Some line judges jumped the gun, says official

By Nazvi Careem

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Some line judges were guilty of making calls before the shuttlecock hit the floor at the recent Korean Open, Badminton World Federation (BWF) events manager Venu Mahalingam said on Sunday.

However, the world governing body said it still had faith in the standard of Korean line judges and would continue to stage big tournaments in the country.

Last month's Korean Open was marred by a series of controversial line calls with South Korea's Lee Hyun-il defeating Chinese world number one Lin Dan in the men's singles final.

Lin was furious at one particular decision, at 20-20 in the final game, when Lee's cross-court smash was called in.

"The problem is that some of the line judges at the Korean Open were ex-players, and they are sometimes over confident when it comes to making calls," Mahalingam told Reuters on Sunday.

"Having been players, they think they know where the shuttle is going to land and often they raise their hand before it has even reached the floor."

Mahalingam, however, defended the line judge and the referee involved in the contentious call that angered Lin so much he tried to shove Lee's coach Li Mao.

Lin received a yellow card for his actions.