Comments on: Olympic Boxing: A Final Look Back http://www.total-mma.com/2008/08/27/olympic-boxing-a-final-look-back/ Completing the perspective on Mixed Martial Arts Sun, 12 Feb 2012 07:40:08 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 By: Tony Whelan http://www.total-mma.com/2008/08/27/olympic-boxing-a-final-look-back/#comment-13844 Tony Whelan Mon, 08 Sep 2008 02:54:06 +0000 http://www.total-mma.com/?p=462#comment-13844 The computer scoring system has a Judge Evaluation module that compares the scores of judges against certain criteria. If you are too high or too low in certain respects then you get the boot. The problem as I see it is that if 3-4 judges in a bout score way too high( or way too low) then the other judges in that bout will be identified as under/over-scoring and will be penalised wrongly. And so they can tend to be a bit conservative about pressing buttons. I wonder also whether the very audible crowd response to the live score display can affect some judges' scoring. The judge evaluation criteria were altered last year, in Chicago I think. There was never any formal notification to national federations, explaining the changes and their rationale, and many people using the Swiss Timing scoring software might still be unaware that a new software module was available since no-one bothered to tell federations about it. I'm not sure whose communication skills are the worst, AIBA's or Swiss Timing's, but they both rate very poorly. Communication has never been AIBA's strong point. People come back from international competitions and pass on policy changes they have been told about, but which never appear in print for the benefit of the rest of us. Who knows exactly what the R&J were told about how they should be scoring in Beijing. But obviously they were told to do something different. The computer scoring system has a Judge Evaluation module that compares the scores of judges against certain criteria. If you are too high or too low in certain respects then you get the boot. The problem as I see it is that if 3-4 judges in a bout score way too high( or way too low) then the other judges in that bout will be identified as under/over-scoring and will be penalised wrongly. And so they can tend to be a bit conservative about pressing buttons.

I wonder also whether the very audible crowd response to the live score display can affect some judges’ scoring.

The judge evaluation criteria were altered last year, in Chicago I think. There was never any formal notification to national federations, explaining the changes and their rationale, and many people using the Swiss Timing scoring software might still be unaware that a new software module was available since no-one bothered to tell federations about it. I’m not sure whose communication skills are the worst, AIBA’s or Swiss Timing’s, but they both rate very poorly.

Communication has never been AIBA’s strong point. People come back from international competitions and pass on policy changes they have been told about, but which never appear in print for the benefit of the rest of us.

Who knows exactly what the R&J were told about how they should be scoring in Beijing. But obviously they were told to do something different.

]]> By: Melanie Ley http://www.total-mma.com/2008/08/27/olympic-boxing-a-final-look-back/#comment-13144 Melanie Ley Thu, 28 Aug 2008 01:45:25 +0000 http://www.total-mma.com/?p=462#comment-13144 [quote]One has to assume, given the massive nose dive in scoring, that at best equipment malfunction, and at worst deep rooted corruption, are responsible for the scoring issues at the Olympics.[/quote] I think neither one is the culprit. Judges were probably insuring they would work the entire Olympics by not sending up any flags with high scoring. [quote]One has to assume, given the massive nose dive in scoring, that at best equipment malfunction, and at worst deep rooted corruption, are responsible for the scoring issues at the Olympics.[/quote]

I think neither one is the culprit. Judges were probably insuring they would work the entire Olympics by not sending up any flags with high scoring.

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