Terms of Reference

Introduction:

The Canadian Masters Athletics Hall of Fame was set up on October 17, 2002 by the Executive of the Canadian Masters Athletic Association (the “CMAA”), which accepted a proposal dated September 19, 2002, from a Committee set up by the Executive for this purpose. It was agreed that the Hall of Fame be housed on the CMAA web site, with appropriate descriptions and photographs of the appointees, and that the following be approved as the rules and regulations regarding the administration of the Hall of Fame:

Name:

The name of the Hall of Fame shall be the “Canadian Masters Athletics Hall of Fame” (the “Hall of Fame”).

Objective:

The objective of the Hall of Fame shall be to pay tribute to members of the Canadian Masters Athletic Association (“CMAA”) who are judged to have made significant contributions to the CMAA, either as athletes or as executives, administrators or officials.

Choice of Members to Hall of Fame:

The members of the Hall of Fame will be chosen annually by the Executive of the CMAA (the “Executive”), based on the recommendations of a Committee chosen annually by the Executive to administer the Hall of Fame (the “Committee”).

Membership in the Committee:

The Committee will consist of from three (3) to eight (8) members. The members of the Committee must be members of the CMAA, and may be, but need not be, members of the Executive. At any time when there are fewer than eight members of the Committee, the members of the Committee may recommend to the Executive the addition of other persons as members of the Committee, and the Executive may appoint those recommended, or appoint others to the Committee. In appointing the members of the Committee, the Executive will attempt to give due consideration to diversification on the basis of gender, geographical location and athletic pursuits.

Operation of the Committee:

The Committee may appoint one of its members to be the Chair of the Committee, and the Committee may meet at such times and locations as are agreed upon by its members. The Committee may request the assistance of other persons, or may refer to such publications, results booklets, web sites or other available information, in order to carry out its work. The Chair of the Committee, or such other member of the Committee chosen by the Committee, shall report from time to time to the Executive on the operations of the Committee, including any recommendations as to appointments to the Hall of Fame.

As a result of the majority vote of the members of the Committee, the Committee may recommend to the Executive the addition of members to the Hall of Fame, within the rules outlined herein. If such recommendation is accepted by the Executive, the members so appointed will become members of the Hall of Fame, and the CMAA membership will be informed of their appointment in such manner and at such time as the Executive may decide.

Categories of Appointees:

Persons may be appointed to the Hall of Fame in either of two categories of equal status, “Athletes” or “Executives”.

Maximum Number of Members in Hall of Fame:

With the exception of the Phase-In Period, as described below, the maximum number of members in the Hall of Fame will be two Athletes for each full even-numbered year and one Athlete for each full odd-numbered year in which the CMAA has been operating, and two Executives for each full five-year period during which the CMAA has been operating. For these purposes, it is assumed that the CMAA began operations on January 1, 1972. It is not necessary at any time to appoint this maximum number of members to the Hall of Fame, but any numbers which could be appointed, but have not, may be appointed in any subsequent year.

Phase-In Period:

The “Phase-In Period” shall consist of the ten-year period from 2002 to the end of 2011, during which the maximum number of members of the Hall of Fame may be achieved, in accordance with the phase-in schedule below. The start date for the Phase-In Period has been chosen based on the fact that the predecessor to the CMAA began operations in 1972. A Phase-In Period is being used because, in order to bring the cumulative number of members of the Hall of Fame up to the maximum indicated above, members representing a total of thirty years, to the end of 2001, would have to, at some point, be appointed. The appointment of the members from the past over the Phase-In Period will help to eliminate biases in the selection process, and bring a broader perspective to bear on the achievements of those from the past. The initial appointment of members during the Phase-In Period will be made in 2002. The details of the maximum numbers of Athletes and Executives, and their characteristics, to be appointed in each year during the Phase-In Period, are as follows:

Notes:

1 By the end of 2011, if the maximum number of members stated above have been appointed each year, the Hall of Fame will have its cumulative maximum number of members.

2 The members chosen in the years 2002 to 2005 must have been members of the CMAA or its predecessor during part of the period indicated as the “Years of Activity”, and must have been active in masters athletics during such period, although their activity could have continued into later periods. For 2002 to 2004, they must, also, be largely retired at the time of their appointment, or over 75 years of age.

3 In addition, in any year, any number of members which were allowed in an earlier year, but were not appointed, may be appointed in such later year.

Requirements for Appointment:

To be appointed to the Hall of Fame, a person must be recommended by the Committee and be approved by the Executive.

In order to qualify for recommendation by the Committee, a person must have been a member of the CMAA for at least 5 (five) years, and be either at least 50 (fifty) years of age or be deceased.

To qualify in the category of “Executive”, a person must have served the CMAA either as an official in competitions, an administrator or a member of the CMAA Executive.

In assessing the qualification of a person in the category of “Athlete”, the Committee shall consider facts such as the following:

i) length of active involvement in masters athletics;
ii) length of active elite performances;
iii) number of Canadian records;
iv) number of World records;
v) number of World championship medals; and
vi) high age-graded performances.

If a person would qualify as a possible appointee both as an Athlete and an Executive, the Committee will, in its judgment, recommend the appointment in the most suitable category.

In any case, the Committee will endeavour to recommend persons not yet appointed whom they consider the most deserving of recognition by the CMAA.