As result of a hearing, a protest committee issues a warning to a support person. After the warning, the support person again breaks a rule against the will of the supported competitor.
May the protest committee penalize the competitor without a hearing?
No.
If the answer is no, under which rule shall the protest committee protest the competitor?
A protest is an allegation that a boat has broken a rule. If a boat (the competitor) did not break a rule herself, there is no grounds for the protest committee to protest her.
In a hearing called by the protest committee under rule
60.3(d) to consider whether a support person has broken a rule, the supported boat is a party. A hearing under rule
60.3(d) shall be conducted in accordance with rule
63.9. Therefore, the boat’s representative has the right to be present in accordance with rule
63.3(a). For a hearing under rule
60.3(d), rule
64.4(b) sets the conditions under which the supported boat may be penalized.
The following changes to the Racing Rules of Sailing were approved in November 2017 at the World Sailing Annual Conference and come into effect on 1 January 2018.
Rule
63.1, Requirement for a Hearing
Rule
63.9, Hearings under Rule 60.3(d) – Support Persons
Rule
64.4, Decisions Concerning Support Persons