The behavior of four Olympic badminton pairs, recently disqualified for intending to lose matches in order to obtain a preferred draw in subsequent rounds has generally been viewed by media and the governing body of the sport as unethical and in violation of sections of the Badminton World Federation's (BWF) Code, which prohibits ‘not using one’s best efforts to win a match’ and ‘conducting oneself in a manner that is clearly abusive or detrimental to the sport.’

The rules of the tournament were implemented by the BWF and Simon Rippon, who considers the rules to be poorly formatted, has commented that the BWF has acted as 'legislator, judge and jury on the conduct of the players' and has acted in a self interested way in shifting the blame for the events onto the players themselves.

Rippon's comments follow a blog posting by Julian Savulescu that highlights what he believes to be the absurdity of a set of rules that imply you have to try to win in competitive sport. In his post, Savulescu compares the BWF's rules to having a law that states you must love someone in marriage. Should such laws be considered a practical basis for the disqualification of athletes who were doing their best to win medals for their countries?



The Philosophy of Bad Badminton: Another Look
http://blog.practicalethics.ox.ac.uk/2012/08/the-philosophy-of-bad-badminton-another-look/

Philosophy and the Badminton Scandal
http://blog.practicalethics.ox.ac.uk/2012/08/philosophy-and-the-badminton-scandal/