Master's Sprint Relay (Division 1 & 2 only):

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Four runners, all 30 years of age or older, with at least one woman AND two runners 35 or older (in addition to the one woman), running in order: 200m, 200m, 400m, 800m. Note: A typical team makeup is 2x35 year old men, 1x30 year old man and 1x30 year old woman. The woman, if 35, cannot count as both a 35 year old AND a woman.

4x200m Relay:

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Four runners, with a runner 40 years of age or older running the first leg, a runner 50 or older running the second leg, a woman running the third leg, and a man running the fourth leg (this order of competitors is fixed and must not be changed), running in order: 200m, 200m, 200m, 200m.

President's Relay (Division 1 & 2):

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Participants in the President's Relay must be at the officer level of their company or their direct reports, and must be primarily and significantly responsible for shaping and directing business objectives, direction, and strategy, with accountability for delivering results. Three runners, each an officer or anyone who reports to the president, or their direct reports, and all 30 years of age or older, running in order: 200m, 400m, 800m. Run as a single-section final.

President's Relay (Division 3):

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Three runners, all from the same company, each at the level of manager of managers (or the equivalent) or above, and all 30 or older, running in order: 200m, 400m, 800m. Run as a single-section final.

Sprint Relay:

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Six runners, with at least two women (one 30 years of age or older) AND one runner 40 years of age or older (in addition to the minimum two women), running in order: 200m, 200m, 400m, 400m, 200m, 200m. (Note: A typical team make-up is two women, one 40-year-old man, and three open men. A woman, if 40, cannot count as both a 40 year old AND a woman.) The first lap (both opening 200m legs) will be run entirely in lanes, with one team in each lane. After receiving the baton, the third runner may break for the inside lane when there is adequate room. The finals may be run as a 'two heat' final with times merged to determine place. Slow heat first, fast heat second.

Relays With An Opening 400-meter (or 440-yd) Leg:

Senior's Relay:

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Div 1 & 2 - Five runners, all 50 years of age or older, with at least one woman and one runner 60 years of age or older running the opening leg, running in order: 200m (60+), 400m, 200m, 600m, 400m. Div 3 - Three runners, all 50 years of age or older, with at least one woman, running in order: 400m, 200m, 600m.

Pyramid Relay:

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Five runners, with at least two women, running in order: 400m, 800m, 1200m, 800m, 400m. The first lap will be run in lanes, with 2 teams in some lanes when necessary. After receiving the baton, the second runner may break for the inside lane when there is adequate room.

Relays With An Opening 800-meter (or 880-yd) Leg:

Sub-Master's Distance Relay:

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Four runners, all 30 years of age or older, with at least one woman AND two runners 35 years or older (in addition to the minimum one woman), running in order: 800m, 400m, 1200m, 1600m. (Note: A typical team make-up is two 35-year-old men, one 30-year-old man and one 30-year-old woman. The woman, if 35, cannot count as both a 35 year old AND a woman.)

Executive Relay (Division 1 & 2 only):

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Four runners, each at the level of manager of managers (or the equivalent) or above and all 30 years of age or older, with at least one woman running either an 800m or 1600m leg, running in order: 800m, 400m, 800m, 1600m.

Women's Relay:

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Three female runners, one 40 years or older, whose combined ages total 90 years or more, running in order: 800m, 400m, 400m.

Master's Relay:

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Five runners, all 40 years of age or older, with at least one woman AND one runner 50 years or older (in addition to the minimum one woman), running in order: 800m, 400m, 800m, 200m, 200m. (Note: A typical team make-up is one 40-year-old women, one 50-year-old man and three 40-year-old men. The woman, if 50, cannot count as both a 50 year old AND a woman.) The first turn will be run in lanes, with two teams in a lane when necessary. After completing the turn, the first runner may break for the inside lane when there is adequate room.

Relays With An Opening 1600-meter (or Mile) Leg:

Distance Relay (Division 1 & 2 only):

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Five runners, with at least one woman AND one master (40 years of age or older), in addition to the one woman, running in order: 1600m (woman), 800m, 1600m (master), 1600m, 3200m. Waterfall start. Runners may break for the inside lane when there is adequate room.

Two female runners, each running 800m, with the summed time of both runners determining place.

Two male runners, each running one mile, with the summed time of both runners determining place.

• No runner may elect to run in a younger age group; all runners must run according to their true USCAA age. If an athlete competes in an age category other than their own, the athlete will be disqualified from the event; the event will be counted as a "final" for that athlete towards participation limits.
  
  
• Cross-country scoring is used. For example, the runner finishing third in the 50-54 age group in Divisions 1 & 2 Women's 5K Team Road Race will receive three points, as will the runner finishing third in the 25-29 age group in the same race.
  
  
• All road runners must be pre-registered at least one week prior to the start of the Nationals. Additions will be accepted until the Friday prior to Nationals.
  
  
• Any athlete who receives physical assistance or who is paced for more than 3 steps is subject to disqualification.

Unlimited number of male runners, each running 5K, using cross-country style scoring in five-year age groups (ten-year age groups in Division 3), with the summed score of the five best finishers (three best in Division 3) in any combination of age groups determining place.

Unlimited number of female runners, each running 5K, using cross-country style scoring in five-year age groups (ten-year age groups in Division 3), with the summed score of the four best finishers (three best in Division 3) in any combination of age groups determining place.

Unlimited number of male runners, each running 10K, using cross-country style scoring in five-year age groups, with the summed score of the five best finishers in any combination of age groups determining place.

Unlimited number of female runners, each running 10K, using cross-country style scoring in five-year age groups, with the summed score of the four best finishers in any combination of age groups determining place.

• Flight assignments will be based on random draw, as will athlete competing order. Requests for flight reassignment will be considered when an athlete will be competing at the same time in another event. Field event officials, when requested, will make as much accommodation as possible to all athletes in allowing them to make up throws/jumps while competing in their flight if a change of flight is not granted.
  
  
• Field event athletes should be pre-registered at least one week prior to Nationals. Any changes must be made at the sign-in table at least 45 minutes prior to the start of the flight.
  
  
• Athletes should check in at the event site 30 minutes prior to the start of the flight.
  
  
• No coaches or spectators will be allowed on the field.
  
  
• USATF rules will apply, except where otherwise noted here.
  
  
• Individuals on a team may compete without a partner.
  
  
• For safety purposes in the long jump, temporary take-off (or "board") markings on the runway are allowed; a facility's existing runway markings need not be the only markings used for take-off board/foul, and measurement purposes.
  
  

Up to three athletes per team, each competing in the high jump, using decathlon-type scoring on an age and gender-adjusted scale, with the summed score of the two best athletes determining a team's score. The team with the highest score wins. The high jump will start each flight at one of the two heights (3' or 5'). Each athlete can select which flight to enter in the high jump. Heights will be increased by 2" increments at all intervals. Athletes may pass at any height. Each athlete stays in the high jump competition until they have three consecutive misses.

Up to three athletes per team, each competing in the long jump, using decathlon-type scoring on an age and gender-adjusted scale, with the summed score of the two best athletes determining a team's score. The team with the highest score wins. Each athlete will be allowed four attempts in the long jump. Anyone failing to jump when called will forfeit that attempt in the competition.

Up to three athletes per team, each throwing the adjusted Shot weight for age and gender (shown in the table below), using decathlon-type scoring on an age and gender-adjusted scale, with the summed score of the two best athletes determining a team's score. The team with the highest score wins. Gender: Age: Shot Weight: Male  49 years or under  16 lbs Male  50-59 years  12 lbs Male  60 years or older    8 lbs Female  49 years or under    4 kilos (8 lbs, 13 oz) Female  50+ years    3 kilos

• Competitors may use their own weight implement if USATF inspection/weight instrumentation is available at the meet. Otherwise, common weight implements are to be used. Athletes using their own implements must have them weighed by the Meet Inspector at least 45 minutes prior to the start of the flight.
• Each athlete will be allowed four throws in the shot put. Anyone failing to throw when called will forfeit that attempt in the competition.

Up to three athletes per team, each throwing the adjusted Discus weight for age and gender (shown in the table below), using decathlon-type scoring on an age and gender-adjusted scale, with the summed score of the two best athletes determining a team's score. The team with the highest score wins. Gender: Age: Discus Weight: Male  49 years or under 2.0 kilos Male  50-59 years 1.5 kilos Male  60 years or older 1.0 kilo Female  49 years or under 1.0 kilo Female  50+ years 1.0 kilo

• Competitors may use their own weight implement if USATF inspection/weight instrumentation is available at the meet. Otherwise, common weight implements are to be used. Athletes using their own implements must have them weighed by the Meet Inspector at least 45 minutes prior to the start of the flight.
• Each athlete will be allowed four throws in the discus throw. Anyone failing to throw when called will forfeit that attempt in the competition.

Discus:

High Jump:

Long Jump: