In order to clarify the situation and explain the reasons for the NPPL’s
decision to part company with the PSP and run its own series of events, NPPL
President Chuck Hendsch has issued the following press release:
‘The NPPL is a non-political governing body responsible for sanctioning
quality paintball events and committed to growing the sport at all levels.
We are also dedicated to improving and maintaining the Sports integrity and
professionalism.
Our goal is to create a positive environment which encourages new players
into the game and to provide all players and sponsors with a top quality flagship
Paintball series with sound infrastructure that delivers on its promises.
The further intention of the NPPL is to legitimise tournament paintball by maintaining a body of independent professional referees, whose sole purpose is to maintain and enforce the rules, regulations and standards at all NPPL events. The NPPL has also developed a sanctioning program with very strict guidelines to ensure that all event organisers adhere to the highest standards and work progressively in tandem with the teams and industry as a whole.’‘
The NPPL Super 7’s is formatted to globalise the game and make it more
presentable to Television, outside sponsors and most importantly, spectators.
7-man is a very strategic game, is easy to follow, fun to watch, and fits
more easily into desirable venue’s, allowing more impressive locations to
be explored.
We are focusing on cleaning up the game, employing trained, dedicated refs
who follow the series and adjudicate at every event. We cannot allow referee’s
to be intimidated. They must have the knowledge and authority to properly
enforce the rules, specifically for cheating, foul language, physical altercation
and threats, which have not been properly addressed in the past.’
‘The NPPL is for everyone, teams, sponsors and industry alike. A team can
show up and use any product so long as they are safe and falls within the
NPPL guidelines. Our doors are open; we are excited and looking forward to
moving Paintball onwards. Over the past years tournament paintball has grown
in participation but the tournaments themselves have not kept pace with that
growth. The 2003 NPPL 7-man series will revolutionise the game as we know
it today’
The ‘Clean up’ program will be backed up by trained Refs and Equipment Scrutineers
that will be flown to each event, instead of having to source referee’s at
the location of each tournament and giving them rudimentary schooling. This
has been the difficulty with the consistency of the Pro reffing since its
inception and has been caused in no small part by the lack of available funds
required to finance the levels of expenditure needed to pay for the flights
and travelling expenses of the more experienced Pro Referee’s. Good refs can
be and have been found, but if these refs are only used at their local event
they do not gather the experience necessary to enforce the rules properly,
and the whole process must be repeated at the location of the next event with
no guarantee of success.
Each of the NPPL Super 7’s events will be held in a quality venue with floodlights
to allow games to start later and run into the evening. There are plans to
allow more teams into the finals, where a new knockout format will take place
on a ‘Centre Court’ arena. The NPPL 7-man Series will kick off in February
2003 and a complete schedule of locations and dates for the entire series
are to be announced in the middle of December. The NPPL has already secured
considerable industry support which will guarantee increased prize packages
for all divisions. For example, Pro teams will compete for a minimum first
place cash prize of $20,000 at each event, plus a Pro Series Champions prize
of $15,000. Amateur, Novice and Rookie teams will compete for prize packages
totalling $40,000, $30,000 and $20,000 respectively.
These events will also be linked to the European Millennium Series. Points
from specific European events will count in the NPPL series and vice versa,
to entice more European teams to come over and try their skills in a 7 man
format. Fewer European teams are making the trip over to the US due to the
standard of events they get at home. Higher quality venues and grass playing
surfaces are a requirement in the Millennium series, and this requirement
must and will be applied to the NPPL Super 7’s in order to globalise a higher
standard of event. It is also being considered that NPPL and Millennium membership
could be combined, so that members of one series can travel to play in the
other, and enjoy membership benefits of both series without paying another
membership fee
“Response to our new NPPL membership drive has been phenomenal from both
the paintball player community and paintball related merchants. More merchants
are being signed up on a daily basis that desire participating in extending
discount benefits to NPPL members. The response is so overwhelming that NPPL
player supporters, including spouses, girlfriends/boyfriends, parents and
their children, are requesting membership. We’ve created a separate supporter
membership category, which both costs the same and affords the supporter member
with the same benefits that a player member receives. In addition, a paintball
supporter clothing line is being designed, which will be available at special
discounted pricing to supporting members. We’re all about growing our great
sport to meet or exceed the needs of those who compete or of those who cheer
the competitors on,” said Hendsch.