Re: Injury time out ethics
This situation has always been a frustration to me as an official. Twenty years ago if I felt they were okay and just screaming to stop the fall I would just keep on counting until the situation ended. I did that in a kid's state final match and the losing kid's dad was furious at me for waiting for the fall to occur instead of stopping the match for injury. The kid was fine but ended up in 2nd, which was probably higher than he deserved since I later heard he cried out of a fall in several matches he came back to win. I must have had 4 coaches come up after that match thanking me for making him face the fact that he was getting pinned and saying that he had done it to their kid too. We can't do that anymore. If someone cries out now we have to stop it, give the imminent points and then restart in the referees position after completing the injury time out. We just have to err on the side of caution, even when everyone knows what the kid is doing. BTW, that is not something that is "coached" as I have heard people say. Most good coaches are totally embarrassed when a kid does that and would never coach them to do that. I consider it a character flaw in the kid. JMHO
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