We will share some opinions tomorrow, but what is your guess of what should have been called – or not – at the LEN Open Water Swimming Cup 2012 in Antalya, Turkey?

There are a few fundamental issues including, “Did Swimmer A veer into Swimmer B?, Does the swimmer in front have the right of way?, and Does the swimmer in front have the right-of-way even if they veer / move / steer another swimmer off-course?

Of course, such moves are done both at the local level and professional races, but athletes and referees should know and acknowledge rules and guidelines on such moves and physical contact so ambiguity and protests are kept to a minimum. Athletes should be informed of the rules or guidelines so they can understand what a referee will (or should) call.

In this case, some referees call a yellow card, some will call a red card and some will not call anything. Whichever the proper judgment is, the athletes should know what the ruling is ahead of time.

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