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Salient. An Organ of Student Opinion at Victoria College, Wellington, N.Z. Vol. 14, No. 5. May 24, 1951

Real Blues?

Real Blues?

Athletes and others have expressed their dissatisfaction with the awarding of the N.Z.U. Blues for the past two years—ever since the permanent Blues Panel was established.

In issue No. 4, Volume 13 of Salient (23rd. March, 1950) an article appeared introducing the Blues Panel. The purpose behind the Blues panel, as was explained in the article, was to raise the standard of sport in the Universities and see that Blues were not awarded at random. No standards were established—"To qualify for the award of a Blue the person must be up to the standard expected of a good provincial side. Circumstances make this guide fairly elastic." Apparently circumstances made the awarding of blues so elastic that the Blues Panel stretched quite a way in the wrong directions.

Quite a few athletes reached a standard much above "good provincial performances." Two of them could have been included in the Empire Games team on the performances they established in the last two Tournaments had they been done at the Empire Games trials—yet they were not awarded Blues. One athlete, personally known to the writer, performed at the Tournament with a temperature of 102deg. due to 'flu. He managed to win convincingly, but the Blues Panel did not consider this a satisfactory performance. His effort, incidentally, was up to the best provincial standard. Ironically, some of the present members of the Blues Panel were awarded Blues for such mediocre performances as 109ft. in the discus or about 36ft. in the shot put.

This year the Tournament weather conditions were apparently not taken into account at all. Very heavy rain especially affected the track and fields athletics section—the track was dead for the runners and slippery for the field events men, yet very few Blues were awarded for athletics this year.

The Blues Panel has not announced what standard an athlete must reach to qualify for a Blue. As the Panel is a permanent body with each member serving for a term of not less than five years and with no standards defined and no higher body of appeal, the Panel has dictatorial powers. It would be interesting to know on what standards the awarding of Blues is assessed. Originally meant to be compared with good provincial performances the Blues Panel apparently bases efforts of University athletes on a world standard. This is ridiculous, as very few athletes in New Zealand achieve world class. Also there is no equality in the judging of different events.

The first necessary step for the Panel would be to announce standards in such measurable fields of sport as athletics, shooting and swimming, etc. It would then be possible for NZUSA to decide whether these standards are too high or too low. It would also make athletes aware of precisely what standards they must reach before they could expect to receive a Blue. Secondly the Blues Panel should have a few members who would be elected each year by the Tournament Committee. Then there should be a higher body of appeal such as NZUSA.

The Panel should remember that the withholding of Blues will not in itself raise the standard of sport in the Universities. Blues being almost "impossible" to attain would have the effect of making the athletes content with merely winning their events, but the setting up of a high standard would make the athlete strive to attain it. It would give him something to aim at.

The Blues Panel could award a Blue to itself for it has certainly made more than one.

J. N. Jennings.