SwimSwam Pulse is a recurring feature tracking and analyzing the results of our periodic A3 Performance Polls. You can cast your vote in our newest poll on the SwimSwam homepage, about halfway down the page on the right side, or you can find the poll embedded at the bottom of this post.
Our most recent poll asked SwimSwam readers for their thoughts on the controversial disqualification of Michigan’s Siobhan Haughey in the 200 IM prelims:
RESULTS
Question: Did you agree with the DQ of Siobhan Haughey in the 200 IM at NCAAs?
- No, her pullout was perfectly legal – 53.7%
- It was a questionable, but defensible, call – 21.8%
- Unsure – 14.8%
- Yes, she took an extra dolphin kick – 9.6%
More than half of voters disagreed with a controversial DQ of Michigan’s Siobhan Haughey out of 200 IM prelims at women’s NCAAs.
Officials called Haughey for performing multiple dolphin kicks underwater on the breaststroke leg of her 200 IM. Race video made the call much more controversial, as many did not see a violation. You can watch a close-up of that turn specifically below. Haughey is in the yellow cap in the middle of the screen:
Naturally, controversial calls are a part of any sport. One doesn’t need to look much further than the NFL’s NFC Championship game this season to know that outcomes on the biggest stages can be determined by subjective calls from officials. It’s also unfair to expect officials to be perfect. They are as human as any competitor in the competition, and just as competitors and coaches can make mistakes, so, too, can officials. Maligning them, threatening them, or calling for them to be fired are typically overreactions, as controversial calls will be part of sports no matter how good officials are at their jobs.
Still, we can discuss controversial calls and weigh in on whether they appear correct or not. More than half our voters disagreed with this call, saying that Haughey’s pullout looked completely legal. Less than 10% said they saw a second dolphin kick, while about 21% said the call was questionable, but defensible from the official’s standpoint. About 14% were unsure.
The other wrinkle is that race video shows us a nearly-perpendicular angle to Haughey’s lane. That’s a vastly different view than the official had – the official was standing at the end of Haughey’s lane, and watching the underwater in question from behind. That makes it hard to come down firmly on one side or the other – the official’s angle could have made the pullout look far different. The issue of perspective also brings up discussion about underwater video review, or even underwater cameras to help officials make calls. Breaststroke pullouts, in particular, make for very tough officiating, as the perspective warp in watching an underwater movement from above the water can be very disorienting, and turbulence at the surface can further obscure any solid view of the athlete underwater.
Below, vote in our new A3 Performance Poll, which asks voters, inspired by our NCAA returning points analysis, who should be favored to win next year’s men’s NCAA title:
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Oh for Pete’s sake. One person was in proper position to observe the DQ. He observed. He made note of it. It was accepted. If officials were more welcome at college dual meets and championships, we would not have this situation. She would have corrected long ago. Get over it.
Honestly The girl under her looked like she took two kicks
Was anyone commenting or voting on this, the Official standing over the lane? Questionable, sure! All speculation as we did not see exactly what the Official standing there saw!
The only thing clear in this video is that the lane below here took two huge dolphin kicks. Maybe he lane judge was distracted by that?
The rule should be changed back to disallow a butterfly kick during the underwater pullout sequence in breaststroke.
Her first motion is the up-beat, followed by the down beat, then her feet come back up to the level of her hips without providing much propulsive force. IMO this shows good coaching and great discipline. In a tight race, it can be difficult to not take extra dolphin kicks (like the lady below her).
This should never have been called, especially when the swimmer below her clearly did two giant dolphin kicks with no call. Officials talk about consistent application of the rules, but this video exemplifies the lack of it.
I’d also like to point out how much ground she made up on the underwater. Very nice work. To me, this is a “how to” video rather… Read more »
as an N level meet official with 10+ years experience, I’d say breastroke pull outs to be the most difficult to judge. The rules are clearly stated but the interpretation can center on whether the motion was a kick. My bet is the mindset of the official was along the lines of: Was there a kick to give propulsion? was there a forceful or intentional movement or were the legs simply trailing the body’s undulation or riding the water train? Was the movement clearly seen? On this last point, the camera angle with water reflection doesn’t match the view the official had standing on the edge of the deck. That vantage point lets you see the amount of inflection, the… Read more »
The rule is not complicated, the problems begin when people start adding interpretations like “trailing the body’s undulation” or similar arbitrary statements during official’s briefings at meets. Per the Rulebook: “After the start and each turn, at any time prior to the first breaststroke kick a single butterfly kick is permitted.“ Almost every swimmer in this video should be disqualified based on the text as the rule is written. USA Swimming and the NCAA have a problem now that they have extended these arbitrary interpretations and failed to enforce the rule to the point that multiple butterfly kids are the norm. What we are actually observing is one official enforcing the rule as written, and all the other officials applying… Read more »
Hard to be definitive, but it doesn’t look like it. She would have had to do a very fast one while the water was turbulent (thus making the camera view not crystal clear). Benefit of the doubt….