John Dye wrote (re Stacy's new world indoor vault record),
>I am at the meet and it was stated by Walt Murphy and other officials as 15-5.5
>and 4.71. Later, they changed it to 4.70 or 15-5.
"4.70 *or* 15-5" you say? Okay, which?
If the bar was measured as 4.70m, it would, indeed, convert to 15'5". If
the bar was measured as 15'5", it would convert to 4.69m.
Let's take it for granted that an experienced official would set every bar
at the metric height. Any conversion flubs would be the responsibility of
the PA announcer (and on down the line to all of the media dimwits who try
to convert back and forth without knowing the track-and-field conventions
of rounding downward to the nearest centimeter or one-quarter inch.)
In this instance, taking it for granted that the officials know what
they're doing loses some credence with the earlier announcement that the
height is "15-5.5 and 4.71m." Same problem: If the measurement was 4.71m,
the imperial conversion is 15'5 1/4".
The place where the officials begin to gain some sympathy from me is when
the vaulter has won the competition and can ask that the bar be set at a
height he/she is entitled to determine.
In this instance, the reports are that Stacy asked for a next bar to be set
at 15'9". If she did ask for this imperial height, the head judge might
have checked his tables or his computer and set the height at 4.80m, the
metric equivalent. If she cleared 4.80, though, she might be upset to learn
that she hadn't made 15'9", but 15'8 3/4", not nearly as interesting to
U.S. fans.
I think the only way officials can protect themselves against this is to
turn it back to the athlete: "You want 15'9"? The vault standards and the
only official measuring tape are calibrated in meters. What *metric* height
do you want?" That being made clear, the predictable screw-ups will be
solely the fault of the media people.
As for the PA announcer, I'd think he might be well advised to stick with
lots of "approximate" imperial statements, linked to metric data. "Stacy's
next attempt will be at 4.70 meters--about an inch higher than her last
clearance and about three inches higher than her pending world record from
the Millrose Games."
Cheers,
Roger
