Synchro Rome 2007

This year's Synchro Rome was held together with the European Synchronized Swimming Championship that also served as the Qualifying Event toward the Olympic Games 2008 for Europe. It was an event almost as the World Cup in Melbourne because only a couple of countries were missing. I had the fortune to be able to Judge and there were so many Judges, that a draw was done in order to allow all the Judges to have the chance to judge the preliminars, no matter if your country is taking part on this event... not even if there are more than one judge per country on the same panel, that was a clear draw. Also it was the first time I was judging in a panel that switches (for another set of 14 judges) in the middle of the preliminar events, what seemed to be new for many other judges as well and opened discusion among the Delegates because whether it is positive / negative for the event itself, is still to be concluded (and it has been only the 2nd time it is tried this way out). For the finals, only the Judges who received the best marks (after the evaluation carried out by FINA / LEN representatives) were called to Judge with the exception of the Team event that was left only for European Judges (due to the relevance it has regarding the qualification for the Olympics). It was a very interesting experience and my second time in Rome for this event, I hope I could make it every year. It was pretty funny for me to make clear that there is a swimmer on the Mexican Team (Nara Falcon) who is not my cousin, neither my niece nor my sister... nor my daughter! (there were some who thought about it) :) we only share the same lastname but it was the first we were introduced; due to ethics, we shouldn't judge our own relatives and now it is clear that we are not family but in any case, I would have had been 7 years old when I became her father and meeting my long-lost daugher thanks to the Synchronized Swimming could become a very original plot for a Mexican - Venezuela soap opera hehehe just kidding :D

Synchro Rome este ano se realizo de forma simultanea con el Campeonato Europeo de Nado Sincronizado que tambien sirvio como Clasificatorio para los Juegos Olimpicos 2008 por Europa. Este evento fue casi como la Copa del Mundo en Melbourne porque solo un par de paises faltaron. Tuve la fortuna de calificar este evento y habia tantos Jueces disponibles that hubo un sorteo para permitirnos a todos tener la oportunidad de calificar en las preliminares, sin importar que tu pais esta participando en ese evento... y sin importar que haya mas de un Juez del mismo pais en el mismo panel, todo fue un sorteo. Tambien fue la primera vez para mi que estuve calificando en un panel que es reemplazado (por otro grupo de 14 Jueces) en el medio de las preliminares, esto tambien parecio nuevo para muchos otros Jueces y genero diferentes puntos de vista que se discutieron durante las reuniones de Delegados porque se trata de probar y demostrarse que es algo positivo o negativo para el evento (es apenas la segunda vez que se prueba este sistema de paneles). Para las finales, solo los Jueces que recibieron las mejores evaluaciones (llevadas a cabo por representantes de la FINA y de la LEN) fueron llamados para calificar con la excepcion de la final de Equipos que se dejo solo para Jueces Europes (debido a la importancia que tiene como evento de clasificacion para los Juegos Olimpicos). Fue un evento muy interesante, muchas experiencias nuevas y mi segunda vez en Roma participante en este evento, espero que pueda asistir siempre. Como dato curioso, este ano tuve que aclarar que una nadadora del equipo de Mexico (Nara Falcon) no es mi prima, mi sobrina, mi hermana ni mi hija! (hubo quien lo penso asi) :) solo compartimos el mismo apellido pero esta ha sido la primera vez que nos presentan; por cuestiones de etica, no deberiamos calificar a nuestros propios familiares pero esta claro que no somos familia y en este caso yo habria tenido 7 anos cuando me converti en padre (precoz, por demas) pero que gracias al Nado Sincronizado yo haya conocido a mi hija perdida... podria ser el tema de una super exitosa novela Mexicano - Venezolana jajaja es solo un chiste :D