December 8, 2009

• <More on sports replay and referee decision>

  I have talked about Henry’s handball and FIFA’s special meeting here.

  According to 明報

  台灣指韓國跆拳道選手犯規 (19:22)

  昨天在東亞運動會跆拳道場上被韓國對手擊敗的中華台北隊選手曾敬翔稱，對手其實犯規，對判決很不滿。

  中央社稱，中華台北選手曾敬翔在東亞運跆拳道金牌戰中，被韓國對手以犯規動作擊中頸部，當場倒地不起，最後裁判還是判韓國選手獲勝。在場邊觀戰的政務委員曾志朗當場抗議，仍不被採納，中華隊因此痛失一面金牌。

  曾經是奧運跆拳道銀牌得主的國民黨立委黃志雄周二表示，跆拳道國際賽事多半被韓國主導。他認為，這次會發生這樣的事情，是得分認知的問題，裁判人為因素影響很大。

  Replay in YouTube speaks louder than words

  —

  So in another sports, referee decision, without using replay as reference, is subject to dispute again. This is unlikely to be as controversial as Henry’s handball, given the importance of East Asia Game and the popularity of the sports (via-s-via World Cup). But it shows that with technology improving, we could rely less on human decision which is, relatively speaking, more vulnerable to errors (either unintentional or intentional).

  Take tennis as an example, they allow players to appeal against referee decision, using the “鷹眼” technology. When players can serve better and better, and quicker and quicker, human errors in decision-making are unavoidable. So why don’t make better use of the technology? This does not make referee decision less authoritative – it is a built-in mechanism to make sure that they are “fair” and “professional” in their decisions. Don’t judge in a causal way.

  More importantly – I think very very important – this makes the competition fairer. We compete on the skills, luck and everything but POOR judgment by the referee. What if France wins the World Cup in South Africa?

  A friend of mine told me that, in HK horse racing, jockey has to wear a microphone with them now. Why? To avoid cheating – they used to shut “get out of my way” in manipulated races. Why? We want to make sure the horsing racing is free of manipulation. This makes the “sports” – though i am somewhat reluctant to call horse-racing a sports – fairer, more open and the result being more authoritative.

  By the way, I really adore the Taiwan gentlemen in the video reply. The team as a whole respects referee’s decision, and once it’s done, they don’t argue anymore – even everyone should know now the decision is erroneous.

  • 10:53 am
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