Originally Posted by
wheezing donkey
No! R.O. does not buy them in bulk. As with the rest of the S.I. kit, they are on hire for the day from SportIdent. If the R.O. does not return the appropriate number to S.I., he will be charged the going rate for a replacement dibber by S.I. The R.O. is merely passing-on that cost to the appropriate competitor.
And don't whinge about "HAVING" to use S.I., where a R.O. deems to employ it. It should help to improve the accountability of competitors' whereabouts.
Look at the big picture, not isolated incidents