Purpose: The purpose of having a Missouri Junior Team is to promote the sport of waterskiing, encourage camaraderie and participation, and improve skills and abilities. The goal of the Missouri Junior Team is to help qualify skiers for, and participate in the Midwest Regional Championships each year.
The Junior Development Coordinator will compile a list of qualified Missouri skiers from USAW website and present it to the MWSF Board by December each year. The board and coordinator will choose the team members per guidelines below, and announce the team at the winter meeting.
To be eligible for the Missouri Junior Team, the skier must pass the performance standard as follows:
1. USAW and MWSF member in good standing
2. Resident of the state of Missouri
3. Compete in the Boys 1-3, or Girls 1-3 age groups (Juniors) for the upcoming year.
4. The skier must have competed at minimum, in the Missouri State Championship tournament and one additional Missouri tournament on a separate date (second round at State does NOT count) in the ski year of consideration (Nationals to Nationals is the ski season, typically mid August to mid August) and have registered scores on USAW website from those tournaments (class C or above).
5. The skier must have completed one full pass in slalom at or above the minimum starting speed in a qualifying tournament, or registered a trick score in a qualifying tournament, or completed a scoring jump in a qualifying tournament.
Junior skiers who meet the above criteria are considered to be on the Missouri Junior Team for the following year (compete in 2014, member of 2015 team).
The Missouri Junior Team consists of two subcategories: Missouri Junior Elite Team and Missouri Junior Development Team.
The Missouri Junior Elite Team members are chosen based on tournament performance. The purpose of the Elite Team is to identify and encourage the top performing tournament skiers in Missouri and encourage them to represent the state of Missouri at the Midwest Regional Tournament. The Elite Team will be chosen by the Missouri Junior Team Coordinator and approved by the MWSF Board of Directors. Skiers of high caliber are encouraged to apply for consideration to the Elite Team (typically an 8 skier team). A formal application will be required (available on this website or from the Junior Team Coordinator). The application deadline will be November 1 or prior to the MWSF Fall Meeting, whichever occurs first. Successful candidates would include the top overall skiers in each age division (B2,3, and G2,3), skiers with high overall NOPS scores, skiers with high single event or double event NOPS scores, skiers with high ranking percentages within their age groups, and skiers with podium finishes at the MO State Tournament, Midwest Regional Tournament, and the National Tournament. Each skier must have obtained a minimum of level 6 in either single or overall rankings. Each skier must plan on competing at the Midwest Regional tournament the following year. Skiers will be selected from the applications received by the Junior Coordinator and approved by the MWSF Board of Directors, based on the previously noted criteria. Alternate skiers may be chosen based on overall NOPS, percentage rankings, outstanding double event NOPS, or outstanding single event NOPS scores, in the case a position becomes available due to the inability of a selected skier to attend the elite camp. Please note that the age divisions are for the current ‘ski year’ (‘Ski Year: xxxx’, not ‘ Last 12 Months’) so that you qualify in the division you were in that year even if you ‘age up’ after Nationals.
The Missouri Junior Development Team shall consist of all skiers who meet the performance standard above for the Missouri Junior Team and who will be skiing in the B2,3 and G2,3 age groups in the upcoming season, but have not been chosen for the Elite Team. The purpose of the Development team is to help improve the skills of interested skiers who have the desire to be on the Elite Team in the future. If the MO Junior Development Team roster needs to be restricted for any reason (limits at camp, budget constraints, coaching or volunteer availability, etc.), the skiers for the MO Junior Development Team shall be chosen based on overall percentage rankings, regardless of age and gender divisions, with consideration for outstanding single and double event skiers. The team will be chosen by the MO Junior Team Coordinator and approved by the MWSF Board.
Each year, following the MWSF Fall meeting and team review by the Board , the Junior Coordinator will notify the skiers who satisfied the performance standard and are eligible for the team. The teams will be formally announced at the Spring meeting. Once the teams have been selected, the Junior Development Coordinator, and the MWSF board will decide in what activities each team will participate for the upcoming season. Typically, the Elite team participates in a 5 day training camp. The Development team may have a shorter camp, typically a weekend, for the purpose of improving skills. The Elite team members may be required to assist with Development camps.
Camps and training opportunities for both the Elite and Development teams will vary year to year, based on the availability of MWSF funds, the number of team members, the availability of training sites, and the availability of coaching staff. There will be a fee to attend camp that will be discussed at the Fall meeting, and finalized before camp begins. The funds supplied by the MWSF are intended to cover costs of gasoline and coaching fees.
Additional costs, such as meals, housing, and team clothing will be the responsibility of the individual skiers. The cost for skiers has typically been 20.00 per day of camp plus funds for clothing items. For example, an elite skier could plan on 20.00 x 5 days + 30.00 = 130.00. A development skier could plan on 20.00 x 3 days + 15.00 = 75.00. (These are examples and are subject to change).
When we announce the teams and camp dates, we ask parents or guardians to commit to their child’s attendance by May 1st, so we have an accurate skier count and can adjust accordingly for housing, coaching, and food.
