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ORGANIZATION

-1-    Official international competitions shall only be organised by national Federations that are members of C.I.P.S. The organising Federation shall be officially responsible for the competition under consideration.

-2-    Only the members of a national Federation affiliated with C.I.P.S. and F.I.P.S.e.d. who have fully paid their annual membership fees shall be allowed to participate; their Federations shall designate them.

The national teams’ anglers must hold the same nationality as the Country that they represent. Only one (1) foreign competitor is allowed in each team, on the condition that the following requirements are met:

• The competitor shall have resided in said Country for at least 5 years and he/she shall hold an official document confirming that;

 The application shall be forwarded by the Nation the angler wishes to represent.

All competitors shall always be able to prove their nationality by means of national IDs or passports.

All supporting documents shall be produced at the 1^st team captains’ meeting.

Any angler who has already participated in a World Championship or in any international competition representing a Nation, shall not be allowed to compete for any other Nation.

Only teams and individual “pairs” that are members of the national Federations shall be allowed to take part in World and Zone (Europe, etc.) Championships.

In order to apply to organize a championship, the Nation under consideration must have participated at least once, over the previous three years, in the championship that they wish to organize.

A preliminary program shall imperatively be sent to F.I.P.S.e.d.’s Secretariat before the 31^st October of the preceding year.

With the exception of the World Fishing Games, F.I.P.S.e.d. is officially tasked with providing the printed material, certificates and rankings for the awarding of prizes for all championships; therefore, the organizing Nation shall pay for all board and lodging expenses (room, meals and closing gala dinner) of the person performing such tasks. Said person’s stay may begin on the eve of the first day of practice and end on the day after the closing dinner; F.I.P.S.e.d. shall pay for the relevant travelling expenses.

For all F.I.P.S.e.d. championships, the organizing Nation shall cover all board and lodging expenses (room, meals and closing gala dinner) for two members of F.I.P.S.e.d.’s Executive Committee, and for the person in charge of the rankings; their stay may begin on the eve of the first day of practice and end on the day after the closing dinner.

No championship organization shall be entrusted to a Nation if that Nation does not undertake to put live fish back into the water after they have been measured (it is forbidden to kill fish).

The Nation organizing a World or Zone Championship shall be responsible for procuring the trophies, which will be paid for by F.I.P.S.e.d.; the organizing Nation shall envisage 3 trophies for the team competitions, 6 trophies for the “pair” competitions and 2 trophies for the “pair” who has caught the biggest fish. F.I.P.S.e.d. shall refund a maximum amount of € 550 for 11 trophies. Such trophies shall feature a plate, carrying a “F.I.P.S.e.d.” engraving or F.I.P.S.e.d.’s logo as well as the place and date of the championship. An invoice will be required in order to prove trophy-related expenses. If the aforesaid provisions (concerning the plate/logo) are not complied with, F.I.P.S.e.d. shall not reimburse any money. F.I.P.S.e.d. shall provide the medals.

Programmes and invitations for all championships shall only be sent to Nations that are members of F.I.P.S.e.d. (no invitations shall be sent to clubs or individuals).

-3-    Each C.I.P.S. member Nation shall be allowed to present one team only, composed of 2 “pairs” of competitors. Depending on the capacity of the boats, the competitors of a “pair” may fish together on one boat or separately on two different boats. Maximum 2 reserves will be allowed for each Nation. If an angler is replaced, the substitution shall be final.

If a C.I.P.S. member Nation isn’t able to have 2 “pairs” to compose a team, the relevant anglers shall be allowed to participate as individual “pair” (those anglers competing only as individual “pair” will not be included in the scoring for the Nations’ medals). Maximum 1 individual “pair” per Nation is allowed to participate, provided that the Nation of belonging has not registered any team.

No competitor shall be allowed to participate as an individual.

The number of entries for each Nation may also be limited by the availability of boats through the host nation. In this case, priority shall be given to the anglers who are part of a team and not to individual “pairs”.

Before the beginning of each leg, the team captains shall be entitled to replace competitors, by selecting them among the one included in the relevant championship participation list. It shall be possible to replace one or two members of a “pair”. It shall also be allowed to replace two competitors belonging to two different “pairs” with the two official reserves. Maximum two changes shall be allowed. Substituting one competitor from one “pair” to another “pair” is forbidden. It shall not be possible to replace any angler of individual “pairs”. Under no circumstances, during an event, may a competitor who has been substituted be subsequently reintegrated in the team.

In the event of any injury during a competition, the regular participant may be replaced by one of the reserves designated in official documents, with the possibility of replacing fishing tackle. Angler substitutions shall be authorised by a Jury member.

-4-    Competitions shall be organized at watercourses, such as rivers, canals, or at suitable stretches of water, such as lakes, etc.; it must be possible to fish along the entire width and length of the venue. The fishing area selected for the competition shall be specified in the program, and the competition shall actually take place right at the indicated venue.

-5-      The venue shall not expose the competitors or the spectators to any kind of danger.

One or more members of the Technical Commission or a competent delegate shall inspect the venue that may be selected for a championship, and said inspection shall take place at the same time of the year as to that proposed for the organization of the competition under consideration. F.I.P.S.e.d. shall pay for the travelling expenses (including flight and train tickets or car) of the Technical Commission’s member(s), while the organizers shall cover all transfer costs from the airport or train station, and will pay for accommodation and meals. A report of the inspection shall be submitted to the Executive Committee of F.I.P.S.e.d. for evaluation and approval. The final decision on the approval or rejection of a venue by F.I.P.S.e.d. shall be communicated to the candidate Nation.

With regard to accommodation, participating Nations shall have two options:

1- Opting for the official accommodation proposed by the organizing Nation (optional). In that event, the organizing Nation shall clearly indicate the terms and conditions for the stay, including:

The half-board price per night per person for, depending on the number of persons sharing each room, regardless of the duration of the stay (full board cannot be mandatory). The participating Nation shall specify the dates of their anglers’ stays (the term “official stay” used by many Nations, starting on Thursday, has never appeared in any regulations, and therefore should not be used);

The price of the closing gala dinner.

The accommodation terms proposed to the Nations shall first be approved by the Technical Commission.

2- Selecting their hotels by themselves.

If this is the case, participating Nations shall be required to communicate their accommodation-related choices to the organizing Nation upon registration (in the official registration form).

In both cases (participation through or without the help of the organizers), the registration fee is € 1,350.00 per team, which includes 8 closing gala dinners and 6 fishing permits for the whole duration of the championship (the period of practice and the competition itself), insurance and sundry expenses such as gifts, cups, trophies, etc.

The registration fee is € 300 per each individual “pair” which includes the closing gala dinner, the fishing permit for the whole duration of the championship (the period of practice and the competition itself), insurance and sundry expenses such as gifts, cups, trophies, etc.

The Federations, in addition to the medals devoted to the official members of the Delegation, will be allowed to ask on place for extra medals (up to a maximum of 3 per team), upon payment of a contribution of € 25 per extra medal, which will also include the diploma. The fees for extra medals shall be paid to the organisers, who will then transfer the sum to F.I.P.S.e.d. In no case and for no reason extra medals in a number higher than that provided by these Rules may be requested from F.I.P.S.e.d.

For the closing gala dinner, be it a dinner with table service or a buffet dinner, participating Nations shall be assigned a number of seats corresponding to the number of gala dinner seats they reserved.

If no details about the accommodation are provided by the deadline set by the organizers, the participating Nations shall imperatively have to book their accommodations themselves and shall still pay € 1,350.00 to the organizers.

Any Nation that undertakes to take part in a championship by filling in the relevant registration form but does not show up, shall, in any case, pay the contribution of € 1,350.00 to the organizing Nation. Nations failing to comply with this provision shall be forbidden from taking part in and organizing future championships.

All Nations shall communicate their arrival dates to the organizing Nation at least one week before the first training day. Any absent Nation (that has not arrived) in the last training day shall be considered as a WITHDRAWING Nation and shall not be allowed to participate in the championship (see penalties under article 38 § c).

Together with the event programme, the organizing Nations shall provide a list of hotels, lodgings, rooms and campsites located within a 20-km range from the venue.

The organizers shall see to it that all registration forms are duly filled in and carry the mobile phone numbers of one delegate and one team captain. Addresses and emergency telephone numbers (police, fire fighters, hospitals, etc.) shall be provided in the program leaflets.

Any Nation requesting rental boats, but not showing up at the championship venue, shall anyway pay the rental fee to the organizing Nation. Nations failing to comply with this provision shall be forbidden from taking part in and organizing future championships.

The “Carnivorous Artificial Bait Boat Angling” World Championship shall usually take place between September 15 and October 15. These indications may undergo changes, even substantial ones, based on the climatic conditions of the host countries and on the characteristics of the competition venues. The dates should be decided also considering the “Carp Fishing Championship”, so that the two championships do not take place at the same time.

-6-    The waterbody surface required for a competition shall be of at least 30,000 m²/boat (e.g.: 10 Nations, 10 boats = water basin of at least 300,000 m² (30 hectares); 10 Nations, 20 boats = water basin of at least 600,000 m² (60 hectares)).

TEAM MANAGERS’ MEETING

-7-      It would be advisable that general stewards attend the team captains meetings.

In the event that a team captain or a Nation’s delegate is absent, the President of F.I.P.S.e.d. or a delegated representative shall draw lots.

1^st meeting - On Tuesday afternoon or on the eve of the first training day

During this first meeting, an international Jury shall be appointed, pursuant to article 35 of the present Official Rules. Then, the following operations shall be carried out:

• Roll call of Nations.

• The boats (supplied by the organisers, personal or rented out of the organization) shall be divided into two groups, namely groups A and B, depending on engine power (group A shall consist of boats with more powerful engines, group B boats with less powerful engines). All the boats shall be numbered progressively from 1 to n (with n being equal to the total number of boats participating in the championship).

Lot drawing aiming at matching the boats made available by the organisers with the “pairs” of the various Nations. Lots shall be drawn so as to attribute a boat from each of the two groups A, and B to the two “pairs” of each national team. No lot drawing shall be required for the boats belonging to the competitors or rented directly by the latter. Such boats shall be attributed the numbers that have not been given to the boats made available by the organizers. Boats directly rented outside the organization shall be utilised only by the persons who have taken the boats in location.

Individual “pairs”, if entered, will be equally distributed by drawing lots in groups A and B.

• After drawing lots for the boats, each team captain shall indicate which “pair” shall belong to group A, and which “pair” shall belong to group B. Once the captain has appointed the group of belonging for each “pair” of his team, he won’t be allowed to make any changes to the group anymore. Group changes are no more allowed during competition and, in the case one or both members of a “pair” are changed with one or two members the reserve “pair”, these reserve anglers shall become members of the same group (A or B) of the “pair” where the modifications have been done.

• Various information about the progress of the championship.

As a general rule, there shall be a 10-minute time interval between the departures of groups A and B. Depending on the venue, the organisers, in agreement with the International Jury, shall decide to increase or decrease the time interval between the departures of the different groups.

There shall be a 10-minute time interval between the arrivals of each group (A or B). The arrival order of each group in each leg shall always be the same as the starting order for the same leg.

In case of thunderstorm or other unforeseen situations causing an immediate competition stop, the boat arrival order can be random.

The organizers shall draw up a departure list and give it to all participants.

2^nd meeting - On Wednesday afternoon or on the eve of the second training day

• Lot drawing aiming at matching the boats made available by the organisers with the “pairs” of the various Nations. Lots shall be drawn so that the two “pairs” composing a national team are distributed in each group (A or B).

• Various information about the progress of the championship.

3^rd meeting - On Thursday afternoon or on the eve of the first competition day

• Lot drawing aiming at matching the boats made available by the organisers with the “pairs” of the various Nations. Lots shall be drawn so that the two “pairs” composing a national team are distributed in each group (A or B).

• Draw for the start order of the boats for the first two legs (e.g.: 1^st leg: group B, then group A. For the 2^nd leg, the group that started first in the 1^st leg shall start second). The departing criteria for the boats belonging to each group will be established during each championship, according to the specific characteristics of the competition venue as to guarantee the best security conditions to all competitors. This decision will be taken, in agreement with the organizers, by the F.I.P.S.e.d. President and/or the members of its Steering Committee present on place.

• Various information about the progress of the championship.

4^th meeting - On Friday afternoon or on the eve of the second competition day

• Notification of the results to the participating Nations.

• Lot drawing aiming at matching the boats made available by the organisers with the “pairs” of the various Nations. Lots shall be drawn so that the two “pairs” composing a national team are distributed in each group (A or B).

• Various information about the progress of the championship.

5^th meeting - On Saturday afternoon or on the eve of the third competition day

• Notification of the results to the participating Nations.

• Lot drawing aiming at matching the boats made available by the organisers with the “pairs” of the various Nations. Lots shall be drawn so that the two “pairs” composing a national team are distributed in each group (A or B).

• Lot drawing aiming at allocating the order of depart of the boats for the third leg. Lot drawing will be carried out without keeping into consideration the group of belonging, so drawing by lot random one boat for each participating Nation up to creating the group that will depart first. The remaining boats (one per each participating Nation) will compose the group that will depart as second.

• Various information about the progress of the championship.

NB: Captains’ meetings are informative meetings, where guidelines are provided for the competitions. Under no circumstance shall changes to the Rules be made during the captains’ meetings. The Rules shall only be changed at F.I.P.S.e.d. Executive Committee’s annual meetings, based on the remarks that shall be sent in writing by national Federations to F.I.P.S.e.d.’s Secretary General.

GENERAL PROVISIONS

-8-    The participating teams may use boats made available by the organisers, their own boats, or boats rented by themselves outside of the organization. In that case, they shall compulsorily insure their boats themselves, by abiding by the instructions given by the organizers in the competition program. They shall also fully equip their boats with boat equipment, including an anchor.

The organizing Nation shall make boats available to the teams that ask for one, for a rental fee (for the duration of the championship, including the training period); said fee shall be specified in the program (it shall also include fuel costs and insurance).

The organisers shall make sure that the competition program puts well in evidence the engines power that will be made available as well as the maximal speed limits allowed, which shall correspond to the average speed of the boats supplied by the organisers, on condition that this speed limit is authorized by the navigation rules in force on the concerning waters. Stewards shall ensure the respect of the speed limits.

The organizing Nation shall only be responsible for insurance, boat equipment and anchor for the boats made available by the organizers. The anchor must have an adequate size for the boat it will be used on; the anchor must be supplied with a cord of minimum 25 metres long.

Boats made available by the organizers shall be equipped with an echo sounder able to scanning horizontally (side) either vertically (bottom) and supplied with a screen of at least 7 inches (18 cm). In the event of echo sound malfunctioning, boat shall be considered as damaged, so it has to be substituted.

The material required to signal dangerous situations for the boats shall also be provided by the organizers.

Should any participating Nation wish to rent boats, it should inform the organizing Nation at least two months before the competition start.

All personal or rental boats shall be handed over to the organisers upon the arrival of the Nations at the championship venue. All personal boats shall be made available to the teams after the end of the championship, and the rental boats shall be returned by the organisers.

During both the trainings and the competitions, each Nation shall be allowed to put maximum two boats in the water. On training days, using a third boat shall only be allowed if the organisers have a sufficient number of boats available to meet the requests of all participating Nations.

During the two training days, the team members, the captain and the vice-captain may be on board their national teams’ boats (on condition that these latter are homologated for 4 persons).

Between one leg and the other, the boats shall be kept in a confined area under the organizers’ responsibility for the entire championship duration. Every day teams shall dispose, before and after each leg, of one hour in order to prepare their boats. These operations shall be carried out in the presence of sunlight or in a place with an adequate lighting. During the following each leg, the boats shall be handed over to the organisers, who shall fill up their fuel tanks and shall charge the batteries (for private and rental boats, the battery chargers shall be made available to the organisers). The organizers shall ensure that some electric recharging points are present in the boats storage during the trainings as well as in the competition days (an electric charger every two boats).

Moreover, the organizers shall make sure that a fast Wi-Fi connection is supplied in the departing and arrival places of competitors.

Competitors may reach the venue by their personal means of transportation.

One steward shall be present on each boat. The organizers have the obligation to supply a sufficient number of stewards tallying the number of boats in competition.

Only the stewards of the “pairs” of the organizing Nation shall be foreigners, and they shall be drawn among the present Nations. These stewards cannot be selected among captains neither reserves. Those who volunteer to act as the stewards of the organising Nation’s “pairs” shall have to guarantee their presence for the two legs.

In case of force majeure, to fill the lack of stewards, the Jury can appeal the present Nations for appointing, among their members, the necessary stewards. Stewards must obligatory be of a different nationality than the “pairs” of their competence.

It shall not be allowed to use reserves as stewards, except for the last leg.

The owners of boats directly rented outside the organization cannot act as stewards, as drivers or be present on board of their personal boat during the training or competition days.

A competitor holder of a boat license and of all necessary documents will have the right of driving the boat made available by the organizers. In any case, the boat owner will continue acting as steward.

The stewards shall have thorough knowledge of the rules of the competition.

Only the stewards of the “pairs” shall be entitled to:

• verify the angling behaviour of the competitor he is responsible for. When a steward ascertains an irregularity, he must immediately warn the competitors assigned to him (and the international jury in case the seriousness of the infringement requires it);

• verify that the catch is live and in perfect condition, and comply with the regulation (fish size);

• immediately measure each catch; fish length will be taken in centimetres on a measuring board featuring a ruler; measurements shall be adjusted upwards the integer as it follows. For example, if the measure of a fish is included between 30.0 and 30.4 cm, it shall be counted as 30 cm; on the contrary, is the measure is included between 30.5 and 31.0 cm, it shall be considered as 31 cm. Each steward shall record the fish length and have the anglers of each “pair” sign the catch document. No complaints regarding the catch shall be accepted after the signing of such document. The fish shall be measured from its snout’s edge – with its mouth being closed – to the tip of its stretched tail fin, naturally laying;

• authorise, during the competition, changes of boats or motors in the event of a breakage;

• verify, using rangefinders made available by the “pair” he/she is acting as steward for, the correct distance between the boat he/she is boarded on and the nearby boats;

• check whether the anglers are properly wearing their life-jackets when necessary;

• make sure that the anglers perform casting and not trolling.

-9-  The competitors shall abide by the rules on legal fish size limits in force, whenever they are provided for by national rules and regulations. Said minimum size parameters shall be specified in the program drawn up by the organisers, and shall be reminded at the team captains’ meeting.

-10- The competition shall take place in three legs of 6 hours each.

In the event of a forced interruption (e.g. a thunderstorm, demonstration, natural disaster, etc.), the Jury may validate the leg, provided that it lasted at least half of the time envisaged for the whole leg.

The Jury can decide to reduce the duration of the leg if the competition schedule does not allow continuing angling for the 6 scheduled angling hours.

-11- Each competitor is expected to fully abide by the competition rules. When some particular national or regional rules are also in force, they shall be communicated to all nations registered to the championship, by annexing them to the competition program.

-12- Anglers shall exclusively perform no-kill angling. Using any type of artificial lures shall be allowed (drop -shot, Carolina rig, etc.), equipped with a single, double, or triple hook, provided they do not cause multiple catches (for example the use of the "Spinner Bait" or similar is authorized, while the use of the "Alabama Rig" or similar is prohibited). “Fly” imitations are prohibited. In order to weigh down artificial elastic bait, hooks unleaded or leaded on their head or in other part of their bodies may be used. Hooks shall be barb-free (barring F.I.P.S.e.d. exceptions, especially for fishes other than trout) and “bare”. Artificial bait may feature a single, double or triple hook, with up to 3 hooks (pork rind is allowed).

It is allowed to plumb the fishing line.

-13- All forms of fish feeding are forbidden. Only alluring substances and surface oils to be spread on artificial baits shall be allowed.

-14- All competitors are required to be able to swim and to row.

-15- Using echo sounders and GPSs is allowed. During the competition, the use of auricular, telephone or walkie-talkie is allowed to anglers but is forbidden to stewards, who can use them only in case of force majeure.

Each national team must possess at least 2 optical rangefinders, one of which shall be handed by each “pair” to its steward of reference during each leg as to let him/her verifying the correct distance between the boat he/she is boarded on and the other boats.

-16- The competitors shall be the only ones allowed using landing nets. Round landing nets shall have a minimum diameter of 50 cm, while the triangular ones shall have an entry (base) of at least 50 cm. In any case, landing nets shall be at least 50 cm deep and their meshes shall have a minimum size of 15 x 15 cm. Landing nets may be composed of the following material: silicon, rubberized net or fishing line.

The use of a landing net is recommended to retrieve the fish. Grapnel, Lip Grippers and Boga Grips are prohibited for recovering a fish. They can only be used for removing an artificial bait out of a fish’s mouth.

-17- Besides having a federal fishing licence, the competitors shall also comply with all rules and regulations on navigation, on the ownership of a boat, and with the fishing laws in force. Depending on the type of boat used, the pilot(s) shall hold the required licence(s). Before putting the boats into the water, the people concerned shall be asked to produce all the documents proving their authorization to navigate. The organizers shall have all administrative authorizations in place allowing the boats involved to navigate.

-18- The fishing area and the area reserved for the departure and arrival of the boats shall be marked and clearly visible. Competitors may navigate and fish on the whole authorised waterbody surface. Should it not be possible to use the whole waterbody surface, the fishing area shall be clearly marked (buoys) before the first official training day. It is however recommended to use transponders, if possible.

-19- All boats shall return to the start area and near the jetty at the time envisaged and fixed at the beginning of the leg. In said area, all boats shall circulate at low speed.

It is forbidden to fish in boat start and arrival areas and in any area forbidden to navigation, as well as outside the competition limits zone.

If a problem to a boat or to an engine provided by the organizers occurs during the competition - i.e.: break of battery, low fuel, or any kind of other technical problem - the team concerned may be authorised by the International Jury to extend its fishing time.

The steward shall check that compulsory life jackets are properly worn when sailing with heat engine boats. It shall also be compulsory to wear life jackets when angling in bad weather conditions (rain, wind). Only electric engines may be used during the angling activities.

Stewards will be required to sign a document by which they commit themselves to keeping all information related to the fishing of the competitors present on board the boat of their competence (fishing spots, lures, fishing methods, etc.) until the end of the Championship.

Using drones is prohibited, both during competition and trainings, excepting the special cases authorized by the International Jury, on advice of the Technical Committee.

It is strictly forbidden to diffuse any films shot during trainings and during the three championships legs on any social network, Facebook or other, on any web site, or

whatever. Any possible diffusion shall be previously authorized by the anglers in question.

Only the holders of a press licence or of any other accreditation document will be entitled to have a badge for having access on the venue.

-20- The distance between boats during the competition in a lake or in an artificial basin shall be of at least 75 metres (both during angling and when navigating near another “pair”). The distance between boats during competition in a canal or a river shall be of at least 75 metres during angling and of at least 20 metres during navigation. When the passage is less than 75 m large, the “pair” during angling in that particular spot will be forced to let pass another boat if this latter has the possibility to fish at one spot located at a distance of 75 m minimum from them. In this case, the “pair” during angling shall indicate at which side the “pair” in transit can pass through. The passage of the “pair” in transit at a specific side must be done with electric engine. In the case the “pair’s boat in transit does not have any electric engine, the passage can be done with the principal engine (internal combustion engine) at a very low speed.

One boat is considered stationary on a fishing spot when the principal engine (internal combustion engine) is off and the electric engine is lowered or the anchor is thrown into the water. The boat, which stops first on a fishing spot, takes the precedence. When the electric engine is lowered into the water, short distance movements with internal combustion engine are allowed; however, in that case fishing is not allowed.

-21- Trolling, vertical jigging and angling from the riverbank are forbidden. After casting the bait into the water, the angler’s free hand shall compulsory be placed on the reel handle. It is only allowed to handle the line with the rod and the reel. It is strictly forbidden to handle the line with fingers.

-22- The catching of a fish is only valid if the fish is hooked in its mouth, or between its mouth and the pectoral fins, or between its mouth and its gills. Any fish caught but not hanging from the angler’s line shall not be deemed valid and shall be put back into the water.

-23- Fly-fishing with mouse-tail end is forbidden.

-24- The boats for the Jury, the stewards and the security staff shall be made available by the organizers.

-25- Any boat that does not show up at the time envisaged for its departure shall be authorised to start last, but its return time shall remain unchanged.

When the first signal is given - 30 minutes before the departure of the boats - the anglers shall gather at the edge of the departure zone. The roll shall be called, the general steward shall tell the exact time, so that both the stewards and the anglers may synchronise their watches. Then, the anglers shall be allowed to get on-board their boats, and shall line up at the start. A second signal shall be given for the boats to start heading to the angling area.

-26- If a boat gets to the finish with a delay of less than 15 minutes, the “pair” involved shall get 2 penalties. Any “pair” arriving with a delay of 15 minutes or more shall be ranked last for the relevant leg.

-27- The boats will be numbered (two sticker numbers shall be stuck on each side of the boats, and they shall be clearly visible).

The organizers shall keep copies of the sticker numbers to be stuck on reserve boats, if needed.

The organizers shall make each crew be equipped of such a system that allows jury members and the organizers ascertaining, at any time and unequivocally, the nationality of the “pair” present on a specific boat. In this aim, the organizers shall prepare and deliver to all crews some stickers figuring their own national flags or, in alternative, some small national textile or plastic flags to be exposed on the boat used during each competition day.

Before each leg, F.I.P.S.e.d. will deliver to all participants a list containing the boat number that matches the nationality and the group (A or B) of the crew present on that boat.

-28- The boats shall sail by using either thermal or electric engines, but the safety rules and the local speed regulations shall be complied with at all times. During the competition, the boat maximum speed shall be an average established by the Jury considering the power of the engines of the boats involved.

-29- All boats shall have on board the compulsory equipment required pursuant to local rules and F.I.P.S.e.d. rules. Lacking such equipment, the boats shall not be authorized to navigate.

-30- All boats shall help any nearby boat in trouble or danger.

Land docking and docking to the boats of other competitors are forbidden. A general steward or a member of the Jury may authorise exceptions in cases of absolute need.

-31- Deliberate foul hooking of fish is prohibited.

-32- Competitors may keep and assemble as many rods as they wish but, when angling, they shall only be allowed to have one rod each.

-33- The competitors shall not be allowed to get any help by anybody.

-34- Only the following species of fish shall be included in the calculations: shad (alosa), asp (aspius), black-bass (micropterus et cichla), pike (esox), white fish (coregonus), sturgeon (acipenser), grayling (thymallus), char (arctic, brown, etc.) (salvelinus), perch (perca), zander (lucius perci), salmon (salmo, hucho, oncorhynchus), sheatfish (silurus glanis) and trout (rainbow, brown trout and sea trout) (salmo trutta, salmo macrostigma, oncorhynchus mykyss, etc.). This list may be completed by F.I.P.S.e.d.’s Jury, if necessary.

THE JURY

-35- An international Jury shall be appointed to examine any complaints lodged and to apply penalties, as per the rules; the Jury shall be established at the first team captains’ meeting.

The Jury shall consist of the following members:

• I.P.S.e.d.’s President, or a substitute delegated by the President;

• I.P.S.e.d.’s Secretary General;

• The members of F.I.P.S.e.d.’s Executive Committee;

• A delegate representing the organizing Nation, unless he/she holds the same nationality as the above-mentioned members, except for the F.I.P.S.e.d.’s President (or his substitute) who shall be the President of the Jury ex officio.

The Jury members shall be at least 3. If this number is not reached, some delegates from different Nations shall be chosen by drawing lots. These delegates cannot have the same nationality as the F.I.P.S.e.d.’s representatives and the organizing Nation.

These delegates shall be enrolled on the team registration form; captains cannot be appointed as delegates.

In the event of any infringement by a “pair” or by a team holding the same nationality as a member of the Jury, such Jury member shall not vote (except if he/she is the President of the Jury).

The members of the Jury shall wear a “Jury” badge, and shall be at the competition venue to receive any complaint. Jury members can be reached by mobile phone, so team captains will receive their mobile numbers.

-36- Any complaints, except for those regarding the rankings, shall be submitted to the Jury within 1 hour after the end of the leg. Complaints shall be lodged verbally, but they shall immediately be confirmed in writing. Should they deem it necessary, the Jury may watch any video or look at any picture produced by the delegate of the team filling the complaint.

Complaints concerning the ranking shall be lodged within 30 minutes after the official results have been published. The publishing time shall be recorded in the official result list.

A € 100 deposit - for which the F.I.P.S.e.d.’s Secretary General or his delegate shall issue a receipt - shall complement any written complaint submitted to the Jury. Should the complaint not be judged grounded by the Jury, the deposit shall be transferred to F.I.P.S.e.d.’s bank account.

All infringements and warnings shall be reported to the Jury, with the Jury being the only authority enabled to disqualify anglers. Any “pair” who is imposed a penalty shall be informed immediately.

The Jury members and all stewards shall make sure the Rules are abided by. Hence, they shall have a thorough knowledge of such Rules.

-37- The Rules, which are drawn up in the two official languages, shall be made available to the Jury and the team captains by the organizers of the championship.

The international Jury will make its decisions on a simple majority basis; in the event of a tie vote, the President of F.I.P.S.e.d. or his/her delegate shall have a casting vote.

All members of F.I.P.S.e.d.’s Executive Committee shall wear a personal badge. Said badges shall only be valid for the Executive Committee’s term of office (4 years).

LIST OF PENALTIES

-38- The penalties shall be as follows:

  a) Warning (yellow card) for the infringement of articles 8b, 11, 16, 19, 20, 26, 28 and 33.

  b) Disqualification (red card) of the “pair” in the leg for the infringement of articles 12, 13, 18, 21, 23, 31, 32, 45, 46.2 and 47 and after a second warning for the infringement of articles 8b, 11, 16, 19, 20, 26, 28 and 33.

  c)  Disqualification of the Nation for the infringement of articles 5, 44a and 44b-1.

  d) When a “pair” is disqualified, a number of penalties equal to the number of participating “pairs” + 1 will be assigned to him. If a “pair” is disqualified, those which follow him in the ranking shall keep their original ranking (for example: if “pair” X who ranked 8^th is disqualified, the following “pair” shall keep their rankings and shall mark 9 points, 10 points, and so on).

  e) Any warning given to a Nation shall be recorded in that Nation’s file and shall remain in the files for a period of 3 years starting from the date of the sanction. Any new infringement committed in the following 3 editions of the same championship shall be considered as a “relapse” and the Jury shall make its decision considering such relapse and the list of penalties.

  f) Any warning given to a “pair” shall be recorded in the competitor’s file for a period of 3 years starting from the date of the sanction. Any new infringement committed in the following 3 editions of the same championship shall be considered as a “relapse”, and the Jury shall make its decision considering such new infringement and the list of penalties.

  g) I.P.S.e.d.’s Executive Committee shall be entitled, both during a competition and subsequently, to impose penalties on anglers, captains or reserves if they infringe any rule or misbehave, even if said infringements are not provided for in the official Rules.

-39- The members of F.I.P.S.e.d.’s Executive Committee may access the competition venue and take note of any infringement of the Rules.

RANKINGS

-40- 1- LEG RANKING

Ranking by “pairs”

a) The ranking shall be made based on the points (expressed in square cm) obtained, and by summing up the square of the length of each fish caught by the two anglers making up the “pair”.

The “pair” who recorded the highest number of points shall be given 1 penalty, while 2 penalties shall be attributed to the second “pair”, and so on.

b) In the event of a tie on points, the “pairs” concerned shall obtain a number of penalties equalling the average of the rankings they should have had (example n° 1: two “pairs” ranking equal 4th shall obtain (4+5):2 = 4.5 penalties each; example n° 2: three “pairs” tying in the 6th placing, totalise (6+7+8):3 = 7 penalties each).
c) Any “pairs” that have not caught any fish shall be given a number of penalties equal to the average value of non-attributed places (example n° 1: twenty-four “pairs”, twelve of whom rank top 12, with penalties ranging between 1 and 12, the subsequent “pairs” will get (13+24):2 = 18.5 penalties each; example n° 2: thirty “pairs”, five of whom have caught fish and scored 1 to 5 points - the 25 “pairs” who have not caught any fish mark (6+30):2 = 18 penalties). Should only 1 “pair” not have caught any fish or should there be one or more absent “pairs”, they shall get a number of penalties equalling the lowest ranking (example: thirty “pairs”, twenty-nine of whom have caught fish, whereas one has not caught any, the latter will get 30 penalties).

B- Ranking by teams

a) Sum of the penalties obtained by the “pairs” of a team.

b) The national team scoring the lowest number of penalties shall rank 1st, and so on.

c) In the event of a tie on penalties, the teams concerned shall be ranked based on the highest number of points recorded by the “pairs” of the same team.

d) In the event of further tied score, the teams concerned shall be ranked based on the highest number of points recorded by one of the “pairs”.

e) In the event of another tied score, the teams concerned shall be ranked based on the number of fish caught by the “pairs” of the same team.

Règlement officiel “NATIONS” approuvé par le Comité Directeur de la F.I.P.S.e.d.- ROMA (Italie) – 25-26/11/2022 Page 13/18

f) Last, should there be another tied score, the teams concerned shall be ranked based on the biggest fish caught by one of the “pair” of the team.

2- GENERAL RANKING

A- Ranking by “pairs”

a) Sum of the penalties obtained by each “pair” in the three legs; the “pair” totalling the smallest number of penalties shall be ranked 1st, and so on.

b) In the event of a tie on penalties, the “pairs” shall be ranked based on the highest aggregate number of points obtained in the three legs.

c) In the event of another tied score, the “pairs” shall be ranked by the highest aggregate number of points in one of the three legs.

d) In the event of a further tied score, the “pairs” shall be ranked based on the highest number of points obtained in the last leg.
e) Last, should there be another tied score, the “pairs” shall be ranked based on the highest total number of fishes caught in the three legs.

f) Any “pairs” that did not take part in all the three legs shall be ranked in the last places of the classification, following the order of their penalties (firstly the “pairs” that have participated to all the three legs, then those “pairs” that just participated to two legs and, finally, those ones that have disputed only one leg). For this reason, when one or two substitutions are made in a pair, the pair will be ranked after those ones who have run all the legs keeping their original composition. The ranking of the pair in which substitutions were made will therefore be drawn up taking into consideration the composition of that pair which has performed more days of competition.

B- Ranking by teams

a) Sum of the penalties obtained by the “pairs” of the same team over three legs; the team totalling the smallest number of penalties shall be ranked 1st, and so on.

b) In the event of a tie on penalties, the teams concerned shall be ranked based on the highest aggregate number of points obtained by the “pairs” of the same team in the three legs.

c) In the event of another tied score, the teams shall be ranked based on the highest aggregate number of points obtained by the “pairs” of the same team in the last leg.

d) In the event of further tie on points, the teams concerned shall be ranked based on the total number of fishes caught by the “pairs” in the three legs.

e) Last, should there be another tied score, the teams concerned shall be ranked based on the biggest fish caught by one of the “pairs” of the team in the three legs.

3- NATIONS RANKING

A world or zone ranking per Nations shall be drawn up for all championships, taking into account the best 5 results over the 6 past years; such ranking list shall be updated every year and published on F.I.P.S.e.d.’s website.

The Nations included in such ranking that, for any reason, do not participate in a championship, shall be given a number of penalties equal to the number of participating Nations for that specific year + 1.

-41- The ranking will be established by a person mandated by F.I.P.S.e.d. or, lacking this person, by the organizers, in the presence of F.I.P.S.e.d.’s President or in the presence of his representative and, possibly, also in the presence of the members of the Jury.

“CIVIL LIABILITY” INSURANCE

ROD LENGTH

-42- The length of the rods is limited to 2.75 metres (9 feet).

“CIVIL LIABILITY” INSURANCE

-43- The organizers SHALL take out a “CIVIL LIABILITY” insurance to cover the whole event (from the first training day to the end of the final dinner); a certificate issued by the insurance company, certifying that the whole event is covered by a “CIVIL LIABILITY” policy shall be handed over to the President of F.I.P.S.e.d. two months prior to the competition.

TRAINING

-44- a) Official training shall take place at the official venue.

Training shall only be allowed without a steward if one of the anglers has a boat operator’s license, if required by the laws of the organising Nation.

Training shall be organized so as to offer equal conditions to all anglers (with or without steward), regardless of whether they use personal boats, rental boats, or boats made available by the organizers. Should training without steward be envisaged, there shall anyway be one person onboard holding a boat operator’s license.

b) The official venue shall be organized as follows:

1) Seven-day absolute closing before the first training day for all the members of the participating official delegations. During these 7 days, training at the venue shall be forbidden for all Nations in the entire area chosen for the championship; the anglers shall not be allowed to navigate on the venue waterbody in the 7 days prior to the competition, even without their angling gear. It is forbidden for the organizing Nation to organize any competition during the aforesaid 7 days.

Apart from the closing period, the venue shall be made available for regular visits and fishing [local closing periods and special fishing conditions (fishing permit) shall be abided by]. Should the venue be always closed to fishing, it shall be made available on at least 2 weekends (the dates shall be specified in the programme).

2) Two days of official training (Tuesday and Wednesday or Wednesday and Thursday).

3) Three days of competition (Thursday, Friday and Saturday or Friday, Saturday and Sunday).

All participating Nations shall be provided with a document carrying the technical specifications and information concerning the venue.

ELECTRIC POWER LINES AND PLANTS

-45- It is strictly forbidden for the boats to stop and fish at less than 50-metre distance, on both sides, from any electricity infrastructure (including power lines, transformers, trellises, etc.).

RULES IN THE EVENT OF BAD WEATHER OR WATER-RELATED CONDITIONS

-46- 1- WHEN BAD CONDITIONS BREAKS OUT BEFORE OR DURING PREPARATION

A signal shall tell the anglers that they are required to get off their boats, and the competition start shall be delayed. If the weather or water-related conditions and the competition schedule allow, the leg may be regularly performed. In that event, a second signal shall indicate the start of the leg.

If the weather or water-related conditions do not improve or the competition schedule does not allow, the leg shall simply be cancelled. The cancelled leg shall not be considered when making the rankings, which shall be established based on the results of the held leg(s). The cancelled leg shall not be held at a later stage.

2- IF BAD CONDITIONS BREAKS OUT DURING THE LEG

The leg shall immediately be stopped and the rods shall be placed horizontally in the boat area at the opposite end from the anglers. The leg stop signal shall be given by the Jury to the stewards by radio, by telephone, or by launching one or more signal rockets.

Should the swell be such as to endanger the boat crews, the stewards - again, following the Jury’s instructions - shall immediately order their crews to reach the closest landing spot and wait there for a possible leg resumption signal.

If the weather or water-related conditions allow, the Jury shall authorise the resumption of the leg through the afore-mentioned communications systems and through the relevant stewards.

The Jury may shorten the duration of a leg if the competition schedule does not allow angling for 6 hours.

A leg shall be validated if it lasted at least half of the time envisaged for the whole leg.

Should the weather or water-related conditions not allow to duly carrying out a competition, the Jury might decide to cancel one leg. Said leg shall not be postponed and the ranking shall be drawn up based on the leg(s) that was/were actually carried out. The cancelled leg shall not be held again.

ANTI-DOPING CONTROLS

-47- F.I.P.S.e.d. adopts the World Anti-doping Code applied by C.I.P.S.

During a championship, the anglers selected to undergo anti-doping controls shall imperatively go to the designated place at the indicated time, following F.I.P.S.e.d.’s or the Jury’s guidelines. When an angler selected to undergo anti-doping checks does not report for the controls, the concerned “pair” shall be disqualified from the competition and shall be given a penalty corresponding to the bottom rank in the ranking + 1, for all the competition days the “pair” participated in.

Organizing Nations shall cover all anti-doping controls costs. All contacts with the NADO (National Anti-Doping Organization) of each Nation shall be exclusively kept by the organizers of the championship under consideration.

The organizers shall be responsible of the fishing material and equipment of the angler drawn to be tested, while he is undergoing the anti-doping control.

C.I.P.S., in quality of Testing Authority, will issue the relevant mission order on the ADAMS System, with the concerned instruction for the doping control tests.

A copy of the Doping Control Form (DCF), signed by the Doctor who has provided the tests, must be sent to the C.I.P.S. Secretariat cipssecretariat@cips-fips.com or delivered immediately after the competition to the F.I.P.S.e.d. official delegate present on place, who will forward it to C.I.P.S.

The athletes participating in the Championships, by registering, implicitly accept all WADA anti-doping rules.

Athlete whose illness or condition requires treatment with a prohibited substance or method must apply to C.I.P.S. for a Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE) following the C.I.P.S. strict TUE application process.

He/she shall then use the application form, which can be downloaded from the ITA website: https://ita.sport/uploads/2021/02/ITA_TUE_Form.pdf. The TUE request has to be sent to the following address: tue@ita.sport.

Athletes must therefore consult the Prohibited List https://www.wada-ama.org/en/resources/world-anti-doping-program/2023-prohibited-list.

F.I.P.S.e.d. AND C.I.P.S. fees

-48- A € 150 fee shall be paid by each participating Nation; for each individual “pair” the fee shall be € 50. Said fee shall remain available to F.I.P.S.e.d.

A € 500 fee shall be paid by the organizing Nation to C.I.P.S.’s disposal (to be paid to C.I.P.S.’s bank account).

OPENING CEREMONY AND PRIZE AWARDING CEREMONY

-49- The opening ceremony and the presentation of the teams shall take place two days before the first leg at 06:00 p.m. Said ceremony shall not last longer than 2 hours, and shall not end later than 08:00 p.m.

The top 3 Nations and the top 3 “pairs” shall officially receive a GOLD, a SILVER and a BRONZE medal respectively. In conformity with international standards, during the prize awarding procedures, the national anthem of the winner (team or “pair”) shall be played, and the national flags of the top three “pairs”/teams shall be raised. The medals shall be paid for by F.I.P.S.e.d. and shall be handed over by F.I.P.S.e.d.’s designated representative.

During the individual prize-giving ceremony, the fourth and fifth classified must also be called to the podium, but no medals will be awarded.

A certificate stating the results obtained shall be delivered to all the three first ranked Nations official members, who shall be present at the prize giving ceremony, as well as to the five first ranked “pairs”.

Any other reward shall be equally awarded to all participating Nations. All participating Nations shall provide their flags and the recordings of their national anthems.

For the announcement of the official results, up to 8 persons maximum, representing a Nation, may gain the podium for handling out the medals, while playing the national anthem of the winning nation.

RULES VERSIONS

-50- In the event of any dispute arising from or in connection with the interpretation of these Rules, only the French version shall be considered as the original and reference text.

        Règlement officiel “NATIONS” approuvé par le Comité Directeur de la F.I.P.S.e.d.- ROMA (Italie) –  25-26/11/2022

OBLIGATIONS of the organizing nations

-51- The organizing Nation of a World or Zone (Europe, etc.) Championship shall:
     a) Have the F.I.P.S.e.d. trophies engraved (plate or logo);
     b) Send out official programs and information about the championship in the two official languages (English and French).

The President of F.I.P.S.e.d.   Ugo Claudio MATTEOLI
The Secretary General of F.I.P.S.e.d.   Barbara DURANTE 
The President of the F.I.P.S.e.d. Technical Commission  Roland MARCQ