INSIGHT | First Australian Vaulting Judge officiating at a World Championship

Angie Deeks is a 3* FEI and EA Vaulting Judge from Queensland. She was the first Australian Judge to be invited to officiate at the 2017 FEI World Vaulting Championships for Juniors. Here she tells us her story...

"I have had an amazing time Judging the 2017 Junior World Vaulting Championships In Ebreichsdorf near Vienna, Austria. The event was combined with the European Senior Championships; with 240 athletes, 115 Horses and 12,200 paying spectators, it was a very big event and an amazing experience. The quality of the vaulting was outstanding and the medal places were extremely close in almost all

The event was combined with the European Senior Championships; with 240 athletes, 115 Horses and 12,200 paying spectators, it was a very big event and an amazing experience.

The quality of the vaulting was outstanding and the medal places were extremely close in almost all of the competitions. As the first Australian Judge to officiate at a World Championship, I approached the event with a little trepidation and a desire to ensure that on the world stage, Australian Judges would be regarded as well skilled in the job. I made arrangements to bring an Australian penciler– Anna Betts to the event, to ensure that there was no misunderstanding of scores and to have an efficient team at the Judging table.

For the first 2 days of the competition, we worked in +38 degrees. The day of the Junior Finals was a little more bearable and the Senior European Finals were held on a rainy day around 24 degrees. Vaulting competitions are noisy affairs and the German Fans were by far the loudest group attempting to raise the roof on the entry and exits of all their competitors. Once the bell rang everyone was silent and the Vaulters and Horses had no distractions.

I had never before experienced the pressures of judging in a Finals and I quickly learned that it is easier to eliminate doubts if you pay no attention to the announcements of the scores. We had 8 judges working in the World Championships and there were 6 working on the European Championships. A group of 12 of us covered the combined event. They were a very supportive and friendly group and it made the event doubly enjoyable. It was a fantastic experience that I will never forget."