Bob, I was just curious if proposal for MORE COMPARISONS in the IFBB pro shows was accepted? After last year's Olympia judging fiasco / I believe you mentioned / that starting with Ironman 2006 we would have MANDATORY number of comparisons that judges HAVE TO MAKE!
I even think that you said that top ten guys would eventually be ALWAYS compared - in each round and in every show! I think we need to address this problem - as obviously it happened AGAIN at the Ironman...
Here is what I posted on my board (with some pics to make my points more obvious...):
http://milossarcev.com/board/index.php?topic=4251.0After disgusting "judging manipulation" at the 2005 Mr. Olympia when very few comparisons were made by the judges - it was discused and (supposedly) agreed that starting with this season's Ironman competition judges would call MUCH MORE COMPARISONS. That would give the opportunity to athletes to "fight" for their placings and certainly insure better (FAIR?) judging.
Also - that would give the audience, photographers and anyone attending the show a chance TO SEE REAL COMPETITION (exactly what they all came to see in the first place)...
The most important "sporting aspect" of bodybuilding is exactly - direct comparisons between the athletes - and that is THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT and THE MOST EXCITING part of the whole competition.
So why do we still have very few comparisons? No time for it?
Well, that excuse was used at the Mr. Olympia already...What was the problem this Saturday?
If there was the time for ALL 28 guys to do their individual set of mandatory poses (NOTE: if there was real issue with the time - competitors could be paired AS THAT WAS THE CASE IN THE PAST - so instead of 28 times seeing the same 8 poses we could have only 14...which would leave enough time for additional 14 direct comparisons among the guys!!!)
Bob Chic (athletes rep) was suggesting (after last year's Olympia judging fiasco) that (from now - on) top ten competitors HAVE TO BE compared among each other...
So, what happened yesterday?
For example: Kris Dim (4th place finisher) was NEVER compared with #1 (LEE) or #2 (DAVID) even though all three are very similar in structure, height, weight and even superb conditioning (all three were fabulous at the Ironman).
Any judge wants to tell me that: there was absolutely NO REASON to compare Lee and David with Kris?
Were those two athletes so superior to Kris that any comparison would just be plain waste of time? Did they consider that many of us (me included) came to see a show to find out how some athletes compare to others?
Anyway, I am posting few pics of Kris from the symmetry round where he was compared to Troy (who finished third - behind Lee and David).
While I am friends with both Kris and Troy (and Kris is also one of my athletes) I am only mentioning their names as this time they are representing good example for what I am trying to say...
Many times OTHER athletes are treated (read: IGNORED) the exact same way BY THE JUDGES...and I wish that more people (athletes) realize OUR PROBLEM.
Are we going to do something about it?
Also, when I am talking about the judging I want to express another of my concerns:
In the muscularity round (at the Ironman) head judge failed to call MOST MUSCULAR POSE in several occasions.
I could understand that everyone can make a mistake (it is human to make mistakes...but only *** makes the same mistakes over and over again).
But when head judge is REMINDED (YES - by me personally and some photographers /seating right in front of the judges/..as I was 5 feet away and shouting: "MOST MUSCULAR POSE. CALL THE MOST MUSCULAR POSE - IT IS A MANDATORY POSE"...etc, etc...) Head judge simply ignored me and refused to call RECENTLY ACCEPTED "EIGHT MANDATORY POSE" - THE MOST MUSCULAR!!!
Maybe they should clarify what MANDATORY really means...