Rules
Attempt Board
It must show the name of the competitor, the weight to be attempted and the number of attempts.
Electronic Referee Light System
This will signal the referee’s decisions to the competitor, the audience and the Jury table. White lights mean a good lift, while red mean there was no lift. A majority decision indicates the outcome of the lift.
Platform
This is the square surface on which the competitors execute their movements. Measuring 4 x 4m and between 50 and 150mm in height, the platform may be made of wood or plastic and may be covered with a non-slippery material. There must be a 1m perimeter surrounding the platform that is required to be flat and free of obstacles, including discs.
Judging
There are three referees; they have equal rights of decision and adjudication on a lift. Each referee must give the ‘down’ signal by pressing the white button for a ‘good lift’ or the red button for ‘no lift’. A referee who sees a mistake or fault during the execution of a lift must immediately press the red button.
During the competition, there are Jury members monitoring the work of the referees through the control panel. Every decision by the referees may be verified as the lights on the control panel light up instantly when they press the appropriate button. Slow, fast or no decision may be identified for immediate or further action. Should the Jury President want to call one of the referees to the table, they may do so by pressing the appropriate button, which gives the audible signal to the referee in question.
Tactics
The sport has become increasingly tactical with ‘Order of Calling’ rules being exploited by competitors to force fellow competitors into a weight selection they are not comfortable with. However, timing of weight selection is critical as new changes to these rules mean if you wait too long to force another competitor to change his selection, you may forfeit your own ability to make changes.