Search Forum Home   Discussions  Ask the Ref Doctor  Player calling ...  Player calling timeout    5/1/2006 4:45:44 PM Grant Marlenee 23 posts Player calling timeout Frequently, players will call for a timeout during a match, usually for the purpose of equipment problems or so they pretend.  While I know that players may not call a timeout, it seems that a safety issue could be lurking if I refuse to recognize the request.  I would presume that a penalty for interuption of the progress of the match would be applicable for the player that requests a timeout for a spurious reason? Last saturday was one of those incidents that could have turned bad.  Chung had a problem of some sort so he requested a timeout and basically dropped his guard to present the "timeout" sign to me.  I actually mulled it over for a second trying to decide if he had a real problem or just didn't like being backed into the corner.  In the probably close to a second it took me to react Hong threw a really nice roundhouse upside Chung's head.  There was some confusion among the judges and coaches (and audience for that matter) as to whether it was a legal attack since Chung had dropped his guard.  I had not yet called kalyeo and the game was still afoot so I could think of no reason to not let the points stand or award a penalty.  It seemed totally legal to me.  Chung was still fully erect on his feet and within the ring and although suprised, didn't seem to be stunned or shrunken by the impact so I didn't count. This incident and others have me thinking that I should just instantly react to protect any player stupid enough to drop his guard and figure out later whether to assess an 'interupting' warning or not. Opinions? Grant Marlenee  5/1/2006 5:05:51 PM bckwh 104 posts Re: Player calling timeout Mr. Marlenee, you are becoming a regular visitor to the Doc's Office, and a welcome visitor at that. Thank you for your excellent questions. We frequently see the situation that you mention, where a competitor will attempt to call a timeout and drop his/her guard. A Referee must be on guard that the player attempting to get a timeout is not doing so because of their fatigue or lack of stamina (as is sometimes the case). In the interest of fairness, a player with superior stamina should not be penalized by having a Referee allow the opponent to call a timeout to catch their breath. Unless the Referee is aware that an equipment problem exists, the Referee should not allow the timeout. It is the competitor's responsibility to make the Referee aware of an equipment problem by drawing the Referee's attention to that area, usually the leg, by raising the pant leg so that it can be clearly seen that there is an equipment problem. A smart athlete will do this when out of attack range of the other competitor. Should a Referee determine that an athlete was trying to get a timeout for spurious reasons, the Kyungo penalty should be awarded. In the case that you mention, where you did not react to the player trying to call al timeout, any actions that occurred in the interim must be allowed as legal actions. After all, there is no timeout until you, the Referee declare Shigan, not an athlete. The point should have been scored and no penalty should have been awarded to the attacker. ~BHarris  Page 1 of 1   Discussions  Ask the Ref Doctor  Player calling ... Flat View Tree View Oldest To Newest Newest To Oldest