But the rules of the international game explicitly state that all participants must avoid dangerous play. Those rules also state that all players must fully understand all rules - like the one directing players to avoid dangerous play - before entering the playing field.
So what happens when a defender dives straight into a receiver’s knees on the final play of a gold medal game?
Practically speaking, there are no competitive consequences for that dangerous play.
But that doesn’t make the dangerous play acceptable. The ensuing discussion throughout the ultimate frisbee community highlights a disturbing level of ignorance--intentional or unintentional--that needs to improve if the sport is to continue in a self-officiated manner.
After public review of the play in question, some tried to defend or excuse the dangerous play. “It’s a gold medal game,” they argued. “He was a few inches away from touching the disc,” they spouted.
But the rules of the game don’t get rewritten when the stakes rise. Fouls aren’t excused if players were just a few inches or milliseconds from a legal play. Dangerous contact doesn’t suddenly become permissible just because a gold medal is on the line. Players are obligated to assess risk before leaving their feet. If dangerous play is on the table, players are required to avoid the dangerous play.
If ultimate players and fans want to argue that the rules of the international game should change to permit more contact, that’s one thing. If they want to argue that the international game needs more active enforcement, in the form of referees or third party observers issuing rulings or penalties during a game, that’s another, as well. But under international ultimate’s current self-officiated governance structure, there’s no place for conscious dangerous play or ignorant, ill-informed defense of it.
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