Validation and List Processes
From the moment an event registration is opened until the final set of results are published, the quality, correctness and cleanliness of the data involved will be a factor on how well the event runs. It is unlikely an event will ever have perfect data but doing whatever possible as soon as possible will keep an event running smoothly. Higher tier races require more data for building Start Lists then lower tier races which requires more attention and time. The methods used to clean up the data are as follows:
- Validation tool that finds discrepancies between the registration data and national license database
- manually cleaning up data using sorted and/or grouped reports
- publishing lists for coaches and athletes to review for accuracy
Validation
Validation is a tool provided in the Zone4 registration system that compares the registration data to the national license database system. The tool shows any discrepancies between the data and suggests changes to ensure the registration data matches the data in the licence database. This tool is also used to bring racer points into the registration form. Validation can be started once the first racer is registered and should be completed by the time the first race is created from the registration. There is a separate article on the Validation Tool.
Data Cleanup and Review
Data cleanup is the process of manually cleaning up fields to contain consistent data for reporting and generating other lists. Bib Pickup is the only field that really needs to be made consistent but making Club, Team and University consistent as well will speed-up generating reports on these fields. Using registration reports is the easiest way to do this by taking advantage of sorting, filtering and grouping.
The registered athletes eligibility needs reviewed based on the rules required by event sanctioning. Eligibility is based on licensing, age and club membership. The Validation tool will confirm that FIS and NC licences entered by the registrant are valid for the current year. Use registration reports to filter out eligible athletes and create a short list of athletes that need to take action in order to become eligible.
The following are guidelines for reviewing fields required for Canadian Ski Nationals. Not all fields will be required at other events but this can be used as starting point for reviewing this data. Country This field should only be set to Canada if the racer is a Canadian citizen or permanent resident.
- On the registration, racers should be asked for their citizenship rather than their country of residence
- Racers who do not indicate Canadian citizenship should be asked if they have permanent residence status
- Foreign racers are not eligible for aggregate points systems and various awards
- Canadian men have FIS licenses starting with 3100 and Canadian women have FIS licenses starting with 3105
- Team and training centre racers who have listed their province of residence (where their team is located) should have their province changed to their club’s province
- There are ambiguous border clubs which have a province designation included in the validated club name, racer’s provinces should match the province designation in the club name for example racers from Nakkertok Nordic (ON) should have a province of Ontario and racers from Nakkertok Nordique (QC) should have a province of Québec
- Don’t list states or provinces for non-Canadian/non-landed racers
- Club aggregate awards require the racer to have a province in order to be eligible
- Only provincial ski teams should be listed, provincial development or ‘talent squads’ should not be included for example BC Ski Team is valid, BC Development Team is not
- Major teams from other disciplines or nations are fine for example BATC and US Ski Team are valid
- Team should not include any universities that are also in the University field, only put University in the Team field if the racer is not CCUNC eligible
- If the Team is the same as the Club name, the Team should be omitted for example Black Jack and Team Black Jack
- Use the short team name as defined in the validation database which CCC can provide
- Definition of a valid team:
- outside training group of 4 or more skiers
- recognise outside support, be it financial or training
- should avoid recognition of personal sponsors
- This field should contain the University name and not True/False
- The list of eligible racers can be obtained from CCC
- Expired licenses will be listed in the validation tool as expired and list the last active year
Once points have been brought into the registration with the Validation tool, those without points should be reviewed. These athletes should be looked up in the points database to confirm they indeed have no points. International racers may get special seeding consideration at the Jury’s discretion. This is best handled by giving these racers ‘fake’ points that will place them appropriately on the Start List.
Nordiq Canada Race License https://nordiqcanada.ca/races/racing-license/ This tool can be used to confirm racers have renewed their license for the current season. The Validation tool does this automatically but this system can be used to confirm anomalies. FIS Biographies https://data.fis-ski.com/cross-country/biographies.html This tool can be used to confirm racers have a license for the current season. If ‘Active’ shows in the Status column then their license is valid. The Status column will be blank if their license is not valid. The Validation tool does this automatically but this system can be used to confirm anomalies. Canada Points List https://nordiqcanada.ca/races/point-list/ This tool can be used to confirm a racer’s points. Use the most recent list with ‘Seeding’ in the Type column. Keep in mind there are separate lists for distance and sprint. The Validation tool does this automatically but this system can be used to confirm anomalies. United States Points List https://usskiandsnowboard.org/competition/points/cross-country-points The points list can be downloaded as a ZIP file that contains separate files for men and women.