Over the week end, (for the first time in 30 years of competitive swimming) I was disqualified. It bothered me a little bit for about thirty minutes but after a few plates of food at the all-you-can-eat brunch across the street, I was fine. I did have a question though. Do the officials usually tell you that they are disqualifing you? The official came over to my lane and said something to me (about my *** pull-out on the 200 IM) after the heat but never actually said that I was disqualified. I was a little confused so after I got out of the pool I walked over and asked, "Did you disqualify my?" The answer was yes. Never having experienced this before, I was wondering do the officials usually actually say "I am disqualifying you" or "You are disqualified" or is the suggestive comment supposed to serve this purpose.
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I was a turns judge at an age group meet on the weekend and I have to say that judging backstroke turns was torture, especially with the younger and slower swimmers. In so many cases there was a glide between the end of the pull and the start of the flip, and usually it was just on the border of whether it was clear enough to DQ. There were probably at least four cases that a more experienced/confident judge would have DQed, including the girl in one of my lanes in the very first heat of the very first event. I only actually DQed one swimmer in backstroke and that case was really really clear.
A second cause of torture, and what suprised me more was the number of breaststrokers who went too deep on their pullout and didn't break the surface by the start of their insweep. Again there were several that a more experienced judge likely would have called, only one that was so clear that I DQed him. It is hard to watch two swimmers in two lanes at once if they are relatively even. I also had a girl that I am quite sure dolphined a little as she glided into the wall, but I was focused on watching her hands for the two handed simultaneous touch that I was too late to clearly see it. But I can't think why else her hands and head started to bob up and down while gliding. I did see the guy that won the 100 *** gliding into the wall when his feet actually came out of the water and then caused a splash as they went back down. But it wasn't my lane and the judge in that lane was focused on the hand touch.
There was also a girl who I am pretty sure was still well on her back when her toes left the wall in fly on her first turn, but it took me by surprise so I waited for her next turn, and it was very close but legal.
I wonder if at some point judges will have some sort of video playback to check.
I was a turns judge at an age group meet on the weekend and I have to say that judging backstroke turns was torture, especially with the younger and slower swimmers. In so many cases there was a glide between the end of the pull and the start of the flip, and usually it was just on the border of whether it was clear enough to DQ. There were probably at least four cases that a more experienced/confident judge would have DQed, including the girl in one of my lanes in the very first heat of the very first event. I only actually DQed one swimmer in backstroke and that case was really really clear.
A second cause of torture, and what suprised me more was the number of breaststrokers who went too deep on their pullout and didn't break the surface by the start of their insweep. Again there were several that a more experienced judge likely would have called, only one that was so clear that I DQed him. It is hard to watch two swimmers in two lanes at once if they are relatively even. I also had a girl that I am quite sure dolphined a little as she glided into the wall, but I was focused on watching her hands for the two handed simultaneous touch that I was too late to clearly see it. But I can't think why else her hands and head started to bob up and down while gliding. I did see the guy that won the 100 *** gliding into the wall when his feet actually came out of the water and then caused a splash as they went back down. But it wasn't my lane and the judge in that lane was focused on the hand touch.
There was also a girl who I am pretty sure was still well on her back when her toes left the wall in fly on her first turn, but it took me by surprise so I waited for her next turn, and it was very close but legal.
I wonder if at some point judges will have some sort of video playback to check.
