For decades, controversies surrounding refereeing decisions and oversights have sparked debates in the world of water polo, especially during major tournaments and crucial matches.
The lack of communication from the responsible bodies has made it impossible to obtain any information about these errors, which could help educate the public and minimize misunderstandings. Even the referees themselves often remain uninformed about the evaluations of their performance post-match.
This opacity raises suspicions of favoritism and reveals the politically charged nature of referee selection for major competitions. To shed some light on this issue, Total Waterpolo has established a dedicated panel to closely monitor and evaluate the refereeing at this year’s Olympic Games in Paris.
For each match, a panel of 10 referees/delegates, each with experience in at least 20 international matches, will provide detailed ratings for the refereeing performance. The average score from these evaluations will determine the referee’s rating for each match. The overall ranking of each referee will be based on their average score throughout the tournament.
We extend our gratitude to the panel members, who wish to remain anonymous due to above mentioned favoritism, for their commitment to this initiative for more transparent game. We hope that no referee will make any errors and that this will turn out to be our most unnecessary project to date. Nonetheless, we are committed to bringing transparency and accountability to the refereeing process, and we believe this initiative will contribute to the integrity of the sport.
Stay tuned for our detailed reports and rankings of the referees at the Paris Olympic Games.
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