New scoring system at the Beijing Games

New scoring system at the Beijing Games
Amateur boxing is in the process of going through a change and the Beijing Olympics will see a major test of the new initiatives taken by International Amateur Boxing Association (AIBA) to ensure fairness in judging and safety.

Kishen Narsi, an international technical official (on a jury) at the Beijing Games, is sure that the changes will go down well with the boxers. “The AIBA wants boxers to feel confident, and referees and judges should feel no pressure,” said Narsi, on the eve of departure for Beijing, where his task will be to monitor the performances of referees and judges.

The boxing event at Athens in 2004 saw controversy erupt, following the rejection of Greece’s protest against the quarterfinal defeat of light heavyweight Elias Pavlidis to Egypt’s Ahmed Ismail. Greek fans hurled plastic water bottles when the referee stopped the fight in the third round after Pavlidis received a cut over his left eye. The International Olympic Committee even withheld AIBA’s share of $1,000,000 in television, over concerns on the open scoring system, the appointment of judges and the system of selection for referees and judges.

In the wake of all this, president Ching-Kuo Wu, who took over the AIBA in 2006, formed a reform committee in December same year to review all issues related to amateur boxing and the AIBA organisation, and recommend changes. IOC supported the move by releasing $400,000 of the frozen TV revenue in April 2007, following $300,000 released earlier.
No ambiguity

The boxing event at Beijing will be conducted on the Swiss Timing system, revealed Narsi. The system creates a draw for referees and judges, draws out bout sheets and performs the scoring electronically. “The Swiss Timing system displays round-by-round scores along with the time when a scoring blow was recorded. Variations in timings would indicate the level of alertness among judges officiating a particular bout, and whether they are able to see the scoring blow or not,” Narsi said.

“Olympics should be about clean boxing — scoring blows deciding the outcome of bouts and (eliminating) foul blows,” said Narsi, one of AIBA’s executive committee members.

“When deciding the appointment of referees and judges (for Beijing), we have taken care to avoid conflict of interest, not just nationality-wise; we have also considered the continent to which the boxers and bout officials belong. We are taking all measures to ensure impartiality, at the same time taking care to see that there is no pressure on referees and judges when taking decisions.”
Surprises in store

The Beijing games may see the emergence of a new world order in boxing, says the Mumbai-based official.

“For the first time, Cuba does not have a boxer in all 11 weight categories — there is no Cuban in the light heavyweight (81kg) class. Russia is the only nation competing in all events,” he said.

The Olympic Extravaganza Begins Tomorrow 08-08-08

The Olympic Extravaganza Begins Tomorrow 08-08-08

(BEIJING, August 6) -- With two days to go before the start of the Beijing Olympics, the organizers of the Games released the plan for the Opening Ceremony, which takes place on August 8.

The ceremony will start at 8:00 p.m. and will last about three and half hours, with China's Liu Huan and Sarah Brightman from Britain chosen to sing the theme song, said Zhang Heping, director of the BOCOG Opening and Closing Ceremonies Department at a press conference.

A 75-minute "pre-ceremony" performance that will end at 7:00 p.m. will feature folk and ethnic art from 28 teams across the country, Zhang said.

The core part of the ceremony -- the artistic performance -- will last one hour. It will be divided into two parts -- one to highlight China's age-old civilization and the other to highlight China's splendid modern era. The theme song will come at the end of the performance.

The post-performance part of the ceremony will last two and a half hours and comprises various Olympic rituals and traditions, including a declaration from Chinese President Hu Jintao opening the Games and a two-hour long parade of athletes. Delegations from 205 national and regional Olympic committees will enter the stadium according to the order of the simplified Chinese characters.

"The passion will be lighted on the night of August 8, offering the hundreds of thousands of spectators in the National Stadium, as well as hundreds of millions of people outside a spectacular performance," Zhang told the press.

National Stadium As the main stadium of the Beijing Olympic Games, China's eye-catching National Stadium, also known as the "Bird's Nest," is expecting the passionate moment when the sacred flame burns bright within its walls, representing the honor of the Chinese people.

Audience members are reminded that there are five entrances to the Olympic Green. Organizers said that most people had swarmed into the park from two entrances during the first rehearsal, causing long queues for security checks.

Plans for the opening ceremony directed by famous Chinese film director Zhang Yimou are being kept under tight secrecy. An intense security force was deployed outside the stadium during the first rehearsal, which lasted three and half hours.

All workers on duty signed agreements with the Beijing Olympic Organizing Committee (BOCOG) to keep what they saw confidential.

But the secrecy was breached after SBS TV station of the Republic of Korea broadcast some footage of the opening ceremony on Wednesday, showing fragments of a video of the rehearsal, including scenes depicting the past and future of Chinese culture.