Tournament of Champions (debate)

Nevertheless, The Tournament of Champions uses the rules and regulations provided by the National Speech and Debate Association (NSDA), including resolutions or topics for many events.

Patterson's previously had coaching high school policy debate at Muskogee Central High School in Oklahoma before joining the University of Kentucky[1] However, when considering the need for another national championship tournament, he came to the conclusion that major national tournaments in the early 1970s had three major problems: Quality of judges, internal politics and long lag times.

Consequently, Patterson began to formalize a system of "Tournament of Champions Advisory Committees", encouraging coaches to give feedback and suggestions.

Notable champions include Gregory Bernstein, who was the first and only competitor to win the tournament twice (doing so in 2012 and 2013) [2] and Will Mascaro, who won by the largest margin since the event was added.

[citation needed] In 2012, Tournament of Champions added two Speech Round Robins—in Extemporaneous Speaking and Original Oratory.

However, after the competition on Saturday and Sunday, the tournament moves to a central location to conduct its annual "Breakfast of Champions" ceremony as well as the elimination rounds.

Since the 2007 Tournament of Champions, the final day of competition has taken place in conference rooms at the Downtown Hilton in Lexington, Kentucky.

Director Greg Whiteley initially followed the Policy debate team of Sam Iola and Matt Andrews of Highland Park High School throughout their season until their loss in semifinals of the 2005 Tournament of Champions.

After the defeat, Whiteley focuses the film's attention on the pursuit of qualifying to the tournament by the Long Beach Jordan team, which presents a kritik in an attempt to be successful and reform debate practices.

While the film shifts focus to the Long Beach Jordan pair, it still makes mention near the end of the film that Matt Andrews (then with Greenhill School) won the 2006 Tournament of Champions without losing a ballot, taking first place with a ballot record of 22-0 (the second team to do so, Pace Academy (Allen/Smith) being the first in 2002).