Capturing every angle in the instant replay era that sport viewers demand is key in determining the outcome of a match or game. One missed call could be the difference between a win or a loss and FIBA, the International Basketball Federation, is not taking any chances.
With the 2016 Olympics in Rio around the corner, FIBA recognized EVS, the world leader in live video technology for broadcast and new media productions, as a technical partner of the FIBA Equipment and Venue Centre.
After the launch of EVS’s Xeebra video refereeing system at the 2016 NAB Show, FIBA partnered with EVS and adopted the system showcasing it as part of the #EVSlamDunk Experience. FIBA also used the Xeebra system for two of the three 2016 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournaments in Italy and Serbia.
With the OQTs already completed (July 4-10), the winners of each event – Croatia, Serbia and France – earned the right to join the best of the best teams from last year’s FIBA continental championships to compete in the 2016 Olympic Games basketball tournament.
In game situations, being precise is monumental. A referee is given the burden of making decisions quickly as the weight of the game hangs in the balance.
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“There are always lots of emotions during the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournaments, with qualification for Rio 2016 at stake. This meant that we needed to provide our officials with the best tools to allow them to make the right decisions regarding the Instant Replay situations quickly,” said Carl Jungebrand, FIBA’s Head of Refereeing. “That’s why we’re so pleased about our technical partnership with EVS – it means we were able to implement its Xeebra system into this important moment in our sport.”
Xeebra hopes to take the pressure of making every call to perfection, or at least make the process easier.
The instant replay review system, designed for game officials, made its official debut at Super Bowl 50 and was used by CBS. The system operates through sixteen in sync HD camera angles controlled from a single touchscreen. After noticing an in-game incident, Xeebra can be used to pause the action, rewind using different angles and review exactly what happened by zooming in on any of the displays.
The deal between FIBA and EVS is enormous considering the development instant replay has experienced over the last decade. Laurent Petit, VP Product at EVS understands this notion. “Not only is this approval as a Technical partner of the FIBA Equipment & Venue Centre an honour for EVS but having our Xeebra system implemented for such a key moment in the basketball calendar is evident of the importance of advanced video refereeing systems to major sports organisations,” said Petit. “The Xeebra system is built on EVS’ vast experience in the live sports market and our technology’s reliability and flexibility. Through this technical partnership, FIBA and its affiliated leagues can easily bring multi-camera video reviews into to their officiating processes by adopting this innovative instant replay tool.”
With the Olympics around the corner, Xeebra hopes to continue its run as a key component in instant replay’s growing future.