Promote categories

In Copenico, it is possible to use the category promotion functionality. 

What does this mean?

Categories can be set up so that participants from various categories are promoted into a new, consolidated category. A common example is when the top five male and female participants from any age group are grouped into a new overall category.

As a result, participants with the 5 best times will no longer be part of the category corresponding to their birth date but will move to the new category. 

Normally, the category to which participants are promoted is not age-dependent.

 How is it configured?

1. Create the categories. As shown in the example image, there are different age-dependent categories like M35, F35, M40, F40, etc., and 2 non-age-dependent categories. In the example, "Absolute Male" and "Absolute Female".

2. In trophies, create the necessary awards for the timing of the event. In addition, the necessary trophies for each category to which the participants will be promoted. In the example, "Absolute Male" and "Absolute Female".

3. In the awards used for category promotion, click the pencil icon to access advanced editing. Once inside:
   1. Review the trophy configuration: name, quantity, split, calculation mode, award type, and condition selector (male, female, or category/attribute).
   2. Check the promotion category.

   3. Configure the category to which participants will be promoted if they receive that trophy. In the example, "Absolute Male" for men and "Absolute Female" for women. 

      In this example, gender is used to promote participants to a new category, but with this new functionality, promotion can be based on gender, categories, or even an attribute award. 

The calculations for category promotion are not automatic. They must be done manually before publishing/printing the event results. To make this:

1. In the race actions menu on the left, select "Promote Categories" and choose the event.

2. The next window will show the changes to be made. If correct, click confirm.

3. In participants, you can see the category change that was made.

4. Of course, this change will also be visible when printing the awards.

How is category promotion different from non-cumulative awards?

When promotion categories are configured and calculated, this action changes the participant's category, moving them from their original category to the promoted one. 

In contrast, non-cumulative awards do not change categories. Participants can win awards that may or may not be associated with a category. Awards themselves can be cumulative or non-cumulative. For more information on non-cumulative awards, see this article. 

For example, an event may have 10 male and 10 female categories, but only the top 5 men and top 5 women will receive a award.