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Thursday, August 21, 2008 7:59 PM EDT
MELARO: What’s up with judging in Olympics?
It’s a cliche that I’ve heard ever since grade school some 40 years ago.
A rose is a rose is a rose is a rose.
Maybe so.
But some things really aren’t what they seem.
Or at least, what people tell us they are.
I’ve come to this conclusion watching all the early-morning coverage of the Summer Olympics from Beijing.
Then again, perhaps it’s a lack of sleep as result of said viewing that’s dimmed my thought process.
But I don’t think so.
I’ve watched the scoring events ... you know which ones I’m talking about, gymnastics and diving.
If you come down on the uneven bars just five degrees off-center, there’s a deduction.
Pardon me.
It happens so fast, who can tell the difference between five degrees and seven degrees.
But the so-called experts unload a plethora of oohs and aahs, pointing out every slight miscue.
What miscue?
As far as I’m concerned, if a competitor can leap over the top bar and grab onto the bottom bar without landing in a human puddle, they deserve to get points, not have them taken away.
And what’s all this hubbub with the synchronized diving competition?
Now you’re really getting fussy.
One diver lists to the left about two degrees off center or the other one holds his hands at a different angle and you deduct points?
Give me a break.
As I see it, if they both jump off the platform and hit the water, they deserve at least a 9.0.
Further deductions should only take place if they hit the side of the pool.
But wait.
What if one of the competitors performs a swan dive and the other does a double reverse twist?
OK, so they are completely different looks.
If they hit the water at the same exact time, that’s pretty synchronized in my book.
Give ’em a 9.0 anyway.
The scoring for these events is so stringent.
And just what makes a judge an expert in these events.
How many of them have previously performed in these challenging athletic endeavors?
And why does one judge always seem to score the competitors so much lower than other judges?
Are they using the same critique list or does they wear tighter underwear on purpose?
The scoring used by the various judges is as arbitrary as my choice of socks each morning.
If you ask me, they should do away with the judges and have an applause-meter and base the winners on how the average fan reacts to what they see.
It probably wouldn’t be perfect, but neither is this.
Just maybe, however, it might be a little more fair.
After all, how many of these performances can you watch and point out every single little flaw?
I maintain the average observer would say they can’t find anything wrong with what they see.
(Jim Melaro, Times Herald sports writer, can be reached at sports@oleantimesherald.com)
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