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perfomance rating

Posted By: Bill Riles
Date: Wednesday, 9 September 2009, at 3:45 p.m.

In Response To: perfomance rating (ed olaughlin)

I started not to post these thoughts, but after Ed's response to Phil's post I feel more comfortable in doing so.

I was stunned by Ed's original posting and had to wonder if it was meant to be facetious, sarcastic, satirical, comedic, or more. I wondered if the various reports of threats and intimidation associated with some players, by the speculation of many, had been realized -- and were the impetus of the posting.

Let me first say, to my knowledge, I have never met, seen, played, or otherwise been exposed to Mr. Salamzy. I did play Mr. Sequiera in Cannes in '07 and have a bit more familiarity with his record and reputation. However, these things having been said, the considerable majority of chatter I've experienced regarding these players -- in print, in postings, in personal conversations -- has been negative. Thus, to me, despite my lack of specific personal knowledge and/or experience, their performances remain, at best, suspect.

As an example, by all reports, Mr. Sequiera, by his own admission, considers illegal plays an integral part of the game -- with the burden of attention, policing, and proof on his opponents. I understand, and tend to agree, that this is the basis for his refusal to allow his matches to be recorded. I, with most of my experience being with players who almost universally prefer 'legal moves only', have no respect for anyone purposefully utilizing 'illegal plays' as a portion of their backgammon skills repertoire.

I'll vote for those who, in my opinion, best combine skill and performance and who, further, exemplify integrity, sportsmanship, fair play, and good citizenship (in a general, not a national, sense).

I would not vote performance enhancing drug users nor criminals to the various sports Halls of Fame. Similarly, I will not compromise my vote for backgammon recognition with the suspect and/or the doubtful. To do so, in any of these circumstances, is, in my opinion, to condone the behavior. (Didn't the Georgian guy caught with modified dice have a great record? -- I doubt he'll receive many votes.)

There are, by my evaluation standards (including performance), far too many great candidates -- including Mochy and O'Hagan -- to allow me to consider suspect candidates. Until tournament directors take more pro-active steps to eliminate cheating in its various forms and to ensure the absolute integrity of the game, performance alone is inadequate. Neither Salamzy nor Sequiera will be on my ballot.

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