Welcome to the 2021 Gate City Invitational tournament!

This year, we will be offering Novice and Varsity divisions in LD, PF, and Policy debate. The Debate portion of the tournament is a round robin competition--there will be six prelims, with awards going to the top 8 seeds in all events and divisions. We will be offering an open division in Congressional Debate. Congress will have two general sessions and a supers session. All offered speech events will be an open division, with three rounds and finals. Double entry is allowed, but no competitor may enter two draw events. As per tradition and as a way to encourage novice to compete in open speech, the top novice competitor in every speech event will be recognized as the "Top Novice."

Sign up soon please as events may be dropped/combined if they don't get enough entries!

The following speech events will be offered:

HI, DI, POI, DUO, Sales, ADS, Extemp, Impromptu, OO, Info, CA, Retold, Radio

Topics:

Congress will use a combination of the NSDA November Docket and legislation submitted by schools. For docket see google drive: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1fFe8cUh7mEU4cWkSH9Ya8EhMatwNWfGx?usp=sharing

Open/Novice LD will use the Nov/Dec NSDA Topic: A just government ought to recognize an unconditional right of workers to strike.

Open/Novice PF will use the Nov/Dec NSDA Topic: Increased United States federal regulation of cryptocurrency transactions and/or assets will produce more benefits than harms.

Novice*/Open Policy will use the 2020-2021 NSDA topic: The United States federal government should substantially increase its protection of water resources in the United States.

*Novice Policy Rules:

1) Novice Policy debaters should use the 2021-2022 Novice Policy Debate Packet evidence and arguments. Any additional evidence that schools wish to add to their team's files must be submitted to smithj3@sd25.us by October 31st at 11:59pm. This evidence will be collected, vetted, and sent out to all schools attending the tournament as a supplemental evidence packet.

2) Novice Policy debaters need to Affirm the resolution through one of the following plan areas:

• Substantially strengthen federal surveillance and standards for lead in drinking water.
• Substantially limit the use of hydraulic fracturing by energy companies in the United States.
• Substantially strengthen federal standards for agriculture-related runoff into lakes and streams.
• Substantially increase the protection of wetlands in the United States.

3) Novice Policy Debaters on the Negative may read the following off-case arguments:

Topicality: Substantially, Increase = Pre-existence, Protection = Prevention, Protection = Regulation, Protection = Not Remediation, Water Resources = Usable Freshwater, In the U.S. = Territorial.

Disadvantages: Federalism, Business Confidence, EPA Overstretch, Water Utility Prices (Lead Pipes only), Energy Security (Ban Fracking only), Food Prices (Agricultural Runoff only), Commercial Real Estate (Wetland Protection only).

Schedule

Schedule Friday November 12th

Check in: 2:45

Opening Assembly (Cafeteria)-3:20

Judges Meeting (Library)-3:40

Round 1: 4:00 (Draw at 3:30)

Round 2: 5:15-6:45

Round 3: 6:45-8:15

Finals: 8:30-9:45

Schedule Saturday November 14th

Check in: 8:30am

Congress Session 1: 9:30am-1:00pm (Includes P.O. elections + Setting Docket)

Round 1: 9:00am-11:00am (No Novice Workshop)

Round 2: 11:00am-1:00pm

Lunch: 1:00pm-1:30pm

Congress Session 2: 1:30pm-4:30pm

Round 3: 1:30pm-3:30pm

Round 4: 3:30pm-5:30pm

Super Congress: 5:00pm-7:30pm

Round 5: 5:30pm-7:30pm

Awards: 8:00pm

Judging Information

All judging/ballots will be done online at this tournament. That means all judges that are entered by a school must 1) have access to an electronic device that can connect to the internet and use the tabroom website 2) have a tabroom account that is linked to their judge profile and 3) be approved for online judging by the coach that is bringing them to the tournament.

COVID Safety:

Students, Coaches, Judges, etc. will be required to wear a mask at all times unless 1) performing, in which case students may either wear a face shield or perform using social distancing, and 2) Eating, in which case social distancing must be carried out as much as possible. The commons area will have managers ensuring compliance with the mask policy. No non-medical exceptions. Students will not shake hands with one another or with their judge at the beginning or end of any round of competition. Hand sanitizer will be provided at multiple locations throughout the school and in each classroom. Judges will be asked to disinfect whatever desk they and all competitors in a round sat at, at the end of each round of competition.

Judges Lounge/Tabroom Food:

The Judges Lounge and Tabroom will be provided with 3 meals, Dinner on Friday, and then Lunch and Dinner on Saturday. Due to Saturdays later start time, we will not be providing breakfast. 

Concessions:

Concessions will be offered, students and teams are encouraged to bring cash for various food, beverages, and snacks.