I just received notification from the Georgia 4-H S.A.F.E. Coordinator, Mark Zeigler that some slight adjustments had been made to the S.A.F.E. competition. Most of the adjustments to the rules were minor and are shown in the Green font.

The interesting changes appear to be in conjunction with what is meant by a “Team”. I have heard some discussion on the Georgia 4-H rules in regards to team archery and I don’t believe that these changes will satisfy those people.

• Members of the State Winning (First Place) Team are ineligible to compete as team members in future years. This applies whether or not they compete in a national 4-H SAFE event. Team members may compete as individuals in contests and may be recognized as State Winners as High Individuals.
• State Winning High Individuals who are not members of the State Winning (First place) Team are permitted to compete in future years as either individuals or as team members.

On one hand, I understand that the rules appear to be preventative to keep one team from dominating year after year, however the other teams see this as punitive to the kids who have worked really hard to get to the level of archer that they are. I can see that this rule was created in the spirit of 4-H which is not exclusively in sport development, but in character development. However, I’m curious if this rule is in line with the rules of other states 4-H programs? I can see both sides of this argument.

Read information about the rules here:
4-H Archery Competition Rules