Strikes are how we keep sessions fair for everyone who turns up. This page explains how organisers and admins record them, what they are for, and the limits that keep the system fair.
For the rules themselves, see our Event Rules.
What a strike is for
A strike is a short, private record that someone let a session down without a good reason. The core reasons are the same in every sport:
- A no-show without notice or a valid reason
- A late cancellation (after your sport's cut-off, which it publishes on its rules page; the default is 24 hours where a sport has none)
- Poor conduct
- Misreporting your level
- Arriving unprepared
Other reasons that still apply:
- Not paying your share for a paid activity
- Leaving a court or group without helping find a replacement
- Breaking WhatsApp rules repeatedly
- Booking your own court in our usual Tuesday tennis or Sunday padel slot and recruiting from the community, or turning up to the social without signing up (see Booking Outside the System)
Each sport can add reasons of its own on its rules page.
A genuine emergency is not a strike. If someone gives a good reason, remove the strike (see below).
A strike issued within these rules stands. Admins and the board back organisers who act within the rules, publicly if needed.
Who can give one
Organisers and admins, from their own sport's Organisation chat. Admins and Keep Calm Core members can also give a strike from any group. Members cannot give strikes, and strikes are never posted in public groups.
How to add a strike
In your Organisation chat, tag the Keep Calm account and write the strike. All of these work:
1 strike +34 600 000 000
2 strikes +34 600 000 000
strike +34 600 000 000 for no show on 6 Oct
late cancellation strike: John
- Use the phone number whenever you can. A name only works if we can match exactly one person in your sport. If there are several, we will ask you for the number.
- Add the reason and the date if you can, for example "for no show on Tuesday 6 Oct". It is saved with the strike so the next organiser can see what happened.
- You get a reply straight away with the strike number and how many active strikes the person now has. There is no confirmation step.
How to check someone
strikes John
how many strikes does +34 600 000 000 have
How to remove a strike
remove strike 12
remove strike from John
Use this when a strike was added by mistake, when the person gave a genuine reason, or after good behaviour over time. Strikes do not expire automatically: a strike stays until an organiser removes it. A removed strike stays in the record as removed, so there is always a history.
Getting help in the chat
Tag the Keep Calm account and write strikes help to get a short cheat sheet back.
Limits and fairness
- Each organiser can add up to 10 strikes in any 24 hours (admins are exempt). If a request would go over, nothing is recorded and you are told how many you have left.
- Strikes are reviewed, not automatic. When someone reaches 3 active strikes, the case is flagged for review. Under our event rules, three strikes can lead to removal from the community, which the organisers decide together, but nothing happens automatically.
- Everyone can explain. Anyone who disagrees with a strike can appeal privately at keepcalm.fit/appeal, not in the group chat. The organisers decide the appeal together, never the member and the issuing organiser arguing it out, and the strike can be removed.
- Strikes are private. They are visible to organisers and admins, never posted publicly. Please do not name people in public groups.
What is recorded
For each strike we keep who it is for, which sport it was given in, who gave it, when, the reason you wrote, and the date of the incident if you stated one.
Thank you for everything you do to keep sessions running smoothly. 💛