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  • National Referee Application

    • This application must be submitted at least 30 days prior to the requested practical exam date.
    • All policies and procedures for referee testing can be found in the Referee Testing Requirements and Procedures Manual (found on the Technical Committee portion of the national website). It is your responsibility to be familar with these policies, procedures, and requirements.
    • If you have not heard back about this application within 7 days of submitting it, or if you have any questions, please contact the chair of the Technical Committee at the following email address: tc@usapowerlifting.com

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  • STATE CHAIR LIST AND CONTACT INFORMATION. A list of current state chairs and their email addresses can be found on the State Chairs portion of the national website.

  • LIST OF REQUIRED MEETS. In order to be eligible to take the national exam, candidates must have been a referee for an entire session at six (6) different full power events (must have been chief referee at 2 of those events). For more detailed information about the requirements, please see page 12 of the Referee Testing Requirements and Procedures Manual. Please list those six (6) events and your referee position for each below. If you cannot remember the details of the events you worked, you likely can find them in the Results portion of the national website.

  • PRACTICAL EXAM. The national referee practical exam can be taken at any full-power meet where there is a category 1 or 2 referee available to administer the exam. Prior to submitting this application, you must contact the meet director for the event at which you want to take your practical exam and confirm that there will be a category 1 or 2 referee who can administer your exam. If you do not get a reply from the meet director, your state chair will likely be able to assist you in connecting you with the meet director. The meet director will be contacted to confirm that you have discussed your practical exam with them. Important notes:

    • If a category 1 or 2 referee was scheduled to be available to administer your practical exam and ultimately is not available, you will need to request to have your practical exam rescheduled for another meet.
    • If you want to take your practical exam at a national championship, you do not need to contact the meet director as there are usually category 1 or 2 referees available to administer exams.
    • Due to logistics and staffing requirements, national referee practical exams often cannot be conducted at pro meets, international meets, or events at the Arnold Sports Festival. It is strongly recommended that you do NOT request to take your practical exam at one of these meets and, if you do, be advised that your request may be denied.
  • Information about events (name, date, city, state, sanction number, meet director, meet director email) can be found on the USA Powerlifting Calendar.

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  • Electronic Signature

  • By signing below, I agree to the following terms:

    • I affirm that I meet all of the requirements to take the national referee exam as listed on page 12 of the Referee Testing Requirements and Procedures Manual (found on the Technical Committee portion of the national website).
    • I affirm that all of the information I provided in this form is accurate and truthful.
    • I understand that this form must be submitted at least 30 days prior to my requested practical exam date.
    • I understand that by submitting this application, it is not guaranteed to be approved. If it is not approved, I understand that I will be told the reason(s) why it was not approved.
    • I understand all requirements that must be met in order for me to be recertified at the rank for which I am currently applying when the next 4-year certification cycle begins (current cycle: 2022-2025; next cycle 2026-2029; etc.). I understand that failure to meet these requirements will result in a reduction in rank or losing my referee status altogether. These recertification requirements can be found on page 12 of the Referee Testing Requirements and Procedures Manual (found on the Technical Committee portion of the national website).
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