Team FAQ's
What are the rules about State Championship Teams? What lifters can compete on my team?
Each USA Powerlifting registered club/team may only compete as a team in one state championship. This state championship will be the residence state of the club/team as established by the mailing address of the club/team president. During the state championship, only those club/team members with a residency in that state (as evidenced by the mailing address of their USA Powerlifting registration card) may be included on the team roster. (USA Powerlifting Rulebook, pg 3)
How many lifters do I need on my team?
You can have as many or as few lifters on your team as you want. 10 of you best scorers will count for your team points. On teams with less than 10, the same lifter may score in two divisions. This will be key strategy for smaller teams.
Can lifters score more than once if entered in different divisions?
Yes, if on team of less than 10. This allows for smaller teams, less than 10, to still have 10 scoring opportunities. So a team of 5 with each person in two divisions, say Open and Masters, will have 10 scoring opportunities and be competitive with bigger teams. On a team of 9, one lifter will be able to score twice (if two lifters in two divisions we will pick the best score)
Only teams with less than 10 on the roster will be allowed to have the same lifter score twice.
Why combine Open HW (heavyweight), MW (middle weight), LW (light weight), and then Masters, Teen by Age Points etc?
For the State Meet we have so many divisions, weight classes, etc that it is easy to load lifters into less competitive divisions to score points. Combining some of these divisions and weight classes makes this harder to do and therefore more competitive. We understand the game can still be played but setting up scoring this way makes it more difficult. Part of team competition understanding the scoring and using it to your best advantage.
What happens if there is a tie?
In the case of a tie, the team having the largest number of first places will be ranked first. In the case of a tie between two teams having the same number of first places, the one having the most second places will be classified first, and so on through the placing of the maximum of five scoring lifters. Should teams finish equally after this procedure has been applied, then the team with the greater total number of DOTS points will be declared the higher placed.