Tournament Director Best Practices

As event planners, we know how important it is to prepare for every scenario. We’ve all been in situations where we’ve forgotten a critical item or lost power/internet in the venue. With that in mind, we’ve put together this best practice guide to help you prepare for your tournament.

Here is a list of sometimes overlooked items to consider:

1. Printer - make sure to pack plenty of paper and a spare ink cartridge
2. Writing supplies - pencils and paper
3. Scotch tape
4. Extra mat tape - you never know when or what you will need to tape down
5. Trash cans at each mat and around the facility
6. At least one set of ankle bands at each mat
7. An athletic trainer with a dedicated space in the venue
8. Paper towels, nose plugs, gloves, and disinfectant spray
9. Stop watches - for clock failure or power outage
10. Flip charts - for dual score not accommodated on a scoreclock or for clock failure/power outage

Once you have your brackets built, here are some tips to back up your data: 

1. Save a PDF copy of your brackets. Make sure to name them something that will let you know which event they are for. Ideally, this is done after every round so that you have the most up-to-date version of the brackets. 
2. Print a copy of your brackets for reference.
3. Save and print a PDF copy of a blank bout sheet. This will allow you to continue scoring matches if, for some reason, you can’t use the computer. They are also handy to have for exhibition matches.