{"id":19735,"date":"2015-01-02T15:20:18","date_gmt":"2015-01-02T04:20:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/?p=19735"},"modified":"2015-01-22T07:09:42","modified_gmt":"2015-01-21T20:09:42","slug":"stephen-lamb-on-selection-policies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/2015\/01\/stephen-lamb-on-selection-policies\/","title":{"rendered":"Stephen Lamb on Selection Policies&#8230;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/StephenLambPort.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-19740\" src=\"http:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/StephenLambPort.jpg\" alt=\"StephenLambPort\" width=\"450\" height=\"299\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/StephenLambPort.jpg 450w, https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/StephenLambPort-300x199.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Fairness, Equality and the Level Playing Field (the myths of elite sport)<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Regardless of the sport, team selection is always a hot issue.<\/p>\n<p>Whether it\u2019s Quade Cooper\u2019s non-inclusion in the Wallabies, or who should be wicket keeping for the Aussies during the Ashes \u2013 the final make-up of a team is often fiercely debated.<\/p>\n<p>And so it is with equestrian teams. The biennial hullabaloo surrounding WEG and Olympic team selections has almost become an accepted part of the process. Just as someone once wrote that one of the true signs summer has arrived in Australia is when you hear your first blow fly of the season, talk of an appeal over team selection is an indication the Games are upon us.<\/p>\n<p>The debate is often focused on whether the decision was \u2018fair\u2019 and if the team members \u2018deserved\u2019 their spot.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Was the selection process <em>fair<\/em>?<\/li>\n<li>Is it <em>fair<\/em> that Roy Rogers* and Trigger* made the team?<\/li>\n<li>It\u2019s not <em>fair<\/em> that the Lone Ranger* and Silver* didn\u2019t make the team<\/li>\n<li>The Cisco Kid* and Diablo* <em>deserved<\/em> to make the team<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The concept of fairness is something that is inherently important to Australians. The idea of giving people a fair go is said to be part of our make-up, it\u2019s almost part of our DNA.<\/p>\n<p>Even the all-powerful Wikipedia has a section on \u2018a fair go\u2019 under the heading Australian Culture.<\/p>\n<p>A fair go was between \u2018underdog identity\u2019 and \u2018cultural cringe.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>But selectors are not charged with selecting the team on basis of the fairest outcome, or even the most deserving team \u2013 their job is to pick the BEST team. The team they believe will produce the best performance for Australia on the world stage.<\/p>\n<p>As different to the local under 13 netball team, where the youngsters may be selected due to consistent attendance at training or simply because it\u2019s their turn to play a full game (although Cricket Australia does seem to dabble with the latter with its controversial rotation policy), such concessions are not available to national selectors when it comes to WEG and Olympic Games.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s not to say that everything possible isn\u2019t done to make the selection process fair &#8211; of course it is. But what if, in an attempt to be \u2018fair\u2019, we inhibit the process of selecting the best team? Because let\u2019s face it, the concept of complete fairness, or the \u2018level playing field\u2019, is in fact a utopia.<\/p>\n<p>Invariably someone will have:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>more talent as a rider<\/li>\n<li>a more talented horse(s)<\/li>\n<li>a bigger bank balance<\/li>\n<li>better training facilities<\/li>\n<li>better work ethic<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>There are endless permutations of advantages that some riders have over others, that make the level playing field as relevant as the flat earth theory. And furthermore, trying to create it can sometimes dumb down the whole process.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The idea of bringing someone back to the field, again, is intrinsically Aussie.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Possibly the best example is the race that stops a nation, the Melbourne Cup \u2013 a handicap event. While purists will tell you the weight for age WS Cox Plate is the ultimate prize in Australian racing, the general public is infatuated by the Melbourne Cup &#8211; a race where the favourite carries the most weight so lesser fancied rivals (in some cases, \u2018underdogs\u2019) have a chance to win.<\/p>\n<p>So how does this translate to selection?<\/p>\n<p>Take the scenario of a rider who has more than one horse eligible for selection. How do we make that fair to the riders who have only one horse?<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s simple. We add a clause to the selection policy that says \u2018at the selection event, the rider will nominate which horse he \/ she will put forward for selection.\u2019 Sorted.<\/p>\n<p>Except of course, if the non-nominated horse wins the selection event, while the nominated horse puts in a weaker performance.<br \/>\nIs it just a case of too bad, so sad &#8211; you nominated the wrong horse? Or do we want that winning horse \/ rider combination on the team?<\/p>\n<p>While Swimming Australia may have the luxury (due to Australia\u2019s depth of talent) of giving swimmers a single opportunity to make the team, in equestrian (particularly dressage and jumping) we don\u2019t.<\/p>\n<p>When Samantha Riley underperformed at the selection trials for the Sydney Olympics after spending seven days in hospital with a kidney infection, many people felt it was unfair she wasn\u2019t given another opportunity to make the team. Surely she deserved a chance to finish her career in front of a home crowd? Her place on the team was taken by 14-year-old Leisel Jones, who went on to claim individual silver at the Games a couple of weeks after turning 15. Not a bad replacement.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Prior to the London Olympics, Australian steeplechaser Genevieve LaCaze become embroiled in a selection controversy when she ran an \u2018A qualifying time\u2019 in the US a day after Athletics Australia\u2019s self- imposed qualification deadline.<\/p>\n<p>The high performance manager for Athletics Australia, Eric Hollingsworth, was quoted by Fairfax Media as saying: \u2018The bottom line is the qualifying line is set and she should not be nominated. It needs no more complication that that. All the emotional stuff needs to be taken out, otherwise it is not fair to the other hundreds of athletes who have complied with the deadline that was set.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>There\u2019s that word again, <em>FAIR<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>Now keep in mind, Genevieve\u2019s inclusion would not have put another Australian athlete out of the team, there was no other qualified Aussie in her event \u2013 but still, Athletics Australia felt that it wasn\u2019t fair to extend the deadline for her.<\/p>\n<p>In the end, pressure from AOC boss John Coates saw the decision reversed and LaCaze competed in London.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The issue of team selection is a vexed one. Trying to keep the process as simple as possible is desirable for all concerned, however, the myriad \u2018what if\u2019 scenarios that need to be taken into account can invariably muddy the waters. Like many of our so-called \u2018First World problems\u2019, the legal implications are far reaching, and can often hijack the whole affair.<\/p>\n<p>When, during the appeals process, barristers start arguing over the wording of the selection policy, to the extent that \u2018may\u2019 can sometimes mean \u2018must\u2019, but does that mean that \u2018must\u2019 can sometimes mean \u2018may\u2019, you do have to wonder what it all has to do with selecting the best team to represent Australia.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><em>*not their real names \u2013 examples only<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Fairness, Equality and the Level Playing Field (the myths of elite sport) Regardless of the sport, team selection is always a hot issue. Whether it\u2019s Quade Cooper\u2019s non-inclusion in the Wallabies, or who should be wicket keeping for the Aussies during the Ashes \u2013 the final make-up of a team is often fiercely debated. And [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":19740,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"nf_dc_page":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[67,1015],"class_list":["post-19735","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-show-jumping","tag-showjumping","tag-stephen-lamb"],"acf":[],"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19735","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19735"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19735\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19885,"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19735\/revisions\/19885"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19740"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19735"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19735"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.horsemagazine.com\/thm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19735"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}