Rating Explained
Combat sports are fun and exciting when athletes are appropriately matched, but they can be painful and humiliating when mismatches occur. Many organizations have attempted to implement skill divisions in their events, but the absence of a fair and objective method for rating athletes often leads to mismatches and instances of skill cheating. Also, skill divisions are not black and white, there exists a significant difference in ability between a 1-month beginner and a 1-year beginner, between a very athletic child and a new athlete.
Some parents, driven by their love for their children, go to great lengths, including misrepresenting their child's skill level, to enter them into novice divisions, thereby bolstering their own egos at the expense of other children. Our rating system eliminates this problem and makes skill cheating impossible.
There are 3 ways that ratings change:
When an athlete wins a match, their rating will increase, when they lose a match, their rating will decrease. The amount that their rating will increase or decrease depends upon the rating of the other athlete.
2. Changes in weight
Since size matters in combat sports, ratings adjust as athletes grow or shrink in size. This allows ratings to remain accurate across weight classes.
3. Manual adjustments
Sometimes our staff will deem it necessary to manually adjust the rating of an athlete so that they are appropriately placed in the hierarchy.
Ratings are an estimate of skill, they are good, but they not perfect. An athlete having a good day may perform at a level a few hundred points higher than their current rating, while an athlete cutting too much weight may perform far below their rating.
How does the math work?
| Difference in rating | Likelihood the higher rated athlete wins |
|---|---|
| 0 | 50% |
| 100 | 64% |
| 200 | 76% |
| 300 | 85% |
| 400 | 92% |
| 500 | 96% |
| 600 | 98% |
| 800 | 99.74% |
| 1500 | 99.99999% |
How do you get an initial rating?
When an athlete first registers for an event, a 2 question survey is used to determine their initial rating:
We use this information to give them an initial rating.
How long will it take for my child's rating to become accurate?
Most ratings become accurate within 2-3 matches. You'll know you're in the right spot when the matches become very competitive.
Rating changes will be larger for newer wrestlers, as we attempt to get athletes into the right spots as quick as possible. An athlete may lose or gain 400 points after their first match, but may only lose or gain 40 points after their 20th match. An athlete who takes a break from wrestling for a long time and then comes back, will once again experience rapid rating changes. All of this is designed to accurately rate athletes as quickly as possible.
It may take longer for children who are heavy/light for their age (children who are light for their age tend to be under-rated, while children who are heavy for their age tend to be over-rated). If you are worried that your child's rating is far from where it belongs, reach out to us and we can manually adjust their rating so that they are in the right spot.
Are ratings the same across different wrestling styles?
No, each wrestling style has a separate rating. Wins/losses in 1 style of wrestling do not effect ratings in another.
Can't people cheat by creating a new profile?
Yes, but we will catch them and ban them from future competitions. 1 profile/athlete for life. NO EXCEPTIONS!
If you know of someone creating multiple profiles, please report them to [email protected]