By now
just about everyone has heard about the Bradley vs. Paquiao boxing match in
which many are calling "a fixed match". I personally did not watch
the fight but based on what I've heard from many people who did watch it, and
what I've seen online it sure does sound like Bradley's victory was an unfair
decision. Regardless of whether or not the judges purposely cheated Paquiao or
not there is no doubt hat there are sport competitions that have been fixed in
the past.
People
are always suspicious about fixed games in the NBA because sometimes it seems
like certain players or teams get a lot of favorable calls. The Miami Heat is a
prime example of this. They have had so many favorable calls throughout the
season that some have deemed the referees as the Heat's "sixth man of the
year". Modern boxing matches don't usually seemed fixed but this Bradley
vs. Paquiao fight surely did. Any sporting competition that involves a judge's
opinion will always be subject to match fixing suspicions.
Soccer
is a sport that has been notorious for match fixing in the past. During the
60's, 70's and 80's politics and soccer often mixed in European countries.
Authority figures who wanted to see a certain club win would take the necessary
measures to make sure that club won certain games or sometimes league titles.
Sometimes money was involved to pay off referees; sometimes they would just use
fear to get what they wanted. In 2006 Italian club Juventus was discovered to
be involved in match fixing as they went the whole season without losing a
match en route to the Italian league title. The club was relegated to the 2nd
division and many of its players left the club. During the 2008 Olympics in
Beijing, many people suspected that the Chinese gymnastics squad used underage
girls as well as possibly receiving favorable votes from judges. Whether you
believe in fixed competitions or not, there is no denying that sometimes the
competitions just seem blatantly unfair.
By Guy Hudson, and don't forget to check out my
soundcloud account. www.soundcloud.com/jean-
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