SANCTIONING

The Gay and Lesbian Tennis Alliance (GLTA) supports tournaments by sharing resources, increasing communication between its member organizations (and the respective tournaments), and maintaining or developing tournament standards. To facilitate the growth and quality of the GLTA Tour within the gay and lesbian sports community, the GLTA recognizes the need to develop partnerships with the GLTA Tour and the business community. A member organization requesting GLTA recognition of their respective tournament must apply on an annual basis. Once the respective form and check for such GLTA recognition is completed and submitted to the GLTA for sanctioning and approved by the GLTA Board of Directors, the tournament will be included in the upcoming GLTA calendar and will be giving access to the GLTA support program.

A. GLTA SUPPORT FOR SANCTIONED TOURNAMENTS

The Gay and Lesbian Tennis Alliance (GLTA) exclusively supports sanctioned tournaments by:

- Promoting tournaments on the GLTA website and GLTA publications
- Developing and enforcing standards which reassure players of quality and consistency
- Providing high quality software for tournament management
- Providing internet infrastructure for communication of tournament draws and results
- Maintaining and publishing accurate rankings and assisting with the seeding process
- Integrating tournament results with the GLTA rankings database
- Pursuing public relations programs to promote the GLTA tour
- Securing sponsorships and partnerships with related businesses and organizations
- Developing new programs to stimulate growth in the tour
- Developing and maintaining a website for communicating news and information
- Managing funds to finance common infrastructure and programs
- Facilitating the exchange of ideas and knowledge among member clubs

B. APPLICATION FOR GLTA SANCTIONING

A member organization requesting GLTA sanctioning for their tournament must apply on an annual basis by July 31st using the application form. Once the completed form and the funds required for GLTA sanctioning are submitted and approved by the GLTA Executive Board, the tournament will be included in the GLTA calendar.

Failure by a club to submit a completed application including all applicable fees by the July 31st deadline will result in the club’s tournament being ineligible for sanctioning. Clubs which miss the final deadline but still wish to pursue sanctioning may submit an appeal request to the GLTA Secretary at secretary@glta.net.

The GLTA Executive Board recommends that new organizations which are considering developing a GLTA sanctioned event also submit their applications before July 31st of the year prior to the event. They should also carefully evaluate their regional markets and the overall GLTA schedule before submitting an application. If the region associated with a prospective tournament already has one or more GLTA events which are near or below the average size for a GLTA tournament (~150 entrants), extra care should be taken in the selection of tournament dates.

In general, the GLTA welcomes new clubs that wish to pursue sanctioning and strives to grow the tour each year. However, the GLTA Executive Committee reserves the right to deny sanctioning to a proposed tournament for any bona fide reason including schedule conflict with an existing sanctioned or affiliated tournament.

Once a tournament application is approved, the tournament will be sanctioned for one year.

C. OBLIGATIONS OF SANCTIONED TOURNAMENTS:

• Use tournament revenue only for tournament program expenses and for contributions to valid non-profit organizations. Tournament revenue may be to cover prior year deficits or to invest in a future tournament, but it may not be used for the personal benefit of any individual or group of individuals. Prize money awards to players are not permitted. For-profit tournaments should not pursue GLTA sanctioning.

• Comply with all provisions of the GLTA Tournament Rulebook

• Designate a GLTA Representative who is responsible for:

- Representing the interests of their club within the GLTA
- Ensuring GLTA communications are circulated to club members
- Voting on matters put before the GLTA Committee, including elections
- Participating in periodic conference calls of the GLTA Committee
- Submitting the club’s sanctioning application and tournament assessment form
- Ensuring club payments to the GLTA are made on time

• Disclose the event’s GLTA-sanctioned status in any press release and place the GLTA logo on any print advertisement.

• If a tournament has a website, the site must indicate that the tournament is a GLTA-sanctioned event and must display the GLTA logo on the home page with a link to the GLTA website.

• Allow the GLTA to negotiate and finalize national or global sponsorships on behalf of the tournament regarding products or services such as bottled water, tennis balls, energy bars, airlines, car rentals etc.

Failure to meet obligations or to comply with GLTA Rules and Regulations may result in the loss of GLTA sanctioning for the next tournament.