IWSF 2004 Elite Rankings

The ranking methodolgy is based on the system used by the Professional
Slalom Skiers Association(PASS) and developed by Mark Crone.  This system
was used for the 2000 World Cup Ranking in slalom.  The basic system was
modified to make it more appropriate for world wide use.  It was used 
successfully for 2003 and it will continue on to 2004.


IWSF Elite Ranking Concepts

Use placement based system already developed (PASS) and used in
the IWSF World Cup for slalom to rank elite skiers in Men and 
Women's Slalom, Tricks, and Jump.  The system will be used for all 
events in 2004 as it was in 2002 and 2003.

Key Concepts

1 Tournament points
Each tournament will be assigned a certain number of points.  The
points will be based on three concepts as follows:
a) 10 points for each $1000 USD of prize money on a per event basis
b) Title points assigned per IWSF TC decision.

World Championships  200 points
IWSF Regional Championships 80 points

c) Athlete points
The system of athlete points shall be determined as follows:
Based on the 2003 Elite Rankings, the top
15 athletes in each discipline shall be asigned point
values based on their placing.  The number 1 athlete 
will be assigned 37.5 points and each succeeding place
shall be 2.5 points less according to the following schedule:
1	37.5		6	25		11	12.5	 
2	35		7	22.5		12	10
3	32.5		8	20		13	7.5
4	30		9	17.5		14	5
5	27.5		10	15		15	2.5

The points from these three categories shall be totaled to give the final
tournament point value.

2. Awarding points by placement
Points shall be awarded based on placement and number of skiers in an event
and the total tournament points according to a formula.  The PASSPoints 
spreadsheet shows the percentage of points awarded for each place based on the size 
of the entry.
Points Chart

3. Skier Point totals

We will use 50% of your tournament scores. For a start from zero list, 
we have to describe exactly how this will be done since you will not 
have scores from a year's worth of tournaments at the start the way you do 
with a rotating system. This will be slightly changed for 2004.
The first change is that we will fix the 50% to a certain number of tournaments
based on the current view.  If we add tournaments during the season, that will
not change the the number of tournaments that will be scored.  So, for example,
if we declare that since there are 11 men slalom events we will use the top 5.
If later, we add one event, it will still be the top 5.

For 2004 the following schedule will apply:
Men Slalom - top 5 tournaments
Women Slalom - 4
Men Tricks - 4
Women Tricks - 3
Men Jump - 4
Women Jump - 3

I have made these numbers a little lower than 50% based on the fact that although
there are a few more tournaments, many of them have restricted entry

The second change is that points will just be added cumulatively as received.
This means that points will be added for each tournament that you score in
up until you reach the maximum number of scores (5 in our men slalom example).
Then, if you go to more tournaments, your top 5 will be used so that your point
total will only change if your points score exceeds your 5th best score which
would then be dropped.

Another issue is the timing of the regional Championships.  Since the Pan Am
Championships and AA Championships are in the spring and the EAME Championships are 
late summer, I may delay entering those points until all three regional championships
are completed.



4. 2004 Starting basis
The 2004 Rankings shall start at zero using
the 2003 Elite Rankings for athlete values.

5. Tournament Selection
Tournaments shall be selected by the IWSF TC based on several factors
as follows:
a) Automatic selection of the title tournaments per item 1
b) Automatic selection of cash prize tournaments with sufficent purse

Naturally all tournaments must be sanctioned by their IWSF 
affiliated National Governing Body.

For 2004, the following tournaments appear to be qualified so far

1. Moomba 
2. MasterCraftPro 
3. Masters 
4. Malibu Open 
5. US Open 
6. French Masters 
7. IWSF Regional Championships
8. Dubna World Cup
9. China World Cup
10. Qatar World Cup

The rest to be determined per the IWSF TC.  

Tournament organizers who feel that their tournament may qualify
are encouraged to apply to the IWSF TC for approval as an Elite Ranking
Tournament.

Apply to bcorson@comcast.net


6. Rankings Publication
The ranking points totals shall be published on iwsfranking.com.  
The top 20 places will 
constitute the rankings.  The ranking points will be published after each
qualified tournament is completed.  This is, of course, based on
results availibility.  Each qualifying tournament should post
their results on iwsf.com.  The full list of points and calculation
spreadsheet will be publically available in iwsfranking.com
Each skiers official "Ranking" for the year 2004 can only be
determined after all events are completed.

7. Ranking List Name
The Ranking List shall be entitled the "IWSF Elite Skier Rankings".

8 World Cup
In a major change, there will be a World Cup in 2004.  This will run
in parallel with the Elite Rankings.  All World Cup stops qualify for 
Elite Rankings.  The World Cup will be scored in a similar fashion, but 
will be separate from the rankings so that the World Cup winner may not
be the #1 Elite skier although there will probably be a close parallel.