Officiating Programs

Click here to download a Squash BC score sheet in PDF and Stay tuned !

Certification Course Schedule for 2007-08.

Call 604 737 3084 or e-mail kkydd@squashbc.com to sign up for any certification course.

Officiating Program

THE RULES of SQUASH come in many different versions. However, there is only ONE official version of the rules and they are written down for all to see and read. If we were to think logically about this topic, we would come to the conclusion that 50% of our competitive players should be certified officials since 50% of the players in a match will have to referee the next match!!!

Squash BC is part of a nation wide officiating program that has been set up and maintained for many years by Squash Canada and all member provinces like Squash BC. Part of your membership dues will go to the running of this program. Course conductors are constantly being trained. Officials are being assessed in all parts of Canada. New and old officials in the program have to be tracked so we know what level they are and what level of play they are qualified to do.

Squash BC runs two types of officiating clinics throughout the year. The Mini Rules Clinic is for players who have no wish to become a certified official but know they have to learn the official version of the rules in order to play the game. This clinic runs for one to two hours, (depending on the questions asked,) and can usually be done in an evening session. It will cover most everything you will need to know in order to referee a game and what you are entitled to as a player. The cost may vary depending on location in the province but as an individual member you will have a $10.00 discount. We usually need a minimum of 10 people to make the mini clinic worthwhile. Call Kevin Kydd at 604 737 3084 or E-Mail at kkydd@squashbc.com to set up a mini rules clinic.

The second type is the Certification Course. This is a bit longer process as there are a few more steps involved and the cost will be higher. The first part is a slide/PowerPoint presentation to go through the various aspects of an official’s job. This will cover everything from the proper way of keeping score through how to decide strokes and lets. After this presentation there will be a 40 question written test and then a practical test where you will be assessed officiating a match. A Provincial Examiner will deliver all of these components for you to becoming a certified official. Theses steps do not have to be done on the same day but it makes it a lot easier if you do. The length of this course will be four to five hours and is usually done on a weekend.

Once you’ve become certified, you will start out as a D4 official. The letter and the number in the designation are for the level of Referee and the level of Marker respectively. There are four basic levels in the officiating program and they are,

• D1-D4 A novice official
• C1-C3 A competent official at the local level
• B1-B2 An experienced provincial official, capable of handling matches equivalent to the early rounds of a national championships.
• A1 A national official capable of handling matches at any level.

After your initial certification you will be able to move up the certification ladder by being observed by a qualified official. Depending on the level of certification you are, will depend on the level of match you will have to referee and the number of correct and difficult calls you will have to make. You must have five assessments of the correct number and difficulty in order to go to the next level.

A complete explanation of the Officiating program can be viewed at Squash Canada’s web site,

Squash BC would like to thank the Gaming Branch of BC for subsidizing the costs of this program.

The Squash Official is a sixteen page newsletter produced 3 times a season (October, January, & April). Many of you have already seen it over the past 10 years in its paper form ... but... for a while now it has been online on the Squash Canada web site. It was principally designed for Canadian Officials, but it contains all kind stuff that would interest most Referees - news, reports, Q&A's, interpretations, advice, humor, and so on. You can view the current issue (as well as past issues) by going to the TSO section of the officiating pages of the Squash Canada web site. There's also an ARCHIVE of past editions and a LIBRARY of subjects.
(click on the image at left to view the TSO online)