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The Q&A is closed for the 2021-2022 season. Any rule changes or clarifications pertaining to the 2022 VEX Robotics World Championship will be included in the April 5 Game Manual Update. Teams attending VEX Worlds who wish to pre-submit questions for the driver's meeting should have received a contact form via email; if not, please contact your REC Foundation Team Engagement Manager for more information.

Official Q&A: VRC 2021-2022: Tipping Point

Usage Guidelines All Questions

Clarification on Rules Interpretation

57301R
22-Feb-2022

I am reaching out to you seeking clarification on G13, G14 and SG3.

On Saturday, my team (57301R) was competing at Heritage Christian and, during a regular match and, after receiving no warnings throughout the day, received a disqualification after being pushed into the opponent's ramp at the beginning of the final 30 seconds as they made their way to their own side of the field. Going into State, I believe this instance needs to be clarified for all other teams if we were, indeed, in violation of SG3 as described.

I understand that this does not affect the outcome of anything and, if I am in the wrong and my team was correctly disqualified, I will convey that decision accordingly. However, I also believe it is fair to expect that this rule is interpreted and enforced consistently, especially as teams enter into State and Worlds competitions. I have included a link to the event as it was recorded and the match is at the 1:56:00 mark. If the offense clearly merits disqualification, please let me know. If I am seeking clarification through the incorrect chain of command, please let me know from whom I can seek clarification and I will reach out to them instead.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqeSApc5jPY

Thank you,

Benjamin G. Grimes, Roncalli High School. Indianapolis

G13   G14   SG3  
Answered by committee

If I am seeking clarification through the incorrect chain of command, please let me know from whom I can seek clarification and I will reach out to them instead.

The Q&A is the correct place to request rules clarifications in the event of unclear or ambiguous rules. However, there is no avenue for overturning a Head Referee decision that was made during an event. As noted in rule T1, the Head Referee has ultimate authority on ruling decisions made during any competition, and they are not permitted to review photo or video recordings to make these rulings.

Therefore, when rules rely heavily on in-context human judgment calls (as is the case with SG3), it is impossible for us to provide a blanket response as to whether a Head Referee's decision was "right" or not. Our response to such a question is almost certainly going to be that the Head Referee has discretion, and therefore, if their decision was made within the guardrails of that discretion, then it was the "right" call.

To use a sports analogy, it can be thought of similarly to a baseball umpire - a high-speed camera or digital sensor may be able to define a clear-cut "perfect" strike zone, but such a sensor will never be used to override an umpire's in-the-moment call of "strike" vs "ball".

With that all being said - the Match in question seems similar to the scenario asked by the following Q&As. Based on the responses given in these posts, it does appear that the call made during the Match is in line with our interpretations:

https://www.robotevents.com/VRC/2021-2022/QA/1026

https://www.robotevents.com/VRC/2021-2022/QA/1066