Fifteen individuals were honored for their service and contributions to high school athletics at an awards dinner that concluded first day of the 55th annual Hawaii Interscholastic Athletic Directors Association conference held at the Hilton Waikoloa Village. Brien Ing | SL

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06081558_DSC01072.jpg - Brien Ing | SL

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WAIKOLOA, Hawaii — The 55th Annual Hawaii Interscholastic Athletic Directors Association Conference got underway Monday at the Hilton Waikoloa Village Resort.

Athletic directors from across the state are gathered at the 62-acre oceanfront resort on the Kohala coast of the Big Island to discuss 28 proposals submitted by the five statewide leagues and the Hawaii High School Athletic Association for the upcoming athletic year over the three-day conference.

Monday's events included the opening general assembly and breakout group sessions where each proposal went through a straw poll vote. Among the proposals on the table are one to utilize a regional format for the state softball tournament. However, according to several administrators who sat in on the breakout session, there were little details provided on the specifics of the proposal.

Other proposals include to move up the start date for football by one week and to adjust the weight classes for wrestling. Another proposal seeks to eliminate the double-knee seoinage (shoulder throw) in judo.

Each of the five leagues held a caucus late Monday evening to further discuss each proposal. The four groups will reconvene Tuesday to vote on the proposals. Each proposal must be passed through committee vote to reach the final general assembly on Wednesday. If the committee recommendation is passed by the general assembly, it will be forwarded to HHSAA executive board — which meets Thursday — who then will approve, deny or amend each HIADA recommendation.

Earlier in the day athletic directors sat through a workshop by California Interscholastic Federation executive director Roger Blake on safety. Later in the evening, 15 individuals were honored for their service and contributions to high school athletics at an awards dinner, which included a keynote speech by sports law professor Lee Green. Among those recognized were Harold Tanaka, Farrington athletic director, and Jeff Meister, Punahou associate athletic director. Both received the HIADA Distinguished Achievement Award.

In addition to the second set of breakout group sessions, Tuesday's schedule includes another guest speaker in former NFL linebacker, TV analyst and actor Brian Bosworth.