Cojuangco invites SEAG federations to tackle bias officiating

Fed up with biased judging in combat sports, the Philippine Olympic Committee has invited members of the Southeast Asian Games federation to Manila and try to put an end to one-sided officiating in the Games.

Besides the Philippines, POC president Jose “Peping” Cojuangco Jr. said other countries in the 11-nation federation felt their athletes got the raw end of the deal on several occasions not only in the SEA Games but in other continental tournaments such as the Asian Games and Asian Beach Games.

“When we met some of the members of the federation in Malaysia, many of them felt the same way,” said Cojuangco. “So, we’re planning to invite them here next month for a weekend or a couple of days so we can discuss the matter.”

The final straw for Cojuangco came when muay fighter Philip Delarmino lost the gold medal to Thai Parin Luangpon in their 54kg encounter in the 4th Asian Beach Games in Phuket, Thailand, last month.

Delarmino, 24, explosively connected his signature kicks to the head and was clearly the more dominant fighter after he disfigured the face of his Thai rival.

The five judges saw it otherwise and Luangpon escaped with a questionable 4-1 victory that failed to convince the crowd.

“Sometimes, the decisions are too much. I want to take up the problem of officiating with the fellow members of the federation,” said Cojuangco.

He added biased judging defeats the purpose of sportsmanship and fair play that could affect the perception of young athletes.

“It’s not only unfair, it makes our young athletes think that one-sided officiating is ordinary and acceptable,” said Cojuangco.

The POC chief hopes changes could be implemented in the 28th SEA Games on June 5 to 16 in Singapore when the Philippines sends at least 500 athletes in 34 sports.