Jury Report on 2010 Indoor Free Flight World Championship F1D for Seniors and Juniors
FAI Jury
Ian Kaynes |
GBR |
President |
Massimo Semoli |
ITA |
Member |
Srdjan Pelagic |
SRB |
Member |
Dates
Location
Belgrade Fair, Belgrade, Serbia
Information
Three information bulletins were published and a web site was provided.
Accommodation
Most participants were accommodated in Hotel N in Belgrade. This hotel has been used for previous Indoor Championships and provides a good standard of accommodation.
A buffet breakfast was provided in the hotel. Lunch and dinner were served at the flying site, with a reasonable quality and served at times adapted to suit the flying programme. No drinks were provided with these meals and indeed no drinks were available for purchase within the hall (which also could have provided additional income for the organisation), but the organizer provided free drink water in plastic 6 litre bottles for all participants during the contest and refrigerators located close to flying positions to keep water cool. A restaurant with a pleasant garden was only hundred meters far the competition hall where all kind of refreshments were available at reasonably costs during breaks.
Opening ceremony
The opening ceremony was held just outside the hall. Short speeches were followed by a brief performance by local dancers.
Flying site
Hall 1 of Belgrade Fair was used for these Championships, the same one that was used for the 2008 World Championships and the 2009 European Championships. Flying conditions were as good as on previous occasions and the temperature inside the hall was as high as usual. It should be noted that 2007 European Championships was held in Hall 3 only 100 m from Hall 1, which offered similar competition conditions.
Participation
In the Senior Championship there were 35 competitors from 13 nations, with 11 of those having full teams. There were 12 competitors in the Junior Championship from 5 nations, 3 of these being full teams.
Identification numbers were not provided for competitors to wear. Such numbers are useful for identifying flyers in the event of any incident during the round.
In the third round Ivan Treger (Slovakia) made a flight of 39 minutes 27 seconds, a new record for the hall. He also won the senior championships, his third successive year of winning an F1D championship
Contest organisation
The championships was organised efficiently by members of the Modelar Club of Belgrade.
There was team managers meeting and a briefing of timekeepers. The schedule of the rounds in Bulletin 3 showed rounds from 9.00 to 13.00 and 15.00 to 17.00. This was discussed at the team managers meeting, with competitors preferring a later schedule in order to avoid turbulence and drift during the morning. The organisers explained that the schedule had been chosen to minimise the time during which the lights would be needed in the hall and also to ease the journey home for timekeepers. A compromise timetable was agreed so that on the first two days the rounds would last from 11.00 to 15.00 and from 17.00 to 21.00. The earlier schedule was maintained on the third day in order to give time for the prize-giving and the banquet in the evening. The senior results show that just 4 flights had been scoring flights during round 5 which started at 09.00, compared to the average of over 13 for the other rounds.
Timekeeping
Timekeeping was by young people and proceeded smoothly without any complaints.
Except for the final round, scores were returned to the office only after completion of flights by all members of a team. These were then written on a display sheet and uploaded to the internet, neither of these versions showing the total scores or position of competitors nor the team scores. The Jury president stepped in by processing the results into order and calculating the team scores. This output was printed for display and uploaded to the organiser’s web site and also to the FAI web site.
Protests
There were no protests. There was one complaint about senior assistance to a junior flyer when loading his rubber motor. The organisers warned the competitor to be careful of the intent of the rule, but scope of the rule for the competitor to wind his motor is open to interpretation.
Media aspects
Like most indoor championships there were no provisions made for public attendance. Consequently, there was no publicity in Belgrade and no provision to explain the event to visitors.
While large crowds would be detrimental to the flying (disturbance of the air by access to the hall and movement), some public attendance could be accommodated. This would require publicity, control of the visitors and explanation about the competition. A large screen display of results would be beneficial to everyone.
Closing Ceremony and Banquet
The Prize-giving and closing ceremony was held in the hall after the end of the final round. Individual and team winners were awarded with the FAI medals and diplomas. The organizer awarded cups to the three winning junior teams and the second and third senior teams. There are three CIAM perpetual trophies: for the best senior team, for the individual winner and for the longest flight.
The banquet was held at the fine restaurant of the Serbian Aero Club. The promise to organise coach transport between the hotel to the banquet was not carried out, and taxis had to be used instead.
Conclusion
The 2010 F1D World Championships were a very successful event and the Jury thank all involved for the successful conduct of the event.