A number of umpires in the Superseries are over-weight. Do you think this is good for the image of badminton?
Considering how little they are likely paid, I think that BWF is happy to get willing and competent officials, regardless of their waistlines.
I have seen few slim ones too.......But,yeah majority of them are fatty.....Not sure,how much attention people pay.
I know we shouldn't pay attention to these things... but having them side by side right next to these ultra fit world class athletes really accentuates the disparity.
You won't find an Eve Asderaki anytime soon, but that apart, isn't this supposed to be on the joke section???
Badminton umpires cannot be equated on par with football referees and insist on being fit & slim. What we need is competent umpires who can conduct the game fairly and in its true spirit. I remember one of the LD game in a recent tournament where a fit & slim umpire was pulling up LD for time wasting tactics where the fact the remained that LD was not wasting time. LD got frustrated with the frequent umpire intervention which affected his game and eventually lost the game. We need competent umpires and not slim & incompetent umpires
I have been annoyed by the lack of fitness among BWF's umpires. They don't need to be athletes, but some of them are way too fat. This is a PR issue
I used to think like this, but what if some of these umpires are passionate about badminton but for some physical reasons (eg. injury, health etc) are unable to play?
They surely have been following badminton for long time. They might be parents of kids playing badminton, then getting involved in their national federation activities, ending up being umpire on international tourneys... There should be a thread for the umpires telling their experience. Beside the perhaps low pay, they get to see many countries, which is nice. But it must be tiring to be on court side all day for a week.
There is a safety issue. Those high chairs could be quite dangerous if somebody falls down and injures themselves. More so if overweight.
I'm thinking, with all this tech on court like laser light shows, led display boards, Hawkeye cameras, etc, it's about time that BWF brings the umpire chair into the 21st century by having it automatically raise and lower at the touch of a button... instead of having the poor umpire having to climb up and down unceremoniously in front of thousands of spectators as is now...
If you had followed cricket there used to be an umpire called David Shepard from England he used to very fat but was considered to be one of the best umpires. He infact increased the PR and popularity of the game by raising his umpiring standards and simply won peoples heart with his charisma. When he retired form International umpiring circuit there was a farewell and he was very popular with the audience & cricketers. Does his over weight physical appearance hindered the games popularity? What we need is quality umpires and not fit umpires. Please look for quality not quantity.
I saw overweight person who had fallen off a Segway rupturing their anterior and posterior cruciate ligaments. So basically, that is a dislocated knee hanging on by skin, blood vessels, the nerve and one minor ligament. She was 110kg. Fall from height with the legs caught up would not be a pretty sight.... I don't think I need to be more graphic.
Good point Vishnu. Quality and consistency of decision making. Then again, I could never become an umpire.
Stray instances can occur in any sport. Is it happening regularly (falling from the chair) Lets focus of serious issues rather than wasting our time on irrelevant issues.
