posted Aug 9th, 2011 - Almost 100 NSL judges made an on-line call for the 8way situation in Round 9 at the World Cup 2011. The majority (57%) thought that the last 7 seconds of the Golden Knights video have enough visibility to approve a scoring. 43% did not see enough of the formations and maneuvers.

The ending on a sour note eventually turned into a happy end when French 4way and 8way member Emmanuel "Manu" Sarrazin posted a note in the poll's forum and acknowledged that the Golden Knights deserved the gold medals:

"Hello, the GK was the fastest team in Round 9, their jump was more fluid and they had two more points. They were the best, congratulation :-) Belle bataille. Manu Sarrazin"

World Cup 2011		Round 1	Round 2	Round 3	Round 4	Round 5	Round 6	Round 7	Round 8	Round 9	Total	Avg
Rank	8way Open	7,M,15	8,14,D	5,18,J	B,9,2	Q,K,12,20	21,A,F,10	1,4,E	13,P,H,6	L,19,17	Total	Avg
1	Golden Knights	23	18	18	19	23	21	25	20	19	186	20.7
2	Aerodyne Maubeuge	21	18	19	18	23	19	29	21	17	185	20.6
3	Sky Panthers Barkli	17	15	14	17	16	15	19	19	15	147	16.3
4	Germany EADS	15 (-1)	13	14	9	16	15	22	15	14	133	14.8
5	Switzerland VIVA	15	11	12	14	15	14	18	14	-	113	14.1
6	UK Brit Chicks	10 (-1)	10	11	11	13	11	15	13	10	104	11.6
7	Germany Südwest	12	9	8	10	11	11	12	12	11	96	10.7
8	Russia Phoenix 11	11	8	9	11	10	11	9	11	6	86	9.6
9	Netherlands M8Trix	8	6	9	6	9	8	9	11	8	74	8.2
10	Germany Saar 8	7	7	4	7	3	5	5	8	6	52	5.8

There is no indication what he voted for, and his input was not really related to the poll question. There is no doubt that the Golden Knights had the better Round 9, scored two more points than the French team and deserved the 1st place. The main question is whether the judges were able to see enough to justify a scoring, according to the rules and their previous interpretations.

A German 8way competitor may have expressed well how many others thought about the situation: "It's a difficult situation. The Golden Knights won the round and the meet and deserve the victory. However, it is still a joke that the scoring points were given."

He also added that the situation could have been avoided if the judges had not delayed the start of Round 9. He explained that the judges insisted on their lunch break before judging Round 10 in 4way, which caused at least a 45-minute delay.

Several 4way teams, including Aerodyne Aerokart, Sky Panthers Barkli and Paratec-Saar, were also competing in 8way and had to switch from one event to the other. The weather situation was critical, and timing was crucial. The 4way teams completed Round 10, and the crowd was waiting for the judging.

That was the situation that the German competitor pointed out. He said that the judges could have scored Round 10 in 4way right away, so the teams would know whether a jumpoff between Sky Panthers Barkli, Gradient Alpha and Paratec-Saar would be next or the 8way competition with Round 9. Eventually, there was no need for a rejump, and the 15-minute call for the next 8way round would have avoided jumping in the approaching storm system. However, lunch came first, then the judging of Round 10 in 4way and then the call for Round 9 in 8way.

The German competitor, who was waiting for 50 minutes to hear what to do next, was upset that the judges gave lunch priority over working with organizer and teams to do everything for the completion of the meet. The Gernan 8way team still had reasonable conditions for their Round 9, while Aerodyne Maubeuge and the Golden Knights barely landed before the storm hit with very strong winds.

The new NSL-TV video shows all 8way teams with Round 1. The leaderboard now also shows the point deductions for this round.

Germany's EADS team and Brit Chicks each lost one point in Round 1. The video of the German 8way team provides a good example for the usual judging standards. The point deduction comes at the very beginning of the jump when team videographer Alexander "Dude" Hau seems to be too far away from the first Bipole Donuts of Block 7, which did not count as a scoring formation.

The judges in the NSL News audience now have the opportunity to compare whether the German Bipole Donuts in Round 1 are easier to see or the formations and maneuvers of the Golden Knights in the last seven seconds of Round 9. It's not easy to be a judge...

World Cup 8way Round 9
Can the last 7 Golden Knights seconds be judged correctly?	Yes No
	Current Results