Hal Sharp High Performance Athlete Program
The program provides an opportunity to fund NANKA High-Performance Athletes in their ambition to qualify for a berth in the Olympic Games. The fund as used by the Program is not considered as to be part of NANKA’s operational expense but is a special project which is considered for renewal at the start of each financial year. The size of the fund is to be determined by the NANKA Board of Directors and to be based upon the organization’s financial status.
The fund will reimburse reasonable travel and accommodation expenses to assist qualified member to participate in a judo event from the recognized list.
A reimbursement model is chosen as it offers the least impact on the tax obligation and status of the high-performance athlete and of NANKA.
The reimbursement shall be paid to the member upon return from the event.
High-Performance Athlete Qualifications
The following is a list of the mandatory requirements for an applicant to be considered eligible for this program.
- The applicant must be 16 years of age and older. (This is to limit participation only to Cadet, Junior and Senior events)
- The applicant must be a current member of NANKA and have been a member of NANKA for at least three years during the past five years. (Note COVID period 2020 – 2022 is excluded)
- The applicant is currently in the top 100 of the IJF Ranking list.
- The applicant agrees to lead at least one NANKA SHORAI or other Clinic event as determined by the NANKA Development Committee with in the next 12 months.
- Applicants can only qualify for two applications per financial year.
Nanka members who meet the above requirements who are not USA citizens can also qualify for the program, however consideration of approval is taken in conjunction and with the permission of the NGB of the country the applicant represents.
Recognized Events
The following are the events which are applicable for this program.
IJF World Tour Tournaments (Grand Slam and Grand Prix) and IJF Development Camps, World Championships, PJC sanctioned Tournaments, IJF-sanctioned Continental Open Tournaments.
This program does not support Kata or Veteran events.
High-Performance Athlete Funding Process
The process for funding qualified high-performance athletes consists of two phases.
Phase 1: Application for approval of funding.
The Approval process begins on receiving a completed application form at least two months prior to the Program Management Panel. The Panel will review the application for proper qualifications of the applicant and the event and if funds are available. The form is the means for providing all the information necessary for consideration of the application and includes any necessary legal language required between the organization and the applicant.
The Program Management Panel consists of:
President, Executive Vice-President, CFO, Athlete Development Vice-President and a non-executive member who is chosen each year the project is re-approved. Quorum of the panel requires all members to be present. Decisions of the panel are based upon simple majority.
Phase 2: Request for expense reimbursement
Upon return applicant can request payment by completing a Nanka Request for Refund Form (RRF) and emailing it to the Program Management Panel including copies of all relevant receipts. The Program Management Panel shall check the RRF for consistency with the original application. Some discrepancy is to be anticipated since the exact amount to be reimbursed may be difficult to determine at the time of approval. Actual incurred expense will depend upon the location of the event. The panel as part of its reporting must account as best it can for any small discrepancies during the Program management. If the discrepancy is large the Program Management Panel shall discuss and either approve the difference or adjust the reimbursement as they consider appropriate.
NANKA Reservations
For purposes of transparency applicants must indicate whether they are receiving additional/alternative financial support for the event they are applying for. Also, if they receive funding after their event. This may impact the amount that is approved.
The applicant qualifications as declared above may be changed by the Program Management Panel if necessary, in order to align with official Olympic qualification requirements as they evolve between IJF and USA Judo.
NANKA has the right to withhold all or partial payment if the player fails to participate or is disqualified from participating in the event. NANKA reserves the right to make changes to this program or its management decisions.
Program MANAGEMENT
The Program Management Panel shall consider the available funds when making any decision. If there are no available funds in the program, then applications must not be approved until the next financial year. If, however, the allocated level of the fund drops to $0, the CFO has the discretion to temporarily increase the fund to ensure all existing approved requests obligations can be met. This is to allow flexibility as requested amounts may not always match actual amounts.
If at the end of the financial year, any monies not used shall return to the organization capital fund and the next year Program amount is determined.
The details and scope of the Hal Sharp High-Performance Athlete Program will be available and kept up to date on the NANKA website.
All communications should be made using hsap@nankajudo.org