Technical officials education

Recognising that the resources and effort involved in developing an educational programme may be beyond capabilities on a national level, World Athletics established a Technical Officials Education and Certification System (TOECS) which is available as a service to Member Federations that would like to make use of it.

The goal of the TOECS is to improve the level of athletics officiating all over the world, which means:

• Creating a basic level of officiating skills where nothing or only a grass roots situation exists.
• Improving the level of officiating skills where a system is already in place.

The operation of the TOECS is co-ordinated by the World Athletics Development Department and the Area Associations. The TOECS features standard learning materials and specifically trained lecturers for the following three levels of courses:

Level I

The objective of the Level I Course is to provide participants with the theoretical and practical training required to make them capable of officiating at national level competitions and at international competitions held within the country. The Level I Course also identifies candidates for the position of National Technical Official (NTO). Level I Courses are organised by the Member Federation, however, for approved courses World Athletics will supply the necessary materials. Participants who successfully complete the course receive a World Athletics Level I Officiating Certificate. Those participants whose examination marks meet the required standards are eligible to attend a Level II Course.

Level II

The objective of the Level II Course is to provide participants with the theoretical and practical training required to make them capable of officiating at international competitions up to the Area level. The Level II Course also identifies candidates for the position of Area International Technical Official (ITO). Participants who successfully complete the course receive a World Athletics Level II Officiating Certificate. Those participants whose examination marks meet the required standards are eligible to attend a Level III Course.

Level III

The objective of the Level III Course is to provide participants with the theoretical and practical training required to make them capable of officiating at international competitions up to the highest level. Participants who successfully complete the course receive the World

Athletics Officiating Diploma and are placed on the World Athletics ITO Panel making them eligible for appointment to ITO positions.

TOECS Level I Equivalence

Any Member Federation which has its own technical official’s education programme in place, may apply to World Athletics for Level I equivalence. If the programme is recognised as equivalent to the TOECS Level I, those national officials who have achieved the highest level under that system during an agreed period will be eligible to participate in a TOECS Level II Course, providing that all other requisites have been complied with.