COCTALES The Newsletter of BWF Technical Officials FEBRUARY 2014 EDITION NO. 3 Embracing Instant Reviews By Torsten Berg & Juniarto Suhandinata Referees Torsten Berg (foreground) and Juniarto Suhandinata were first to officiate with the instant review system in badminton. December 11, 2013, was a historic day for badminton’s technical officials as their work came under the scrutiny of the instant review system for the first time at the BWF World Superseries Finals in Malaysia. Initially, the players seemed shy about challenging and it was not until the evening session when veteran Lee Chong Wei raised his left hand that courtside referees were called upon to judge badminton’s first-ever challenge. Thereafter, players regularly used the system and all challenges seemed reasonable, i.e. the shuttle falling either on the line or within 2-3 cms outside the line. The instant-reviews data from the BWF World Superseries Finals is as follows: Matches played Total number of challenges TO decision upheld Line call changed No IRS decision 44 33 19 13 1 Referees’ Observations: More than 1000 shuttles which landed close to one of the lines covered by the cameras were checked. In 14 cases line judges’ errors were documented, even if players did not challenge the call. This was due to the camera picking up more than 200 frames a second, whereas the human eye picks up around 25 frames a second. BADMINTON WORLD FEDERATION The equipment and the operators functioned almost perfectly. Out of a total of 35-40 hours of play on the TV court, the cameras/IT system was only out of action for a few periods, each lasting an average ten seconds. In one case (see table above), the operator was interrupted by a security guard and missed the shuttle landing, so no decision could be given. In another case, the player’s leg covered the best-placed camera but a decision was made by looking at another camera angle. In some cases TV cameramen and team officials looked over the shoulder of the referee and the operator when they were making the decision. In the majority of cases the referees made decisions confidently, although there were some decisions that were close to call. The players, coaches, team managers and technical officials were invited to view the calls and decisions after the match – and many did. When studying the replays, everyone was happy with the decisions. The players were given the right to challenge twice in a match (and keep the right if the challenge was won). There was only one match where the players exhausted their right to challenge. The timeframe from the player challenging the line call to the referee communicating the decision to the umpire was between 5-15 seconds (initially 10-25 seconds). Umpires www.bwfbadminton.org PAGE 2 EDITOR’S MESSAGE Welcome to the third edition of COCtales. It’s been a while since our last newsletter and we hope you are all well and enjoying your officiating duties. This edition has information about the latest decisions made by the Events Committee and some reports we hope you will find useful and informative. We are very pleased to welcome Chris Trenholme to the new role of Technical Events Manager at the Badminton World Federation. Many of you will remember Chris who was a former player, national coach and administrator. Most recently, he served as Vice President of Badminton Canada and chaired its High Performance Committee. He also worked as Event Manager for an agency responsible for the delivery of multi-sport games. Chris therefore has all the experience to be an excellent asset to the BWF and he will support the Technical Officials’ Commission in all aspects of its business. We wish him well in his new post and look forward to working with him. In our next edition, we would like to hear from you. If you have any issues you would like to raise, please e-mail Chris Trenholme: [email protected] Regards Vanessa Freeman Editor-in-Chief did not overrule any line calls on the IRS/TV court. The hand signal system used to communicate the referee’s decision was not ideal: (a) it was difficult to see the referee from the umpire’s chair as the referee was sitting in the dark outside the strong light of the field of play and (b) the ‘thumbs up/down’ regarding the technical official’s line call could be confused with a reaction to the player’s challenge. Conclusions and Recommendations: 1. The IRS system tested under ‘live’ conditions at the BWF Superseries Finals in KL December 2013 worked very well. It was recommended that this system (or an equivalent) should be used by BWF, with further refinements as outlined below. 2. The IRS system tested was reliable and in nearly all cases provided the ‘correct’ result. However, it would be recommended that the operator and the referee (or other person delegated to take the decision) be placed in a position where they are not disturbed. 3. The players did not abuse the right to challenge and only uncertain line calls were challenged. 4. The IRS system and the decision-making process were fairly fast and did not last longer than any normal break between rallies. Challenging a line call must not be used as a delaying tactic for a player to recover. 5. The instant review system requires immediate attention by the operator and also by the referee who cannot leave their seat during play. The IRS puts another demand on the referee’s time and this may be too much, particularly in events with play on several courts. However, with a little experience, the decision-making is not difficult and therefore this could be delegated to another technical official. 6. The referee’s decision on a challenge should be simplified to an ‘IN’, ‘OUT’ or ‘UNDECIDED’. The umpire will then know what to call and how to continue BADMINTON WORLD FEDERATION the match. One idea would be signaling via a green light with appropriate lettering for ‘IN’, a red light for ‘OUT’ and a yellow light for ‘UNDECIDED’, this would be easily understandable for spectators and television audiences. 7. In due course appropriate graphics for television and large screens in the stadium should be developed. The Events Committee has since agreed the Instant Review System will be used in 15 tournaments in 2014: the MetLife BWF World Superseries (12 Superseries and the Superseries Final) and two Major Events. www.bwfbadminton.org Technical Officials Commission The role of the Technical Officials Commission is an advisory group made up of experts. No decisions are made by this group, but recommendations can be made and submitted to the Events Committee and then on to Council if required. Torsten Berg Chair Peter Tarcala Chair Events Committee Jean-Guy Poitras Badminton PanAm Confederation Peter Cocker Badminton Oceania Ewald Cejnek Badminton Europe Nahathai Sornprachum Badminton Asia Confederation Jen Ponambalum Badminton Confederation Africa Chris Trenholme BWF Technical Events Manager Andy Hines-Randle BWF Events Officer At the last meeting the following recommendations and decisions were made: • Recommended that referees use all of the certificated and in particular the accredited umpires for the semifinals and finals at SSP, SS and GPG events to allow PAGE 3 personal development and more exposure to officiating at a higher level. • The Events Committee recommended BWF, SSP, SS and GPG tournaments have an English-speaking line judge coordinator as a mandatory role. For GP and Level 4 Tournaments it is recommended that an English-speaking line judge coordinator be appointed. • Rotation of Line Judges: It was recommended that line judges remain on one line, with international line judges preferably on the sidelines and back boundary lines and that there be no rotation during matches. • Referee Note: Work closely with the line judge coordinator who has been appointed at your event. • Line Judge Notes: A specific person should be appointed as line judge coordinator at BWF and Superseries events. This person should speak English. • BWF international line judges will receive a line judge kit which will include such items as a pin badge and a cap. •Host organiser can use any colour for a line judge’s kit apart from white or red. Congratulations to the following people who have been promoted: BWF Certificated Referee Carsten Koch (GER) BWF Accredited Referee Marcel Schormans (NED) Girish Natu (IND) Eric Lissillour (FRA) David Cheng (TPE) Ian Ross (ENG) Monique Bastien (SUI) BADMINTON WORLD FEDERATION Accredited Umpire Sudip Barve (IND) David Wong Peng Seng (MAS) Christof Osebold (GER) Liu Yun (CHN) Takahiko Tsujinaka (JPN) Certificated Umpire Mark Wright (ENG) Simon Au (HKG) Louwrens Bester (RSA) Eric Desroches (CAN) www.bwfbadminton.org PAGE 4 Roles and Responsibilities: Referee, BWF-appointed Tournament Director and Technical Delegate Torsten Berg and Darren Parks In general, the referee is in overall charge of events. The Laws of Badminton, paragraph 17, makes that clear. However, badminton develops and grows fast, and commercial elements become steadily more important at the top of our game. In brief, where a BWF tournament director is appointed by BWF, the referee will be in overall charge of all technical areas and the tournament director is in charge of commercial areas and sports presentation. Badminton has succeeded in becoming an official sport in many multi-sport games over the last few years, and in such games – from the Olympics onwards – a technical delegate plays an important role that sometimes overlap with the responsibilities we normally allocate to the referee. The following text (recently agreed by BWF) describes the roles and responsibilities in some more detail. In BWF Major Events, Superseries and Grand Prix Gold, the referee will work closely with the tournament director (appointed by the BWF Secretariat to each tournament), and in multi-sports events the referee will work with one or more technical delegates and relevant BWF staff. Everyone must share information, cooperate and be responsible for their actions. Every decision may be crucial and will have to stand up to scrutiny. Any mistake may reflect badly on badminton in an international and exposed environment. BADMINTON WORLD FEDERATION The Referee The Referee is in overall charge of the tournament competition. The referee must ensure that the tournament is conducted in accordance with the Laws of Badminton, the Rules and Regulations and any other regulations pertinent to the specific competition. He/she shall ensure that the players are given facilities (including practice) and playing conditions of an adequate standard and safety. www.bwfbadminton.org PAGE 5 Approval of the programme of play, practice schedule, ensuring appropriate transport, and an overall monitoring of matters related to the fair and proper conduct of the tournament for the players are essential. The referee shall also ensure that there is an adequate panel of technical officials who have a high level of ability and experience with appropriate international representation. The Technical Delegate (TD) In multi-sport games, the Organising Committee will The BWF Tournament Director ask BWF to appoint a TD. There may be regulations concerning the TD’s role and responsibilities in the Games statutes and they may vary from one multi-sport games to another. Generally, the TD will be appointed very early on, sometimes years before the event is due to take place. Initially, the TD takes over the referee’s responsibilities for the preparation of the badminton event in a multiThe BWF Tournament Director is in charge of the commercial aspects including the presentation of the game. When the sporting and commercial/presentational areas meet there will always be grey areas. It is important that common solutions are found in these ‘grey areas’ and any decisions made must be able to be defended to any outside party. The order of play in the last rounds is an example where good cooperation is crucial. The BWF Tournament Director would have the final decision in matters affecting the implementation of BWF’s commercial and media rights contracts, including the presentation of the field of play. The BWF Tournament Director will provide the referee with a recommended order of play on the televised courts, based on consultation with the various stakeholders (broadcasters, hosts etc.) and the Referee should follow this order of play. All parties must always work within the boundaries of the regulations. BADMINTON WORLD FEDERATION sport games. Once the referee is appointed, the TD should keep the referee informed about major issues related to the preparation of the event. The TD would then hand over responsibility for the delivery of the event to the referee in connection with the team managers meeting, which would be run by the referee. The TD would keep close contact with the referee during the event and offer advice on any matter, particularly relating to protocol, to the Organising Committee, Olympic Family and to other sports. The TD will liaise closely with the BWF Events Chair, Secretary General, Events Director and the relevant Events Department official/s in connection with the general preparations of any multi-sport event on a world, continental and regional level. Any overall principle matters outside the normal oversight of technical matters should be referred to the BWF Secretariat and appropriate replies should be sent from the BWF Secretariat. The roles and delegations between the TD and the Events Staff team would be coordinated and decided from time to time and may vary depending on the nature of the multi-sport event. www.bwfbadminton.org DESIGNING ISSUES PAGE 6 The skeleton T-shirt is deemed to be potentially offensive and not ‘acceptable sports clothing’ as required by GCR 19.2. The dragon T-shirt, although it is not offensive, the dragon is a figure/picture and it is not part of an abstract design, so it is not in accordance with GCR 21.2. From time to time the referee will be presented with a new shirt and asked whether the shirt is acceptable. Umpires may also be uncertain on the legality of a shirt’s designs and if so they should consult the referee. When the referee decides, he or she would consult BWF General Competition Regulations and the most relevant regulations are 19.2 and 21.2. GCR 19.2 says that ‘all clothing worn by players shall be acceptable sports clothing’. Generally, this regulation will rule out clothing which is not designed for sports, and clothing that may be considered as offensive. As norms differ slightly around the world, the referee should judge the clothing within the environment/country that the tournament is taking place and use his/her common sense. The new wording of rule 21.2 says: “Designs should be abstract and devoid of advertising, representational, commercial or promotional content. Figurative and pictorial representations may be included as part of an overall abstract design. BWF are the sole arbiters of what constitutes an abstract design.” BADMINTON WORLD FEDERATION The blue T-shirt is an example of mixed abstract and pictorial design so it would be allowed. The advice is that 21.2 should be read with emphasis on ‘devoid of advertising and commercial effect’ and that figures and pictures are only allowed when part of an otherwise abstract design. The design shall be essentially abstract but may include ‘pictures’ of things within that overall abstract design. We will always have some designs being in a ‘grey area’ or rather subjective, but hopefully we will not see many cases. Over time BWF will collect examples of shirts that can and cannot be accepted, which will then help to support referees’ decisions. If ever in doubt, the referee should take a flexible approach during the tournament. Allow the player to wear the shirt, but advise the player and their team manager that advice would be sought as to its legality. We would recommend taking a photo of the article and e-mailing it to the BWF Events Department to get advice. In that way we get one point of contact to assess the shirt. Then it can be done consistently. www.bwfbadminton.org PAGE 7 General Information The Umpire Training Manual Training Manual is now on the BWF website. Admission to Team Managers’ meetings recent university games in Australia and it had apparently received negative feedback. It also seems that Member Associations are not keen on the experiment. It was therefore recommended by the Commission to suspend this experiment for the moment. It was felt more important to focus on other major changes, such as the instant review system and an alternative scoring system. The Technical Commission agreed that the Team Managers’ Meeting is a closed meeting and is only open to team managers, team representatives, interpreters or anyone pre-approved by the Member Association or invited by the referee. As it is a closed meeting there should not be any form of media in attendance. Timeframe at Start of Matches Score Sheets It would also give television a timeframe from which to work. No need to print out score sheets. The only reason to print out a score sheet would be if something exceptional happens on court, e.g. a card for misconduct or injury etc. Team Managers Signing Team Sheets There is no need for team managers to sign team sheets during team events, unless exceptional reasons apply. Service Height Experiment Although the BWF has the equipment available for Member Associations to experiment, the equipment was used at a BADMINTON WORLD FEDERATION Currently the time taken for a player to prepare for the start of matches, for example removing their training attire is inconsistent. The Commission recommended two minutes from the toss to the game beginning would be appropriate. Travel Grants The Commission recommended that inter-continental travel for BWF umpires should be increased to a maximum of US$1000 with continental travel grant limited to US$500. BWF Workshops 2014 It has been confirmed there would be a combined workshop for both certificated and accredited referees and assessors prior to one of the Superseries tournaments in the second half of 2014. It is hoped this combined workshop would be held alongside the French Open. One day for certificated, followed by two days for the accredited workshop which would offer practical elements. www.bwfbadminton.org PAGE 8 BWF Umpires’ Assessments During the Thomas & Uber Cup Finals in New Delhi assessments will take place for BWF certification. The four assessors will be: Sudhakar Vemuri Asia Mike Walker Pan Am Malcolm Banham Europe Yau Lin Na Asia Mike Walker and Malcolm Banham will be appraising those BWF umpires who are not there for Certification. The following assessors have been selected for MetLife BWF World Superseries events in 2014 and they will be responsible for umpire appraisals to raise the standard and uniform performance of all BWF umpires attending the tournaments: January Korea Peter Ganes Europe March All England (Superseries Premier) - Birmingham Sudhakar Vemuri Asia June Indonesia Open (Superseries Premier) - Jakarta Greg Vellacott Oceania June Australian Open (Superseries) - Sydney Malcolm Banham Europe Oct French Open (Superseries) - Paris Nahathai Sornprachum Asia November China Open (Superseries Premier) - Guangzhou Jean-Guy Poitras Pan Am The assessors during the World Championships in Copenhagen will be: Peter Ganes Europe Yau Lin Na Asia Greg Vellacott Oceania Jean-Guy Poitras Pan Am Toasting Torsten Berg! Long-standing BWF referee, Torsten Berg, retired last December after serving the world-governing body for 27 years. The Danish national has officiated as referee in three Olympic Games and is currently Chairman of the BWF Technical Commission. Berg’s final assignment was officiating at the BWF World Superseries Finals in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, where he oversaw the introduction of the instant review system. Last May, he also bade farewell to the BWF Council on which he served for 28 years, holding various capacities over the years. Berg, who began as a deputy referee in the International Badminton Federation (IBF) in the mid-1980s, has enjoyed the distinction of refereeing more than 20 BWF Major Events One of his most memorable and historic contributions was serving as technical delegate, along with Sir Craig Reedie, during badminton’s Olympic Games debut at Barcelona 1992. “That was possibly the greatest experience of my badminton life. Many of the decisions Sir Craig and I took 25 years ago still stand and positively impact badminton’s Olympic performance today,” noted the veteran administrator. BADMINTON WORLD FEDERATION Retiring BWF certificated referee Torsten Berg (right) received a token of appreciation from BWF President Poul-Erik Høyer on the final day of the BWF World Superseries Finals in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. “One of the things I learnt from working with Sir Craig was that our position in the Olympic Movement is our finest gem. In Council, I sought to ensure we achieved and maintained this. I had the pleasure of chairing the IOC and International Relations Committee for many years as we consolidated badminton and BWF’s place in the Olympic Movement. I have taken initiatives to serve that purpose, which have later developed independently, such as integrating para-badminton into the BWF and promoting women in badminton.” Berg, who will still kindly lend his expertise to BWF, was also responsible for starting the federation’s Development Committee; a role he had already fulfilled for Badminton Europe. “It was great fun and very useful as badminton was among the first sports to organise development programmes. Working with Emile ter Metz, Charoen Wattanasin and Wang Wenjiao, we built a strong worldwide organisation, with just a US$20,000 grant from Olympic Solidarity in the first year,” he reminisced, thanking all his colleagues for their camaraderie and assistance throughout the decades. “I am happy to note the Development and Sport for All Committee for 2014 has a budget more than a hundred times larger and a top professional staff. It’s been great to see ‘my baby’ grow and mature!” www.bwfbadminton.org
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