Setting Up a Telegram Group for Your Event

Why Use Telegram for Your Event

Telegram is a cloud-based messaging app available on mobile and desktop that supports public groups of up to 200,000 members. RRS.org can send event notifications — including hearing schedules, decisions, scoring inquiries, starting penalties, and protest time limits — directly to a Telegram group. This gives competitors and officials a single channel for all event communications without requiring them to check the website or their email.

Prerequisites

  1. Download and install the Telegram app on your device and create a Telegram account if you do not already have one.
  2. Enable Telegram notifications for your event. Edit your event on RRS.org and check the Telegram option in the notifications settings section.

Create the Group and Add the RRS Bot

Create a new Telegram group from the Telegram app:

  • iOS: Tap the compose icon in the top-right corner of Chats, then tap New Group.
  • Android: Tap the circular pencil icon in the chat list, then tap New Group.
When the app prompts you to add members, search for racingrules and add the RacingRulesOfSailing bot to the group. Then give the group a name — use the name of your event, keeping it short and easy to search. A few key words work better than a long descriptive name.

Register Your Event with the Bot

Once the group is created, the RacingRulesOfSailing bot sends a welcome message confirming it has been added. You then need to tell the bot which RRS.org event to connect to.

Send the following message in the group:

racingrulesofsailing event#XXXX

Replace XXXX with the numeric ID of your event on RRS.org. You can find the event ID in the URL when viewing your Event Panel. Capitalization does not matter, but do not insert spaces within the words racingrulesofsailing or event#XXXX.

The bot will reply confirming the connection. If the group restricts who can send messages, you must make the RacingRulesOfSailing bot an administrator of the group so it can post notifications.

Make the Group Public

By default, new Telegram groups are private. Make the group public so competitors can find and join it without needing an invitation.

Android: Open the group and tap the group name at the top. Tap the pencil icon, then tap Group Type, select Public Group, and enter a short public link name with no spaces (for example: genovasailingweek). Save your changes.

iOS: Open the group and tap the group name. Tap Edit, choose Group Type, select Public Group, enter the public link name, and tap Done.

Share the public Telegram link with competitors in your Welcome Notice or on the event website so they know how to join.

Managing the Group

You can add administrators to help manage the group and configure their permissions with granular precision.

  • iOS: Go to Group Info (tap the photo at the top of the chat screen) > Edit > Administrators.
  • Android: Go to Group Info (tap the name at the top) > pencil icon > Administrators.
  • Telegram Desktop: In the group, click the three-dot menu in the top-right corner > Manage group > Administrators.
Anyone with Telegram can join the public group by following the public link or searching for the group name. Competitors with Telegram can also be added directly from your contacts.

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