Place Judging – Bracken Ridge Little Athletics

What is my role?

As the name suggests, place judge’s determine the finishing order of the athletes at the completion of a race.
At Centre level place judges may also be involved in timekeeping.

How many place judges should there be?

Ideally, there should be up to eight place judges (one judge per lane or per athlete in the race) and a Chief Judge. The Chief Judge’s job is to allocate a position (i.e. first, second etc) for each judge and to ensure all judges have appropriate paperwork. A Chief Judge should be able to record several or all placings in a race.

How do I judge?

The athletes places are determined by the order in which any part of the torso (i.e. between the shoulders and waist, not the head, hands, feet, etc) reaches the finishing line.

Who do I “place”?

Laned events:

Place judges are allocated a specific place to determine. e.g. John is to determine which lane comes in first place and records the number / Centre on a record sheet. This record sheet is then given to the Chief Judge.

Unlaned events:

At the completion of the race, the athletes are given written place numbers from the judge/s. The athletes are then placed into a line in their finishing order and taken to the recording table/area.

Where do I stand?

All judges should:

Judge from the same side – inside of track.
Be next to the finish line, preferably on a raised stand (for better viewing of the finish line) approximately 5m away from the track.

What if I make a mistake?

Mistakes do happen. Even experienced place judges make mistakes. Judges should not consult with each other but instead make their own decisions. Sometimes you miss the finish; you’re blinded by other athletes; it’s a close “blanket finish”; you are distracted by something; or you just don’t know. When judging, first impressions are the best. If this happens to you:

Don’t panic
Don’t let on to the athletes that there is any problem
Quietly let the Chief Judge know and they will deal with it If there are any problems with the results the Chief Judge will determine the placings.

What are some “Handy Tips” for Place Judging?

Don’t tell all the athletes their places at the side of the track – it slows things down.
Be aware of other judges behind you and not obstruct their view.
For multi-lapped events a judge or multiple judges may be required to monitor the progress of a number of athletes especially slow athletes who may be lapped.