12/4 plan nixed

[robertp]

just noticed on the USFS website that the 12/4 plan has been nixed. Any idea as to why the plan was not adopted? Change is always difficult, but this seemed to have some good momentum and was well thought out in my observation. Must be very frustrating for those that put so much time into this effort.

Personally I like being in the midwestern section. Good competition, good cities to visit. Was looking forward to possibly visiting some western states with the new alignment, but see no advantage competitively. I liked having my kids compete against some strong teams in the midwest...Chicago, Co SP/Denver, Detroit and Dallas.

What are some of the thoughts out there about why this was abandoned?

[Artemis]

For the benefit of non-Americans (or anyone else who hasn't been following this), can you briefly explain what the "12/4" plan is? Some kind of organization reorg for sections, etc.?

TIA

[dr.frog]

For the benefit of non-Americans (or anyone else who hasn't been following this), can you briefly explain what the "12/4" plan is? Some kind of organization reorg for sections, etc.?

The USFSA had proposed switching from its 9-region, 3-section organization to one with 12 regions and 4 sections. The current alignment of regions reflects where clubs were located 40+ years ago, but some areas of the country have had explosive growth in the number of skaters and clubs in the last 10 years or so, so some of the regions are now much more "crowded" than others. This caused complaints that skaters in some parts of the country are at a disadvantage for qualifying for Nationals. Re-aligning the regions was supposed to address this, but some clubs were unhappy about being reassigned to different regions or sections, and in some levels or disciplines the new sectional breakdown seemed even less fair than the old one. The alternative being proposed is some sort of proportional representation scheme where the number of skaters who qualify for Nationals or Sectionals depends on the number of entries in each region instead of being fixed at 4.

[miki_tan]

The alternative being proposed is some sort of proportional representation scheme where the number of skaters who qualify for Nationals or Sectionals depends on the number of entries in each region instead of being fixed at 4.

Japan adopts 6/2 with proportional representation for Senior and Junior.
(2 level Novice are fixed (5 for Novice A, 3 for Novice B) and no Sectionals.)
Number of skaters are depends on number of top 15 (out of 30) placements skaters of last season results.

30 for 3 regions and 26 for 2 sections in Japan make easier for proportional representation
than 12 for 3 regions and 12 for 3 sections in America.

follows are Junior Ladies assignments 02-03 and 03-04 season.

-------------------
All Japan (National)
-------------------
East Japan 15(02-03) 6(top 15) 11(03-04)
West Japan 11(02-03) 9(top 15) 13+2(03-04)
recommendation 4(02-03) 4(03-04)

-------------------
East Japan (Sectional)
-------------------
Tohoku-Hokkaido 9(02-03) 6(top 15) 11(03-04)
Kanto 11(02-03) 4(top 15) 9(03-04)
Tokyo 10(02-03) 5(top 15) 10(03-04)

-------------------
West Japan (Sectional)
-------------------
Chubu 10(02-03) 6(top 15) 12(03-04)
Kinki 10(02-03) 8(top 15) 14(03-04)
Chu-Shikoku-Kyusyu 10(02-03) 1(top 15) 4(03-04)

+X means seed