General Rules & Policies
Refund Policy:
Participants and supporters who withdraw due to illness or injury prior to July 8th will receive a refund of registration and sport fees paid. No refunds will be issued after July 8, regardless of reason. In the event the Host Society cancels a sport, participants and supporters will receive a refund of their registration and sport fees paid. Exception – Cross zone participants who are not placed on a team prior to the start of the Games are eligible to receive a refund. Membership fees are non-refundable under all circumstances.
Primary residence:
Participants must be permanent residents of British Columbia. Participants living is Bella Bella, Haida Gwaii, Atlin, Dease Lake and Fort Nelson (designated isolation areas) are eligible to compete for their isolation area but are considered a part of the geographical zone. Bella Bella (zone 2), Haida Gwaii (zone 10), Atlin (zone 11), Dease Lake (zone 11) and Fort Nelson (zone 12).
Participant Age:
Participants must be 55 years of age or older by December 31st in the year of the Games. Exception – participant age for competing in track & field will be based on the participant’s age on August 23.
Partner and Team Age:
Participants can only move up in skill level and can only move down in age category. Partners must play in the age category of the youngest team member.
Zones:
British Columbia is divided into 12 zones. Each zone has an organizing committee responsible for registering participants and coordinating playdowns, as required. Participants represent their zones during competition. Exception – participants completing teams
Cross-Zone Participants
A cross-zone participant is a registered member willing to participate on a team* for another zone, no cross-zone participants are allowed in singles events. Cross zone participants must register and pay fees in their resident zone.
*A team consists of two (pair) or more persons.
Qualifying for the Games:
Some sport specific rules have zone caps on the number of participants who can attend the Games. Zones with more registered participants then allowed by zone caps, as stated in each sport specific rules, will hold zone playdowns to determine which participants will represent the zone at the Games. Participants from designated isolation areas do not have to compete in zone playdowns with the exception of five pin bowling participants. Participants may compete in as many sport as they wish at the zone level, but must register in the first sport they qualify. Medals are not awarded at playdowns. Anyone competing in zone or area playdowns must be a member of BC Seniors Games Society before competing in the playdown.
Physical Condition:
It is highly recommended that all participants in a physically active sport have a medical examination prior to competing in are or zone playdowns or at the Games. Participants with a health problem or concern should carry this information with them along with a list of mediations or treatment being taken.
Team Registration (more than 5 participants):
Teams will more than five participants must have a unique name. Team names must be a maximum of two words and zone teams in the same sport must have different names. Team names are entered on the respective sport forms. A participant registered on a team with five or more participants can only play on one team. Exception – dragon boat racing – a woman can compete on a women’s team as well as a mixed team.
Membership with Provincial Sport Organization:
Membership with a PSO is not a requisite for participation in the Games, unless required as stated in the sport specific rules. Participants are encouraged to look into the PSO for their sport, if applicable, for membership benefits.
Registration Forms:
Forms will be available for downloading from the website on March 1. Registration forms (paper or emailed copies) are collected by the resident zone and manually entered into the database. BCSGS is in the process of updating Games software, which will allow participants to register online. Roll out of online registration is scheduled for the 2024 Games.
Total Registration Fees:
Total registration fee = registration fee (below) + sport fees (on individual sport pages) + membership fee (below).
Participant fee – $75 (March 1 to June 15)
Supporter fee – $40 (March 1 to August 17)
Membership fee – $20
Registration fee includes: Accreditation badge, welcome bag, transportation to special events, souvenir Games Event Guide, Opening Ceremony, Thursday night special event, Friday night dance and Passing of the Flag Ceremony.
Sport fees help the Host Society cover the cost for officials, venue rental or other fees, equipment rental, sanctioning fees, if applicable and other items to assist with the delivery of the sport competitions.
Registering for more than one Sport:
Participants are allowed to compete in only one sport at the games, but they may compete in more than one event within that sport. **NEW for 2023 – participants may register for the 10Km road race, to be held Saturday, August 26, in addition to their other scheduled sport.
Confirmation of Registration:
Participants will receive an email confirming registration. Contact your zone if any information on the confirmation email is incorrect or if you have not received a confirmation email by July 8th.
Accreditation:
Participants are required to accredit the day before competition begins in their sport. If a participant is unable to attend in person, participants must arrange to have their accreditation package picked up for them. Teams can designate a representative to attend and pick up the accreditation packages for all registered members of the team. Participants will receive an accreditation badge and this identification should be worn at all times to ensure entry to competitions, special events and transportation. Accreditation packages not picked up will be classified as a ‘no show’ which means the participant will not be allowed to compete in the Games.
Participant Pledge:
“I pledge to participate in the 55+ BC Games to the best of my ability, to uphold the highest standards of sportsmanship during competition, to enjoy the fun and fellowship of the Games and to appreciate the hospitality, volunteers and friendship of the Host Community.”
Participant Hold Harmless Policy:
Participant information is collected under the authority of the BC Seniors Games Society (BCSGS) as collector and custodian of this information. The information provided will be used to determine the eligibility to participate in the annual 55+ BC Games and for other reasons as outlined in the Personal Information Protection Policy.
The name, age, home town and sport of the registered participant will be provided to media outlets and available able on the 55+ BC Games website. The name, address, sport, age and image of the registered participants may be used in non-commercial promotion and development of sport by BCSGS.
The names and addresses and images may be provided to the Premier and the Minister of Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport.
For questions about the collection and use of this information, please contact BC Seniors Games Society at info@55plusbcgames.org.
As a condition of entry into the 55+ BC Games, it must be understood that the participants enter entirely at their own risk and will not hold the BC Seniors Games Society, the Host Society and the Province of BC, their staff, agents and volunteers responsible for injury, loss of property damage occurring during the annual 55+ BC Games.
Participants agree to release, discharge and not to undertake commencing any action against the Host Society, BC Seniors Games Society and the Province of BC from any and all claims and causes of action, or liability of any kind whatsoever for injuries, property damage or death, which in any way results from participating in the annual 55+ BC Games.
The Host Society, the BC Seniors Games Society and the Province of British Columbia do not assume responsibility for loss of wages, medical, dental or hospital care for participants, officials, or volunteers during the annual 55+ BC Games.
