1. All players meeting the requirements of the conditions of contest in a Canadian National Team Championship may enter the competition as a matter of right. However, selection to represent Canada internationally is not a right, but a privilege, which may be extended or denied.
  2. The Canadian Bridge Federation (CBF) reserves its option to declare any player, pair or team, regardless of its tournament record, ineligible to represent Canada in international competition, for reasons of personal hygiene, dress, deportment, CBF membership status or ethics.
  3. CBF Membership – To be eligible to represent Canada Internationally, a player must meet the following membership conditions:
    1. The player must be a member in good standing of the CBF
    2. The player’s CBF membership has not lapsed for more than four (4) months since January 1st of the calendar year preceding the year in which the Canadian championship’s National Final is held. However, a player not meeting this condition for the first time will be deemed eligible to represent Canada upon payment of $200 penalty prior to the start of play in the Canadian championship’s National Final. Should that player’s team be selected to represent Canada, the total CBF financial subsidy given to the team will be reduced by 5%.
    3. First time members of the CBF are exempt from the condition in article 3.b. above. Determination of first time member status is at the sole discretion of the CBF Board of Directors.
  4. Team Composition
    1. Winners of the National Finals must retain a minimum of four original team members in order to represent Canada Internationally. If the winners do not retain four original team members, International representation will go to the next highest ranking eligible team and so on based on the order of finish in the National Final. The equivalence of the teams ranked 3/4 will be broken by the order of finish in the Round Robin portion of the competition.
    2. Teams representing Canada in the World Bridge Games (formerly World Teams Olympiad) or the World Bridge Teams Championships (Bermuda Bowl, Venice Cup and D’Orsi Senior Trophy) must consist of 6 players. A Non Playing Captain (NPC) is recommended, but not required. If a 4 or 5 person team becomes eligible to represent Canada at one of these world championships, such team will be required to augment to 6 players.
      Except in exceptional circumstances, acceptable to the CBF Board of Directors, augmented players must meet one of the two following conditions:
      • have played in the National Final stage of one of the four major Canadian team championships (CNTC-A, CWTC, CSTC or CMTC) qualifying teams for that world championship; OR
      • have played in the National Final stage of one of the four major Canadian team championships in 3 of the previous 5 Canadian Bridge Championships.
  5. Poisoning
    1. When a player is eligible to play in the National Final but ineligible to play in the event for which the National Final is to qualify a team, that player is said to be poisoned. Possible conditions for poisoning are:
      1. A player who has represented a country other than Canada in a WBF event is ineligible to represent Canada in a WBF event for a period of time specified in the WBF Rules and Regulations. Such a player is poisoned in years in which the National Final will qualify a team to a WBF event.
      2. Players on ACBL probation are not eligible to represent Canada in International competition and are thus poisoned except where an appeal to the ACBL Board of Directors is successful.
      3. A player who does not meet the CBF Membership requirements (as described in 3 above) is poisoned.
    2. An otherwise eligible team which knowingly begins play in the National Final with one or more poisoned members may play in the National Final but will be ineligible to represent Canada.
    3. When an instance of poisoning occurs during play in the National Final involving a player on a previously untainted team, the affected team may elect:
      1. to continue in competition with one or more poisoned members, in which case they as a team are eligible to win the National Championship but ineligible to represent Canada in the events for which any member is poisoned,
      2. to continue in competition minus the poisoned member(s), with replacements for some or all of these as desired (but this option may be elected only if at least two original team members remain), or
      3. to withdraw from competition (but this option may not be elected if, in the opinion of the National Coordinator, orderly play in the National Final will be jeopardized.
    4. When a team is ineligible to represent Canada, its rank in the overall standings of the championship (for the purpose of representation only) will be exchanged with the next lower ranking team. In all cases, should any question arise, the Board of Directors of the CBF shall be the final judge as to which team represents Canada.