Friday, September 22, 2000
News Online

Nasty stink at the pool

Noseclips at the ready. Not, in fact, to keep water from flowing up the nostrils of the synchronised ladies of the lake but rather to ward off the stench of collusion, intrigue and intimidation permeating the pool.

For when it comes to scoring the aquatic ballerinas, whose Games start on Sunday, teams will stop at nothing to influence the judging - and measures are now being take to cut out the curse of corruption.

"There are unscrupulous coaches out there who try to con the judges," said Sharon Roberts, the Canadian honorary secretary of the synchronised swimming committee of Fina, the sport’s global authority. "We’ve definitely had instances of groups trying to intimidate the judges. They try to plant ideas and get you on their side."

In an effort to sink the skulduggery, the committee called judges together in a secret session in Sydney today to inform them that they would not know who would judge what and when until an hour before competition.

Stephanie Haeberli, the chairwoman of the sport’s technical committee for Fina, said: "We are aware that there has been a lot of pressure put on you by people who say to you that you are judging this and that and that they are better than that at this and that, and were you aware of how we have done such and such to improve. There is a potential for corruption and we must avoid it."

In the past, the judges would discover the day before competition whether they would be called for duty. Enter the slick and slimy of the synchronised sorority to proclaim attire by Gucci, choreography borrowed from Bolshoi and lungs lent by Miguel Indurain.

Haeberli said: "In my many years as a judge I have never had someone come up to me and try that. But there are those who do try to get a judge in collusion with them. The pressure they came under in April at the qualification trials for Sydney was unbelievable. But we’re not talking big money. This is not a sport with lots of money so it is not done like that. It is collusion, persuasion."

In April, 36 nations competed for the 24 places available in the duet in Sydney, while 17 nations had competed for the 8 places for teams at the Games.

Haeberli said that the perception that judges were open to corruption did the sport no favours. In the private session before those comments, she told judges: "I want you all to make sure that you do not pay too much attention to world rankings, to what teams tell you they’ve been doing, and don’t feel under pressure to follow the panel."

By "panel", Haeberli was referring to the scores of other judges that are assessed by a computer, the Information Evaluation System, which finds the median mark and assesses other aspects of scoring, degree of difficulty to provide a guide for the judges as to whether they are getting it right.

Roberts said: "In the end the human decides but you judges are susceptible to the natural inclination to conform with what others are doing."

Haeberli was keen to note the athleticism required for synchronised swimming. The very best protagonists must be able to exercise under water for minutes at a time in training to build up an anaerobic capacity for their routines.

Australia will compete by right as host nation in Sydney, its presence controversial; Spain protested because the host nation’s inclusiuon kept its team out of the Games.

Haeberli noted that Australia, thirteenth, and ranked well outside the top eight, was one of the last nations to respect the sport. Triathlons from shark-infested shores to outback are more their scene.

Craig Lord
The Times