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Skating chief deserves a gold — for double talk
By Brad Rock
Deseret News sports columnist
Thanks a lot, International Skating Union. And while I'm passing out valentines, thanks, also, to the International Olympic Committee. For nothing.
That was a well-spent hour, Wednesday, listening to ISU president Ottavio Cinquanta's double talk during Wednesday's press conference.
And to think, I might have actually been out watching the competition.
At issue is whether a French judge voted for the winning Russian team, in Monday's pairs skating, in exchange for a Russian judge's vote in the upcoming ice dance competition.
It's nice to know you still believe in the integrity of a system that robbed Canadian pairs skaters Jamie Sale and David Pelletier of the gold medal. And that you aren't passing judgment. It's also heart-warming to hear your judges are highly competent.
As far as revising the system, I'm sure you'll get to that right after you've discovered the whereabouts of the Lost City of Atlantis. (Come to think of it, that might make a nice site for the 2012 Summer Olympics.)
In the most candid moment of the entire hour, you admitted one referee has filed a letter of allegation. Then you said the accused judge denied the allegation. Oh, why didn't you say so? Sorry we asked.
You said nothing can be done until someone has filed a formal appeal, which hadn't happened. That excuse held up for all of two hours, until the Canadian delegation did so.
You said you aren't going to address the matter until your regularly scheduled ISU meeting next Monday. I say if you can execute a press conference in a few hours, you can arrange an impromptu ISU meeting in the same amount of time. There are 9,000 journalists in town for the Olympics. There are only 11 people on the ISU committee.
You said there is no proof an irregularity occurred that cost the Canadian team the gold medal. All the evidence I need was on the ice Monday night, when the Canadians skated beautifully and the Russians fouled up.
You said only judges are expert enough to say which team was best. I say it doesn't take an electrician to know when the lights are out.
"We have received a letter, not proof," said Cinquanta.
Was this guy on the high school debate team with Bill Clinton?
You said this is not a scandal, and that reporters were putting words in your mouth. I say waiting until Monday to meet is scandalous enough.
This controversy shouldn't come as a big surprise. Figure skating is actually a twin sister to pro wrestling. The only difference is that in wrestling, the participants pretend to do dirty underhanded tricks, then brag to the world; in figure skating, they really do execute dirty underhanded tricks, then try to keep it a secret. Also, in pro wrestling, the competitors club one another over the head with a folding chair. In figure skating, the competitors club one another in the knee with a stick.
You say any sport that is scored by judges is open to debate, and that judges can make honest mistakes. I say missing what happened on Monday is like hitting someone in the face with a pie and saying, "Whoops."
History doesn't favor the Canadians. In 1988, American boxer Roy Jones clearly beat his opponent in the gold medal bout. He was voted outstanding fighter by the judges. Yet three of five judges gave the bout to the Korean fighter. One judge later admitted to having been compromised.
Didn't matter. Jones never did get his gold medal.
You say that if impropriety is found, you will "take appropriate action." At the same time, you claim it would be "very, very difficult" to change the results because it's not in your constitution. I say any organization that has no clear plan to correct such a travesty is shameful.
But any organization that sanctions a judge in Nagano and invites him back in Salt Lake isn't worried about looking shameful.
Sale and Pelletier will never see their gold medals. Reversing the decision would be admitting fallibility, something at which the ISU and IOC have never excelled.
That's not an allegation.
It's a fact.
E-MAIL: rock@desnews.com
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February 14, 2002
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