A decision most foul
Korea's Jina Park could hardly stand under the barrage of punches Sarita Devi threw at her, but at the final bell, it was Park who walked away with a win
Korea’s Jina Park could hardly stand under the barrage of punches Sarita Devi threw at her. But at the final bell for the 61kg women’s boxing semifinal bout between the two at the Asian Games, it was Park who walked away with a win.
It was an indefensible decision. Sarita refused to accept her bronze medal. She will take solace from the fact that she is hardly alone. Amateur boxing officiating is a failure. No sport generates so much controversy on its judging. Every few years, boxing’s world governing body tweaks the scoring rules to try and improve it, but with disappointing results. There is little transparency here, and little hope of understanding just why judges decided to score a bout a certain way.
There is little that can be done about such decisions but India’s sportspersons deserve greater support from the officials who accompany them. Very often there is no help at all.
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