Alexander Majorov about Hawk Eye in figure skating

[FayD]

I haven't seen this discussed here so I thought I'll share.

Alexander Majorov has been posting on twitter for a while about his idea for using Hawk Eye technology in skating in order to analyze jumps better and improve the accuracy of technical calls. He has already contacted Hawk Eye about the matter and it might indeed be possible to use it in figure skating.




By the way, here is their official site for more information about the technology and which sports use it.

Any thoughts on this idea? Is this the right technology for the sport? Would the ISU even agree to implement it?

 

[anonymoose_au]

Any thoughts on this idea?

Ooo this is a tough one...on the one hand it'd be great to have non-biased technology deciding if a jump is rotated or on the wrong edge.

On the other hand a lot of fans think the sport is too technical already - programs will probably end up being a lot less artistic because skaters will focus on training their technique so as not to be dinged by Hawk-eye (it could be used to measure rotations in spins and step sequences too).

Would the ISU even agree to implement it?

Is it available by fax? No? Then probably not. The ISU is so technology-adverse not even a global pandemic could convince them to look into virtual competitions.

 

[drivingmissdaisy]

I think it would be tough. I'm familiar with its use in tennis, but skating is far different. In tennis, the cameras and sensors can be placed at specific areas to see if a ball touches a line, but skaters perform their jumps at different parts of the rink and approach them from many directions.

 

[alexocfp]

Is it available by fax? No? Then probably not. The ISU is so technology-adverse not even a global pandemic could convince them to look into virtual competitions.

LMAO. Awesome.

This won the internet today.

 

[alexocfp]

I’m not against it if it’s accurate.

But I also don’t want the scoring to be announced a half hour after every performance because they are analyzing every single frame.

The VAR in football really soured me on technology. I was 100% for it until it became a mess. The referee has become 3 guys looking at a screen making mistakes at the same rate the referee was making them pre technology.

And if the system in figure skating is going to be used like the offside lines, then forget the whole thing.

 

[dante]

Leaving judging elements at the mercy of complex software will turn figure skating into a visual hacking contest (I can imagine something like this, or some technique that maximizes automated evaluation score while making elements subjectively worse).

With time, this can be fixed, but the algorithms should be made a part of the official rules and the implementation should be open (so, no proprietary hawk eyes). But even then, FS will have to go through quite a weird period of its history...

 

[Mathman]

On the other hand a lot of fans think the sport is too technical already - programs will probably end up being a lot less artistic because skaters will focus on training their technique so as not to be dinged by Hawk-eye

It could go the other way, though. Artistry could improve with greater technical precision and mastery.

 

[el henry]

What is Hawk Eye? Something about tennis? I'm lucky I know who Serena Williams is...

I swear my first thought was, is this about a M*A*S*H program?

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

I would be curious to see if Hawkeye could actually be calibrated for every skater. It’s not like they are static lines in tennis, skaters have variable techniques on their jumps and spins.

Hawkeye is also meant for challenges and are meant to be used sparingly. Meaning it’s used to dispute calls not confirm the rotation of each jump. Which is why in tennis and volleyball you only get a set amount of instant replay challenges.

Perhaps if a skater got a protocol sheet immediately they could dispute a call but a jump/spin is so much more complex than a ball in or out. So for an audience it might be hard to explain/confusing because it’s not as cut and dry.

 

[Skatesocs]

Worth a shot, IMO, why not. They're going to try it unofficially at worlds, so they can see if it works or not. Then if it works, they can work out a plan and start rolling it out starting with B-events - no need to leap right to the main events.

 

[DizzyFrenchie]

I don't know on which technology Artistic Gymnastics are judged? It seems efficient. I would like a test of anything, but I would prefer if ISU would effectually adopt something that works (and with fast results of course, I don't see why it shouldn't be faster than the tech panel, and even "on the spot" — a fraction of second after — for elements).
I agree that a correct technique allows greater artistry, although one can have "some artistry" with faulty technique (anyway a skater can have a faulty technique only on jumps, or on some jumps, and have precise footwork, good flow etc allowing him lots of interpretation, or very precise movements and not a very good glide, but it does hinder the overall artistic level of their programs, even if a choreographer can "show off" their strong points and try to hide their weaker points). So I would really support a technology showing the level of many technical aspects of a given skate. Yes we would have some programs with meaningless deep edges or accelerations and decelerations but we already have some meaningless programs just for the score, it would be up to the judges to be really discriminant in their composition, performance and interpretation scores, and they would have time to assess it, unlike now.
As to if ISU would implement a computer-assisted judging, I really think yes for two reasons : 1) now it's "in the air", 2) IOC will see to it, otherwise they could lose their Olympic sports status. For me the question is rather "when".

 

[SnowWhite]

I would be curious to see if Hawkeye could actually be calibrated for every skater. It’s not like they are static lines in tennis, skaters have variable techniques on their jumps and spins.

Hawkeye is also meant for challenges and are meant to be used sparingly. Meaning it’s used to dispute calls not confirm the rotation of each jump. Which is why in tennis and volleyball you only get a set amount of instant replay challenges.

Perhaps if a skater got a protocol sheet immediately they could dispute a call but a jump/spin is so much more complex than a ball in or out. So for an audience it might be hard to explain/confusing because it’s not as cut and dry.

Actually, they've been using the Hawkeye technology for electronic line calling at the Australian Open, some of the courts at the US Open last year and maybe other events. As a replacement for having line judges.

Not sure if it would working in skating. Tennis line calling seems much simpler.