Quote:
Originally Posted by Lil' Lavery
The solution is very simple indeed. Reduce the number of "Championship" tournaments, and turn other "Championship tournaments" in the area into Qualifying events. These areas may have to be rather large (often much larger than are currently considered), but it is a feasible and existing solution to a problem that must be amended.
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Another advantage of more Qualifiers and fewer Championships is that of space. There are very few venues that can hold a 50-team Championship (typically, colleges), and these venues are highly in demand for other events. At the jr. college where I teach, the gym must be reserved at least 18 months in advance (the only open dates typically are over Christmas vacation) and rental is very costly. In contrast, many high schools have space for a 20-team Qualifier; thus, there are more choices of open dates, and sometimes the facility can be used for free. This puts fewer constraints on the tournament organizers, and makes it more likely that the tournament can be held on a desirable date (like Saturdays, rather than Sundays, and not on major holiday weekends). More convenient dates --> more teams willing to participate. Finally, having more and smaller events spreads the events out geographically, potentially bringing FTC to a broader population.