According to The Guardian, FIG President Morinari Watanabe is pushing for an AI scoring support system to be adopted at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, a move that is in line with the Japanese government’s blueprint for innovative economies. (Image: Kobiz Media)
SEOUL, Dec. 19 (Korea Bizwire) – Controversial judging decisions could become relics of the past as soon as 2020, following reports that the International Federation of Gymnastics (FIG) and Japanese IT company Fujitsu are developing an AI-based judging support system for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
According to The Guardian, FIG President Morinari Watanabe is pushing for an AI scoring support system to be adopted at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, a move that is in line with the Japanese government’s blueprint for innovative economies.
Under the new system, over 10 cameras with 3D laser sensors will be deployed to thoroughly assess each move performed by gymnasts, which could help put to rest debate over controversial judging decisions.
Han Choong-sik, an executive director at the Korea Gymnastics Association, said on Monday that the FIG is poised to develop AI robots that can judge not only technical scores, but also performance or execution scores. “Even the same level of skills can be scored slightly differently by human judges.
With the introduction of AI bots, the margin of error could be slashed drastically, helping deliver accurate scores,” Han said in excitement. According to Han, a smartphone application was developed in France to assess gymnasts’ performances in detail from various angles to help training sessions, a move in line with the International Federation of Gymnastics.
Olympic gymnastics scores are decided based on the level of technical skills including requirements, difficulty and connections, while another panel of judges scores for execution and artistry.
Since judges often spend up to eight hours per day assessing gymnasts, concerns have been expressed in the past over their lack of focus and inconsistency caused by tiredness.
Others who push for AI judges say a quicker scoring system without having to wait all of the scores to be added could make things more interesting for viewers.
While expectations are running high that the issue of controversial judging decisions could come to an end, critics on the other hand express worries over the lack of creativity in robots, which could hinder the judging process by not recognizing brand new moves, for instance.
Ashley Song (ashley@koreabizwire.com)
