Silver Conference

The Johto League Silver Conference Victory Tournament, better known as simply the Silver Conference (Japanese: シロガネ大会 Shirogane Conference) is the Johto League general championship competition. All Pokémon Trainers who have earned eight Gym Badges from the Johto region are eligible to enter.

The competition is held annually in, located at the base of Mt. Silver. Competing Trainers are housed in a giant Pokémon Center in the Athlete's Village. All Trainers have a page set up online with a list of their. It took place from A Claim to Flame! to Johto Photo Finish.

Opening ceremony
The Silver Conference begins with the passing of the ceremonial torch lit with 's. The opening ceremony is so important to the conference that the competition could not be held without it. According to legend, the site of the Silver Conference was once the setting for a great war. People fought hard and left the area a war-ravaged place. Both the land and the in the area suffered from the humans' hostility and carelessness. Ho-Oh appeared and used its sacred flame to burn life back into the place. Ho-Oh returned things to normal, but one tree continued to burn, serving as a reminder of the event. The fire from that tree was taken and placed in a shrine on Mt. Silver.

Rounds
The Silver Conference has over 200 participants. The competition is divided into three parts: pre-screening qualifying rounds, semi-finals, and the finals.

Before every match, a digital spinner randomly decides which Trainer will go first. The used in the semi-finals and finals must be decided before the match and entered into the computer system.

Screening
The competition begins with the Athlete's Greeting. Registered Trainers are screened at assigned courts. The pool of contestants is reduced in three rounds of one-on-one s. The Top 48 Trainers move on to the preliminaries.

Semi-finals
A point system is employed in the semi-finals. The 48 Trainers are split into 16 groups of three, and each group, known as a block, participates in a in a series of three-on-three matches. Three points are awarded for every win, one point for every draw, and no points for a loss. The 16 Trainers with the most points out of the Trainers in their blocks will move on to the finals. In the event of a tie, another round-robin is held.

Final rounds
After a day of rest, the final battles are held in Silver Stadium with rotating rock, grass, water, or ice fields for each battle.

Each Trainer fights a sudden death Full Battle. After a Trainer's first three Pokémon are defeated, there is a short intermission during which there is a field change. Losing Trainers are eliminated and remaining Trainers continue on until a winner is determined.

Other participants
Trainers here participated in the conference either before or after the conference Ash entered.


 * of New Bark Town
 * of New Bark Town
 * Paul of Veilstone City

Trivia

 * The competition was broadcast in regions other than Johto. Max stated that he watched the competition in There's no Place Like Hoenn.
 * If Pokémon are caught battling during the Conference outside of official battles, their Trainers may be disqualified. Sparring, however, is allowed.
 * On the eve of the Conference that Ash participated in, Gary noticed that it was a . After Harrison lost, a was present. The time between the two is usually either 8 days (third quarter) or 22 days (first quarter), but only about 12 days were represented on screen.
 * This is the only known League Conference with battles where losing doesn't mean elimination from the tournament.

In other languages
Silberkonferenz Conferencia Plateada/Congreso Plata Conférence Argentée Conferenza Argento ジョウトリーグ・シロガネ大会 白银大会