Judge Yuri Balkov (UKR) banned

[gsk8]

Communication No. 2694
Decision of ISU Disciplinary Commission

On November 12th, 2024, the ISU Disciplinary Commission (DC) accepted a Statement of Complaint filed by the ISU, against Mr. Yuri Balkov (UKR), Ms. Olena Lisova (UKR), Ms. Ece Esen (TUR) and Mr. Roland Mäder (SUI) together with 20 Exhibits, for Violations of the Duties of Judges and the ISU Code of Ethics.

On January 19th, the DC issued and delivered Order No. 2, ordering an oral hearing for this case on March 5th, 2025, in Munich (GER).

Following consideration of the alleged violations of ISU Statutes, including the ISU Code of Ethics, the ISU Disciplinary Commission has, on March 25th, 2025, taken the following decision:

Decision
1. Mr. Yuri Balkov (UKR) is excluded for life from all ISU activities and events.
2. The complaint against Ms. Olena Lisova (UKR), Ms. Ece Esen (TUR) and Mr. Roland Mäder (SUI) is dismissed.
3. The Parties bear their own costs.
4. All persons involved in this case (whether as Parties / (Alleged) Offenders, or as Counsel / Representatives / Witnesses etc.) are prohibited from disclosing the identity and/or any direct or indirect information regarding the identity of the “contacted Judge” to others. A violation of this section can result in further disciplinary proceedings.

The decision of the Disciplinary Commission is published in full on the ISU website.

This decision is subject to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), as per Article 25 Paragraph 12 and Article 26 of the ISU Constitution.

 

[Andrea82]

The full decision and account is here: https://isu-d8g8b4b7ece7aphs.a03.az...ova-Mader--FINAL-DECISION-1743599479-1183.pdf

The event under investigation is JGP Ljubljana

 

[Blades of Passion]

It only took 30 years of bad judging and cheating.

The cheating part aside, never forget the 9.75 PCS and max GOE on nearly every element he gave Sotniknova in 2014 for that rigged result. What a clown. Of course, the entire process of ISU judge appointment is clown school, so...

 

[saine]

Maybe if judges are trying to influence events, they shouldn't do it with text messages that can be forwarded on to the authorities.

 

[4everchan]

Maybe if judges are trying to influence events, they shouldn't do it with text messages that can be forwarded on to the authorities.

do not give them ideas lol

 

[4everchan]

on a different note, if it seems worth it risking being banned for a result on the JGP circuit... can you imagine what some may be willing to attempt to influence the results at bigger events ?

 

[Mathman]

I do not understand why the ISU tolerates this sort of thing. Don't they care anything about the sport of figure skating at all? Why wasn't this action taken in 1998?

 

[Magill]

I do not understand why the ISU tolerates this sort of thing. Don't they care anything about the sport of figure skating at all? Why wasn't this action taken in 1998?

No, they don't and why would they? Whenever judging or scoring is criticized or questioned, there is always an army of people coming to ISU's defence, claiming any critical remarks or suspicions of the judges come from uneducated and/or biased fans who are never satisfied, and it is all just a part of fan culture. Why would they care then?

 

[Karoltyna]

Maybe if judges are trying to influence events, they shouldn't do it with text messages that can be forwarded on to the authorities.

Or maybe... cease trying to influence the scores. Ah, this is such a revolting idea

 

[saine]

Or maybe... cease trying to influence the scores. Ah, this is such a revolting idea

That's a given, I just expected more from someone who had already been suspended, after being recorded by another judge for it, to know not to send text messages to do it again.

 

[Mathman]

. Why would they care then?

Self respect.

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

It only took 30 years of bad judging and cheating.

The cheating part aside, never forget the 9.75 PCS and max GOE on nearly every element he gave Sotniknova in 2014 for that rigged result. What a clown. Of course, the entire process of ISU judge appointment is clown school, so...

Oh his PCS on Yu Na Kim was criminal. Gave her a 7.75 on transitions. Of course her almost near perfect jumps were only +1 in his eyes too. His PCS for her would have equated to 67.2 (while it would have equated to a ridiculous 76.4 for Sotnikova). He also propped the hell out of Lipnitskaia.

Good riddance. Although it's the ISU so I'm sure he'll be back at some point.

 

[Andrea82]

Interesting bit from the complaint...point 32...

The Complaint also includes extensive analysis by an ISU IDTC Member (Exhibit 20). This includes observations and analysis going beyond the ISU JGP 2024 in Ljubljana and referring to placements by countries rather than by individual Judges:

[…]

As the application seemed to grow, only this season by several coincidences allowed us to realize the full system. There is a core group of four countries which work together. The approach mainly targets the top five placements. In this group they put slightly lower marks for those couples who should be in the top three places and slightly higher marks for the couples of their group – the higher the placement of the couple the smaller the difference – as well as trying to place other couples between the direct competitors for the desired placement who are directly below the top five. To be effective, they determine to which event all of them will go. They send, if possible, the same judge. As has been done in the old marking system and tried before in the present one, the manipulative scheme is ruled and run by coaches. A result manipulated in this way, leads to the honest judges being in the focus of the OAC as their higher marks for the couples who should be correctly higher placed now seem to be overmarked. It also leads to these judges coming away completely frustrated from a competition because they cannot understand the result and know/feel it to be wrong and feel themselves to be helpless without the possibility to get to the correct result. Officiating in events, in which some manipulation is going on, can always be felt; on top of that there are at least glances, cold-shouldering, and one sees certain people standing or sitting together etc. During events the group tries to find further “helpmates” through the coaches and colleagues present at the competition and the judges involved among their fellow judges either by direct approach or by talk about what they have – supposedly – noticed in practice. Most of us have been subjected at least to this in decades past.

[…]

 

[moonvine]

When judges in gymnastics are too far apart they have to have a conference and come to a revised conclusion before competition resumes. Of course if it’s a block that might not help. But I don’t think it would hurt.

 

[Joekaz]

Self respect.

The ISU? Lol

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

When judges in gymnastics are too far apart they have to have a conference and come to a revised conclusion before competition resumes. Of course if it’s a block that might not help. But I don’t think it would hurt.

I thought they had a review for ISU judges who were outside a norm of judging. I don't think it's bad for a judge to be critical but seeing a judge give blind PCS/GOE praise - or in Balkov's case, overt corruption - and being allowed to continue to judge is ridiculous.

 

[Mathman]

I thought they had a review for ISU judges who were outside a norm of judging.

They do, but it;'s pretty hard to land so far out of line for anything to come of it. Every year the Officials Oversight Committee gives out a handful of reprimands, mostly to lower level judges and mostly in ice dance.

In general, I think that just marching to a different drummer is not sufficient for a major sanction, in the absence of other evidence of ineptitude or skulduggerousness (TM TallyT).

 

[gsk8]

I really feel bad for the ice dance team. As if they couldn't do well on their own merit? Not a good message to send.

Kudos to the whistleblower!!

 

[rabidline]

Ukrainian judge? The joke writes itself.

 

[moonvine]

They do, but it;'s pretty hard to land so far out of line for anything to come of it. Every year the Officials Oversight Committee gives out a handful of reprimands, mostly to lower level judges and mostly in ice dance.

In general, I think that just marching to a different drummer is not sufficient for a major sanction, in the absence of other evidence of ineptitude or skulduggerousness (TM TallyT).

It’s not that there is a sanction. It works like this: skater A skates. Judge 1 gives skater A all +5 GOE. Judge 2 gives skater A all -1 GOE. The competition stops and they have a discussion of the scores until a consensus is reached.