The Alberta Schools' Athletic Association (ASAA) is the governing body that oversees amateur athletics in schools for the province of

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

. It is a voluntary, non profit organization that has 373 member high schools. It enforces policies as dictated by the provincial board of Governors. As is the case with all provincial governing bodies for school athletics in Canada, the ASAA is an affiliate member of the United States-based

National Federation of State High School Associations The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) is the body that writes the rules of competition for most high school sports and activities in the United States. NFHS's headquarters are located in White River State Park in In ...

History

The ASAA was founded in

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, maki ...

in 1956 to coordinate high school championships among member schools. After starting their activities by organizing a regional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

tournament, more sports were added throughout the years, starting with

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...

in 1958,

badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racket (sports equipment), racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net (device), net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per s ...

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

and cross-country running in the 1960s;

gymnastics Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, s ...

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

, and

curling Curling is a sport in which players slide stones on a sheet of ice toward a target area which is segmented into four concentric circles. It is related to bowls, boules, and shuffleboard. Two teams, each with four players, take turns sliding ...

in the 1970s; and

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping ...

cheerleading Cheerleading is an activity in which the participants (called cheerleaders) cheer for their team as a form of encouragement. It can range from chanting slogans to intense physical activity. It can be performed to motivate sports teams, to ent ...

and football in the 1980s. Gymnastics was discontinued in 1989. Girls'

was added in 1995. More recently rugby was added in 2006,

team handball Handball (also known as team handball, European handball or Olympic handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of throwing it into the ...

in 2010, and

six-man football Six-man football is a variant of gridiron football played with six players per team, instead of the standard 11 or 12. It is generally played by high schools in rural areas of the United States and Canada. History Six-man football was developed ...

in 2011. The association is structured in 8 geographical zones,

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city anc ...

as urban zones, complemented by six rural zones.

District zones

The eight geographic zones of the ASAA are: *Calgary *Central *Edmonton *North East *North Central *North West *South *South Central

Regional associations

Within these geographic zones, the policies set forth by the ASAA are administered by the regional associations: *Calgary –

Calgary Senior High School Athletic Association Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, making ...

Calgary Independent Schools Athletic Association Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...

¹ *Central –

Central Zone of the Alberta Schools' Athletic Association Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known a ...

*Edmonton –

Edmonton Metro Athletic Association Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city anchor ...

² *North East – *North Central – *North West – *South –

South Zone of the Alberta Schools' Athletic Association South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþaz' ...

*South Central – Rocky View Sports Association ³ & South Central Zone of the Alberta Schools' Athletic Association ;Notes

Structure

In order to provide a competitive balance, member schools are placed into classifications for all major sports based on the schools' enrollments. Divisions and the tier classification systems are not equivalent. Exact sizes are:

Divisions

* 1A schools: fewer than 100 students * 2A schools: 100–299 students * 3A schools: 300–799 students * 4A schools: 800 or more students

Football Tiers

* Tier IV schools: fewer than 450 students (all Division IA and 2A schools, and the smaller Division 3A schools) * Tier III schools: 450–749 students (mid-sized Division 3A schools) * Tier II schools: 750–1249 students (largest Division 3A and smaller Division 4A schools) * Tier I schools: 1250 or more students (largest Division 4A schools)

Team Handball Tiers

* Tier II schools: fewer than 500 students (all Division 1A and 2A schools and the smaller Division 3A schools) * Tier I schools: 500 or more students (mid-sized Division 3A and Division 4A schools)

Rugby Tiers

* Tier III schools: fewer than 600 students (all Division 1A and 2A schools and the smaller Division 3A schools) * Tier II schools: 600–1249 students (larger Division 3A schools and the smaller Division 4A schools) * Tier I schools: 1250 or more students (largest Division 4A schools)

Sports governing bodies

The sports sanctioned by the ASAA are steered by the governing sports bodies and its guidelines to provide an equitable competition and ethical standards for all male and females students and coaches involved within that sports' program. The governing sports bodies are: *

Athletics Alberta Athletics Alberta is the provincial sports organization responsible for the promotion, coordination and organization of track and field, cross-country and road running in Alberta, Canada. Athletics Alberta is the provincial governing body that repre ...

* Basketball Alberta *

Alberta Curling Federation Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada, provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to t ...

* Alberta Golf * Rugby Alberta * Alberta Wrestling *

Alberta Badminton Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Territ ...

Alberta Cheerleading Association Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Territ ...

Football Alberta
*

Alberta Junior Rugby Association Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Territ ...

Alberta Volleyball
*

Alberta Team Handball Federation Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Territ ...

Sports

Thirty-three provincial championships are held annually for 12 ASAA sports: *Badminton *Basketball **Boys ***Division 1A ***Division 2A ***Division 3A ***Division 4A **Girls ***Division 1A ***Division 2A ***Division 3A ***Division 4A *Cheerleading *Cross Country *Curling *Football **Tier I **Tier II **Tier III **Tier IV **6-Man *Golf *Rugby **Tier I **Tier II **Tier III *Team Handball *Track and Field *Volleyball **Boys ***Division 1A ***Division 2A ***Division 3A ***Division 4A **Girls ***Division 1A ***Division 2A ***Division 3A ***Division 4A *Wrestling (Boys & Girls) **Rural **Provincial Results from all sports:

Cheerleading

The first ASAA sponsored provincial cheerleading championship was awarded in 1984.

Football

The first ASAA sponsored provincial Senior Varsity football championship was awarded in 1985. Due to the cold inclement weather, the inaugural championship games were cancelled, and the competing schools were declared co-champions.

Team Handball

The first ASAA sponsored provincial Senior Varsity Team handball championship was awarded in April 2010.

Volleyball

The first ASAA sponsored provincial Senior Varsity volleyball championship was awarded in 1964.

References

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External links