Illinois § 12

§ 12.

Professional or amateur contests. (a) The professional or amateur contest, or a combination of both, shall be held in an area where adequate neurosurgical facilities are immediately available for skilled emergency treatment of an injured professional or amateur. (b) Each professional or amateur shall be examined before the contest and promptly after each bout by a physician. The physician shall determine, prior to the contest, if each professional or amateur is physically fit to compete in the contest. After the bout the physician shall examine the professional or amateur to determine possible injury. If the professional's or amateur's physical condition so indicates, the physician shall recommend to the Department immediate medical suspension. The physician or a licensed paramedic must check the vital signs of all contestants as established by rule. (c) The physician may, at any time during the professional or amateur bout, stop the professional or amateur bout to examine a professional or amateur contestant and may direct the referee to terminate the bout when, in the physician's opinion, continuing the bout could result in serious injury to the professional or amateur. If the professional's or amateur's physical condition so indicates, the physician shall recommend to the Department immediate medical suspension. The physician shall certify to the condition of the professional or amateur in writing, over his or her signature on forms prescribed by the Department. Such reports shall be submitted to the Department in a timely manner. (d) No professional or amateur contest, or a combination of both, shall be allowed to begin or be held unless at least one physician, at least one EMT and one paramedic, and one ambulance have been contracted with solely for the care of professionals or amateurs who are competing as defined by rule. (e) No professional boxing bout shall be more than 12 rounds in length. The rounds shall not be more than 3 minutes each with a minimum one-minute interval between them, and no professional boxer shall be allowed to participate in more than one contest within a 7-day period. The number and length of rounds for all other professional or amateur boxing or full-contact martial arts contests, or a combination of both, shall be determined by rule. (f) The number and types of officials required for each professional or amateur contest, or a combination of both, shall be determined by rule. (g) The Department or its representative shall have discretion to declare a price, remuneration, or purse or any part of it belonging to the professional withheld if in the judgment of the Department or its representative the professional is not honestly competing. (h) The Department shall have the authority to prevent a professional or amateur contest, or a combination of both, from being held and shall have the authority to stop a professional or amateur contest, or a combination of both, for noncompliance with any part of this Act or rules or when, in the judgment of the Department, or its representative, continuation of the event would endanger the health, safety, and welfare of the professionals or amateurs or spectators. The Department's authority to stop a contest on the basis that the professional or amateur contest, or a combination of both, would endanger the health, safety, and welfare of the professionals or amateurs or spectators shall extend to any professional or amateur contest, or a combination of both, regardless of whether that amateur contest is exempted from the prohibition in Section 6 of this Act. (i) A professional shall only compete against another professional. An amateur shall only compete against another amateur. (Source: P.A. 102-20, eff. 1-1-22.)