FANTASY TOUR DE FRANCE 2010
FANTASY TOUR RULES
MAIN COMPETITION | PREMIUM COMPETITIONS
OVERVIEW
Each player takes the role of a Directeur Sportif of a professional cycling team. The aim of the contest is to select the best possible team of 9 riders, whilst operating within the conditions set on team selection. The better your racers perform during the 3 week event, the more points they will accumulate for your fantasy squad.
TEAM ENTRY
You must use the Official Entry Form to submit your team. The Entry Form will be made available once the game is open for entries. It is expected that the opening date will be Tuesday 29th June, 2010.
Entry into the Fantasy Tour de France is free for each player.
Only one team is allowed per player. Multiple team entries by a single player is not allowed and could lead to teams being disqualified from the game. If multiple teams are found, only the last team entered by the player will be accepted as the official entry.
CLOSING DATE
The deadline for entries to be submitted is 1600 CET (Central European Time) on Saturday 3rd May 2010.
TEAM SELECTION CRITERIA
In order that each player creates a balanced team, the following two important constraints are placed on team selection:
- Team Budget
Teams are given 100 VeloCredits to select their riders. VeloCredits are the Velogames currency. Each rider is given a value in VeloCredits, based on their prospective points-scoring abilities. The VeloCredits values are based on past results and recent form, with an emphasis towards those riders who have been successful in past editions of the Tour de France.
- Rider Classes
Riders are split into 4 Rider Classes, which reflect their supposed strengths, weaknesses and role within their team. These categories are All-Rounder, Climber, Sprinter and Domestique.
Each team must contain 2 All-Rounders, 2 Climbers, 1 Sprinter, 3 Domestiques (team-workers) and 1 Wild Card. The Wild Card selection may be from any rider category, and allows a team manager to specialise somewhat in the team they pick.
There are no other team selection criteria apart selecting 9 riders, staying within the 100 VeloCredit limit and making sure that the correct composition of Rider Classes is selected.
RESERVE RIDERS
Once you have selected a team of 9 riders and they have started the Tour de France, you may not replace them during the race.
There will be no rider substitutions during the race, even if riders abandon during the race. The 9 riders that you start the tour with will be the only riders who will score you points during the event.
If any of your riders drop off the start-list, you are welcome to re-draft your team before the closing date. Simply use the Entry Form to pick another team.
Only the last team entered by each player will be activated as an official entry.
If any of your selected riders do not start, they will be replaced with the most similar alternative of similar credit value. This will be an automatic replacement. Where possible, riders will be replaced with their team-mates within the similar credit band. Replacements are the decision of Velogames.
SCORING
Your riders score points for their real-life performances in the Tour de France, based on the Scoring System. You can also follow the link in the main Fantasy Tour menu for the detailed scores.
At the end of the 3 week event, the team whose riders have amassed the most points is declared the winner of Velogames Fantasy Tour de France 2010.
OFFICIAL RESULTS
Stage points are given out based on the official race standings, as shown the official race website. Scores become "confirmed" for Velogames purposes at 2300 CET during the evening following each stage. If a rider is removed from the standings after this time, for any reason the points gained for that stage will stand. Immediate disqualifications or declassifications (such as for irregular sprinting) will be taken into account when deciding the Fantasy Tour points, as long as these penalties are announced before 2300 CET. Back-dated disqualifications and reversal of results (even for doping offences) will not be taken into account after the 2300 CET deadline, and the rider will keep his points. This rule certainly should not be viewed as an acceptance of doping. The technical and gameplay issues surrounding back-dated scoring adjustments are difficult. Also, it is not fair to excessively punish players who have selected a rider in good faith, even if that rider is subsequently exposed as a cheater.
UPDATE SCHEDULE
A scoring update will be made either on the evening of each stage or the following day. The aim is to make a daily update. In instances where it is not possible to update the site on a daily basis, a full update will be made as soon as possible to keep the scoring information up-to-date.