Loss by Technicality
May 26, 2010 by Kathy McManus
Like a scene from a movie, 18-year-old high school pole vaulter Robin Laird soared triumphantly over the bar in the final moments of a Southern California track meet, winning the league championship for her team. But minutes later, Laird and her fellow athletes from South Pasadena High School were stripped of their victory, in a clash of gamesmanship versus sportsmanship.
Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez reports that Laird was wearing “a little string bracelet” she bought last November to support the World Wildlife Fund, “barely aware it was still on her wrist.” While the crowd was cheering Laird’s win, the coach of the losing team complained to officials that Laird should be disqualified because her bracelet violated an athletic league “no jewelry” rule. Judges affirmed the rule, revoked Team Laird’s win, and awarded the championship title to the opposing team.
“It’s unfortunate for the young lady. But you’ve got to teach the kids that rules are rules,” the complaining coach said to Sports Illustrated, insisting he didn’t notice Laird’s string bracelet “until after she cleared the height and walked by.”
“You’d think the adults would have agreed that it’s a stretch to call a few strands of string a piece of jewelry,” Lopez wrote. “But this was youth sports, long the domain of palookas who seem determined to send kids all the wrong messages.” Lopez reports that Laird feels “terrible” about her team’s loss, but she says that while it’s “easy to lose sight of what it’s all about…there’s more to value than a league championship.”
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6 Comments
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May 28, 2010 by Jason
The complaining coach and the officials should be ashamed. Jewelry is prohibited for safety concerns, if this piece of string kept her safe and didn't improve her performance it shouldnt have mattered. Though if she didn't have the bracelet, the coach probably would've whined about her hair scrunchie instead
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June 1, 2010 by Deeana
It's extremely simple: Rules are rules. If the girl's coach was competent and had truly cared about the EXISTING rules, he would have checked his team for jewelry before the match began. He failed to do so and regardless of whether the opposing team's coach noticed the bracelet before or after the jump, the girl was caught red-handed.
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June 2, 2010 by wedding band winnipeg
Good article.
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June 2, 2010 by Mark
Jewelry implies that the piece contains at least some kind of jewel. A string bracelet does not qualify as jewelry and anyone that thinks it does is a sore loser, a moron or both. Sounds like the coach was both.
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June 6, 2010 by Hanako Kitahara
The rule in track and cross country of no jewelry is stupid in my opinion. In swimming you're allowed to compete with earrings on. Even in more dangerous sports than running like water polo you can play with earrings on.
ALSO, the rule of hair scrunchies being your school color is stupid. and that you cannot wear thick clips to clip your hair back and that girls must tie their hair back when boys don't even if they have long hair. My friend was almost d.q'd because she had a thick clip that was black in her hair to hold her bangs back instead of a bobby pin. her hair was black and no one noticed it but our opposing coach
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October 26, 2011 by Calvin
I played soccer for years. I fully understand the no jewelry rule. However, We are allowed to wear arm/sweat bands, or hair ties. So while yes the rules are the rules, It's the officials jobs to notice this during competition/games. If she competed up to, and through the championship with no one saying anything about it or her ability, isn't it a bit suspicious that they only say something AFTER she won? It's like failing a test and complaining that the teacher made it too hard after you found out your grade.
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