Ben Player: this season turned him upside down

Ben Player may be crowned the 2013 IBA World Tour, despite finishing the season tied on points with Amaury Lavernhe.

The International Bodyboarding Association (IBA) has announced the cancellation of the Fronton Challenge 2013, which would crown a new world champion.

Ben Player and Amaury Lavernhe are tied in the ranking with 5900 points, but there is an odd guideline in the IBA Rule Book that may be favorable to the former Australian world champion.

"Ties will be broken on completion of the tour in the same manner as ties are broken in heat tabulation. If a tie is unable to be broken in this manner only then will the past years tour standing be used to break a tie", the IBA Points Allocation rule tells us.

But, why should the previous season get into play, when riders are competing in this year, in these stages, and in these particular waves?

Couldn't the highest results of the current season be, somehow, sorted and analyzed to get a fair decision of who will be the champion?

"The IBA Fronton is cancelled! I can't believe it, but it's a reality! So, what happens next? Are there two world champs this year? No, that will be too easy", ironizes Lavernhe.

"Some guys propose to have a man-on-man between Ben and me, maybe this year in Canaries, or next year in Hawaii. But no, the rules are the rules. Australia has to get this title back home. It's time to celebrate", adds Amaury.

Crowning a world bodyboarding champion based on last year's rankings is too absurd to be true. Can someone pull a fair, innovative idea to solve this serious problem?

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