Support persons now work with competitors at all major events; coaches, trainers, doctors, sports psychologists, boat repair technicians, meteorologists. However, the 2013 rules (prior to Regulation 35) do not define or include support persons and thus there is no authority for a protest committee to take action against such a person. Even the current RRS applies only to a boat's crew members or a boat's owner, making it difficult if not impossible to apply it to support personnel.

The 2017 changes to the RRS have added a new definition for . It broadly includes most anyone involved at a regatta short of a being a spectator unrelated to the competitor. And the new RRS , and extends the legal obligation to to be governed by the racing rules.

Thus the new RRS (d) allows a protest committee to call a hearing to consider whether or not a broke a rule. And it the protest committee may call such a hearing no matter how it comes by the information. Typically this will be a hearing considering whether the party violated the recognized principles of sportsmanship or committed more serious misconduct. While the penalties under RRS are more complex, RRS provides for penalties for a who has broken a rule. These penalties range from issuing a warning to the , to penalizing a competitor by adjusting down a boat's score.

Clearly, the 2017 RRS have broadened the application of the rules to . This concept is one of the larger changes to the RRS, and competitors and their support personnel should be aware that the rules now extend greater accountability for those participating in a regatta in most any manner.