Definition:
A Technical Official; or TO, is defined as any person who controls the play of a competition by applying the rules and regulations of the sport to make judgments on rule infringement, performance, time or ranking. A Technical Official acts as an impartial judge of sporting competition. This involves an obligation to perform with accuracy, consistency, objectivity and the highest sense of integrity.(IWF TCRR 2013-2016) In Weightlifting a Competition Director organizes the competition and allocates Technical Officials, with the assistance of the VP Technical, in the following roles:
- Jury
- Referees
- Technical Controller
- Speaker
- Timekeeper
- Scorekeeper
Depending on the level of the competition or the resources available to the Competition Director a few roles; such as, Jury are not always assigned and some roles do double duty; such as, Timekeeper and Scorekeeper.
Occasionally other Technical Officials are assigned:
- Chief Marshall
- Competition Secretary
- Weigh-in Secretary
- Speakers Assistant
Weightlifting also has Loaders who load the barbell on the competition platform and Decontamination Attendants who clean both the barbell and competition platform. Although both are specialized field of play roles, these roles are not considered to be Technical Officials.
For the roles and responsibilities of all of these above noted positions; please consult the following resources:
- BCWA Technical & Competition Rules 2014
- IWF Technical & Competition Rules and Regulations 2013 - 2016
- IWF Technical Officials Roles and Responsibilities - A Guide to Competition - A publication of the IWF Technical Committee
To discover more about the different levels, or to find out how to become an official, click here.