2006年VOA标准英语-'Hawk-Eye' Cameras Settle Close Line Tennis Cal

By Steve Schy
Washington
03 August 2006

The close line calls that have had tennis fans booing and whistling their displeasure will be a thing of the past at this week's Legg Mason Classic tennis tournament.  The event will begin using a new technology that will allow officials to immediately review the action on court and verify line calls.

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Hawk-Eye cameras 
  
Fans, players and officials will now have a second chance to look at questionable¹ calls, thanks to the new Hawk-Eye technology adopted by the U.S. Tennis Association this season.
 
Already in use for years on many televised matches, the USTA will use the system at U.S. Open Series events and other North American tournaments this year. 

It will be the first year for instant replay at the Legg Mason Classic.  Eighth-seeded British tennis player Andy Murray got his first look at Hawk-Eye in his second-round victory over Paraguay's Ramone Delgado on Wednesday.  Murray said that even though the calls did not go his way, he likes the system.

  
  
"I think its very good, unfortunately its the first time I used it today and I was 0-for-3," he said. "That's not good statistics, but its good because you can put the call behind you and I think the fans like it, which is the most important thing.  And, you know, you don't have guys breaking rackets over bad calls now, and I just think its good for tennis."

The impetus² to use instant replay technology during matches got a big boost in 2004.  At that year's U.S. Open in New York, American Jennifer Capriati benefited from three bad calls in the quarterfinals that all went against her countrywoman, Serena Williams, who ended up losing the match.  After that, the USTA made it a high priority to develop an accurate and reliable technology to insure correct calls.  Gayle David Bradshaw, Vice³ President of Rules and Competition for the Association of Tennis Professionals, says the technology is not meant to replace the on-court officials.

"What we are looking for, though, is any opportunity, any way to make sure we get the call correct.  And this is a technology that, right now, is not replacing the line umpires.  We look at it as, it is enhancing the officiating, and that is a positive thing for everybody," he said.

Bradshaw explains how the players use the challenge system.

  
  
"Each player, or team in doubles, is allowed two challenges per set," he said. "If they are correct in their challenge then it does not count against their total of two.  And then once they reach a tiebreak, each player receives an additional challenge."

The Hawk-Eye system uses 10 cameras around the stadium court, five per side.  When a challenge occurs, the images from all 10 cameras are fed into a central computer, which projects a digital recreation on a jumbo screen.  The players and fans see the replay simultaneously⁴.

All of the cameras track the ball at all times and are combined to create a single three-dimensional image of the ball's trajectory⁵. The margin⁶ of error averages plus or minus 3.6 millimeters. 

1 questionable   

adj.可疑的，有问题的

参考例句：

• There are still a few questionable points in the case.这个案件还有几个疑点。
• Your argument is based on a set of questionable assumptions.你的论证建立在一套有问题的假设上。

2 impetus   

n.推动，促进，刺激；推动力

参考例句：

• This is the primary impetus behind the economic recovery.这是促使经济复苏的主要动力。
• Her speech gave an impetus to my ideas.她的讲话激发了我的思绪。

3 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

4 simultaneously   

adv.同时发生地，同时进行地

参考例句：

• The radar beam can track a number of targets almost simultaneously.雷达波几乎可以同时追着多个目标。
• The Windows allow a computer user to execute multiple programs simultaneously.Windows允许计算机用户同时运行多个程序。

5 trajectory   

n.弹道，轨道

参考例句：

• It is not difficult to sketch the subsequent trajectory.很容易描绘出它们最终的轨迹。
• The path followed by a projectile is called its trajectory.抛物体所循的路径称为它的轨道。

6 margin   

n.页边空白；差额；余地，余裕；边，边缘

参考例句：

• We allowed a margin of 20 minutes in catching the train.我们有20分钟的余地赶火车。
• The village is situated at the margin of a forest.村子位于森林的边缘。