The World Athletics Federation IAAF has responded to the criticism of the cameras in the starting blocks at the World Championships in Doha. It has been found a compromise, after the images of the "upper cameras" on TV and on the video wall in the stadium are shown only large when the athletes sit in the block, said the German Athletics Federation.
"Only the final block position of the athletes is shown," it said. The images of the controversial cameras would be switched to black in the TV control room on the main screen and displayed on a side screen so scaled down that nothing is visible. In addition, the video data would not be saved and deleted daily.
The German sprinters Gina Lückenkemper and Tatjana Pinto had criticized the cameras as "very questionable". "In the tight things to climb over this camera to go to the block, I find very unpleasant," said Lückenkemper. "Was there a woman involved in the development of this camera? I do not think so," she said.
The World Cup use of the new cameras in the starting block is only intended for the 100 meters and in the hurdle sprint. The idea of the starting block camera is to "improve the communication between athlete and spectators by a new event presentation," the statement.
Lückenkemper and Pinto dropped out on Sunday over 100 meters in the semifinals.