Originally posted by Cristiana Dionisio:
Salvo is our guru, all italian judges, L3+ too, refer to him for correct answer and explanations. He performs as rulemaster during italian big events and the HJ asks for his assistance too.
L1 candidates ask at times to test with him because he represents their myth.
The judges coming from Sicily are basically mentored only by Salvo and they generally are very good judges, very prepared and mature.
In the last 24 months Salvo has been growing more and more his preparation and experience showing that he will be a huge help for the italian community and for foreign judges.
Originally posted by Edwin Zhang:
Haitao was the first Chinese judge who joined a GP as judge outside of APAC region; it was a small but very meaningful step for judge communication worldwide, and many judges recognize him from the event due to his excellent performance.
Haitao is the person who had been looking for improvements for Chinese judge community, as well as carrying solutions out. He is currently leading Chinese judge articles, not just writing articles, but motivating others to be part of the team.
Congratulations Haitao to L3!
Originally posted by David Zimet:
Joe Wiesenberg has been a part of the judge program for the past three years, and has been a major contributor on many levels. He is one of the best reviewers in the program, and is dedicated to helping judges improve by providing quality feedback and by helping others develop reviewing skills. He is a contributor to judge projects, and also a notable source of absolutely brutal puns.
Joe is the keystone for judge organization and education in San Diego, both through his work coordinating events at stores throughout the region, and by hosting regular judge meetings at his house for the past two years. His elevation to L3 is a reflection of the leadership that he has shown in the region - we wouldn't be where we are today without him, and I look forward to seeing the future of the region under his guidance.
Originally posted by David Zimet:
Jess Dunks is one of the busiest judges on the west coast. As Events Coordinator for Channel Fireball, he runs events seven days a week, ranging from pickup drafts to PTQs. He's also played a key role on the staff of Channel Fireball's two recent Grand Prix events. Many of you may also know him as one of the hosts of the popular podcast show JudgeCast.
I have had the chance to work with him at a number of large events, including a PTQ that he volunteered to travel down to head judge in So Cal, and have always been impressed by his effectiveness and work ethic. Jess is a top-notch resource for any TO or tournament team, and I'm glad to be welcoming him to level 3!
Originally posted by Alfonso Bueno:
Jorge Requesens, a.k.a. Reke, became a judge in 2008. Back on those days Magic on his city (Zaragoza, between Madrid and Barcelona) was a very small thing. Jorge went frequently to Barcelona to judge and learn. Some years later he moved to Madrid where he continued improving as a judge and became L2. When he moved back to Zaragoza in 2011 he get in contact with a comic store in the city that also sells magic and convince them to run events. Not long after that Magic grew in the city enough to host a couple of PTQs a year.
At the end of 2012 Jorge and I went to GP Moscow and we stood some extra days in the city to do some truism. During those days we had time to have lots of interesting conversations, Jorge came out with the determination to become a L3 and I found a new vision and understanding of some of the issues in our Region. Thank you, Jorge.
Originally posted by Shawn Doherty:
In August of 2012, I received an email from a judge whose opinion I really respect. It was about a Level 1 judge that he had certified a few days prior and was moving into my region. His comment to me was: “You might want to take him under your wing a bit, he seems to have potential.” I knew I had to get him plugged into the community as soon as possible. While I didn't get to work with Paul for several months, each time I would hear from judges that had worked with him, the comments were always glowing. In the months that followed, he was involved in a variety of activities. He judged large events, presented at conferences, organized local judge meet-ups, and participated in projects such as the Rules Tip Blog. As Paul grew as a judge, I knew that he was on his way to becoming Level 3 in a short time. I think one of the last people to know that fact was Paul himself. Paul’s humility, hard work, and positive attitude have made him an asset for any event or activity. I am proud to welcome Paul to the L3 community. Now that Paul has been recognized for his efforts, I am excited to see what else he is capable of. I hear that he as some.
Originally posted by Gavin Duggan:
Sean and the Magic Judge program have been learning for each other for many years. He had near-guru level understanding of the rules before he even tested for L1, but more recently has turned his eye to the policy documents we all use. Keen insight combined with extensive political knowledge has allowed him to strike the right balance between necessary and sufficient discussion, which has led to a number of useful improvements. Reliable and easy-going, I'm glad to have him on the Canadian regional judge team.
Damain Hiller and Adrian Estoup
From the early times when we met Federico, we knew something big was being cooked on the other side of pond (AKA: Rio de la Plata). Since his first visits to Argentina, Federico shown a great work ethic, a savage desire to improve on tournament logistics and an avid hunger to understand and improve his rules and policy knowledge. All along this, he re-made the remote community of Uruguay, transforming it from a single certified judge to one where even with the limitations of it's community size, great judges keep up appearing and that's exactly what a great leader does. Have we also mentioned his many contributions to the Latin American community through the creation and administration of the region's webpage, several seminars, various projects?
Yeah, guess getting to the next step in the judge program was only a matter of time. Welcome Fede to L3! A very well deserved advancement for you and a great celebration for the whole community!
Originally posted by Giorgos Trichopoulos:
I believe that I met Jernej not so long ago, the summer of 2012 during our region's conference. He was already a super star in Slovenia having certified more than 7 judges. It wasn't long after than Jernej hit the international scene with multiple GPs trying to make a name for himself. When I became the regional coordinator it was when Jernej started really evelvating himself. Within a six month period he took care of two confereces, is taking care our monthly meeting summary, setting up the date and the topics for the next one. He is also taking care of all L2 candidates in Europe - East.
In my eyes for the last couple of months Jernej was already a L3. I was only afraid that his quite nature wouldn't allow others to see it as well. The good thing about our beloved judge program is that actions count more than words and so our region within a day doubled its L3s.
Michael Wiese
When i first met Oliver at PT Berlin 2008, he was just an Austrian L2. But over the last couple of years he grow into a solid L2. And I believe it was at a GP Milano where we spoke for the first time about his way to L3. Since then he started talking care more about the local community, making sure every prerelease in his area is staffed and started little local judge meetings, showing that he is willing to do more, then just a normal L2 would have to do. At the last two GP in Vienna he was responsible for the judge conferences together with Jernej (who just made L3 at the same time as Oliver) and the judge dinners. Both were a great successes, proving that he knew how to arrange and organize. I was really happy when he told me that he passed his L3, just because he is deserving it nowadays after the development he have done in the last year. Thanks for everything you have done so far and you are going to do for the magic judge program. Its not only a L2 from my region made L3 today, but also a friend of mine. Congrats again, Michael.
Edited Christopher Richter (March 25, 2014 05:38:25 PM)
Originally posted by Kevin Binswanger:
Evan Cherry might be the only judge I know that required two L3s to convince him he was ready to test for level 2. But that's always been Evan's way: careful and thorough. What first impressed me about Evan is his enthusiasm and eagerness to judge. From the very beginning he had a desire to know everything; Evan constantly wanted to learn and grow and improve his craft. To this day Evan is a judge who cares very much about getting it as right as possible. Multiple people who have worked with Evan have cited his thoughtfulness, his thoroughness, and his preparedness. I don't know how Evan managed to balance a rigorous education, a family and being a leader in the Judge Community, but I am impressed and grateful for his incredible work he does in and out of events.
Originally posted by Mitsunori Makino:
Takanori Nakamura is known as ‘Testing’ as he is widely known as rule master. Many judges maintain their rules knowledge by taking his weekly quiz and reading the updating summary on his blog. He is also an excellent mentor. He wrote a test for L1 candidates and he has grown his local judge community to one of the most vivacious area. As L3 he has already begun more efforts with us. His efforts have made a model for the rest of the region.
It was really hard to keep poker face while his final interview. I am very happy to welcome Takanori to the L3 community. Having him in the L3 community will be great for the judge program.
Originally posted by Giorgos Trichopoulos:
Ivan was one of the first judges that I met at GP circuit, back in 2006. I was impressed by how organized he was and by his eagerness to help everyone. Back then when we didn't have the judge center, Ivan has created his own set of rules questions that used to help L1s (including me) advancing to L2.
Being an absolute perfectionist, in 2008 Ivan chose studying over judging, but old loves die hard and it was very easy for me to persuade to climb to L3 six months ago. In those six months Ivan managed to fulfill all the requirements with honors. When I asked him to disclosure his secret he responded: “It is easy, I helped half of the European L4s to advance to L2 :)”
Originally posted by Guillaume Beuzelin:
When I met François he was a level 1 not especially popular in the French judge community. When he came to me to test for level 2 we had long discussions concerning his behavior and I saw someone really motivated to learn and improve with very good ideas for the program. He passed the level 2 and continue to improve month after months. From this moment till now he has been a hyperactive judge locally, in Grenoble where he is also an organizer, but also at the national and international scale.
The desire to improve lead naturally François to think about level 3. He talked about it one year and a half and start to gather feedback to understand what he should really improve and he did it! Today François is for me an example of motivation and a very good advisor we who you can have deep conversations even if you don't agree. I'm sure François will be an important leader for the French community and an active level 3 at the international scale.
Originally posted by Justin Turner:
CJ Crooks was the judge that got me interested in becoming a judge. It was the ride to and from a PTQ with him sitting in the passenger seat studying for his L1, asking us rules questions that began the interest that blossomed into the explosive growth in Florida. CJ has been involved with and his passion has always been the education and inclusion of new judges. He's well respected both at home and abroad for his tireless work ethic, his attention to detail and his genuine care for others above himself. He's from the Tampa Bay area, and is a Director of Marketing for a non-profit charity organization. The region and the program will truly benefit from having him in his new role. Congratulations CJ!
Eugene Bazhenov
The first time I’ve heard of Maria was in September of 2011th (never thought it happened so long ago!). My RC colleague Jared Sylva mentioned in his PT Philly report that they’ve certified a new judgess from my region and that she’s going to impress me no less than she has impressed others at the Pro Tour.
Maria turned out to be from Kiev, and I’ve been really looking to meet her soon. The opportunity presented itself two month later at the judge meeting that we’ve hosted in Moscow where Maria came to say hello to the community and judge an event. ‘Impressive’ was a word not enough to characterize her attitude and I’ve made one of my rare calls to certify someone for L2 in less than 3 months after their L1 pass.
There’s been a long road after where she has moved to Moscow, earned her respect in a not at all easy local players community and steadily became one of the judge leaders of our region and one of the best friends I’ve ever met. Anecdotally, she mentioned recently that it took her two weeks to stop calling me in plural back in these days☺.
Even then though, when I’ve tried to lure her into considering to pursue L3, she always answered that according to her own standards she’s not good enough yet. Apparently, I’ve not been the only one who thought she’s almost there! Higher powers have plotted and put her leading a team at GP Washington 2013, followed by recommendation from her HJ. After that it’s only been a matter of time.
With my heart full of pride I’d like to welcome this precious addition to our judge family and I’m looking for Maria to come back home so we can have a proper party!
Edited Christopher Richter (May 27, 2014 12:38:48 AM)
Originally posted by RC Richard Drijvers:
Dustin became a judge long before he certified at the beginning of 2009.
After his certification he started rocking the local tournament scene with his rules knowledge and soft skills.
Impressing many others, he certified for L2 in April of 2010, after which he started to influence the European Grand Prix Circuit. Always growing his experience and increasing the overall happiness of people on the floor, judges and players alike. In the BeNeLux he is known for writing tournament reports and starting policy discussion (often related to Judging at Regular). Of course this did not go unnoticed and soon people started to nudge Dustin towards the next level.
I am happy to say that Dustin has found his way to the next level of judging and I hope that his overabundance of joy will continue to rub off on others everywhere!
Once again; Congratulations, Dustin and welcome to Level 3!!
Originally posted by Thales Bittencourt:
Carlos and I were always partners in the judge program. We were two of the first L2s in Brazil, we teamed up to translate rules and Judge Center content to Portuguese, we started to judge PTQs outside our areas together… We grew up together in the judge program. Carlos always had a great potential to lead and inspire people, and it strikes me that I reached L3 before him. The judge community in São Paulo, being so vibrant, always felt the need of someone to guide and mentor. It makes me happy to know that this leader is you, Carlos! Welcome to L3, my friend!
Originally posted by Thales Bittencourt:
Rafael was the head judge of my very first event as a judge, back in 2006, the one who certified me as a judge in that tournament, who certified me to L2 in the following year, and the major responsible for me getting to L3 in 2010. I learned from him more than I did from anyone else in this program. For years, he was the only certifier Brazil had (and we are a big country!). He was the only bridge between Brazil and the rest of the judge program, back when the language barrier were much thicker. All the judges who have been here for a while longer looks up to him as a mentor, myself included. This community has a lot to thank Rafael for. And stepping forward to get to L3 again is one of those things! Look at this brilliant community that we have in Brazil, and know that all this wouldn't be possible without your dedication! Welcome back to L3!
Originally posted by David Lyford-Smith:
I had the pleasure of meeting Adam at his first GP, in Strasbourg. It had been a train ride for me - and a trip of over 5,000 miles for him. Seriously, there's no other proper Magic community within 4,000 miles of South Africa - but they have a great, growing community down there which Adam was willing to tell me all about. Aside from overcoming isolation, Adam is also a consummate reviewer and works hard to grow his community and gain every bit of experience he can from the rest of the judge programme. I'm super excited to see what he can do to bring the South African community's strengths to the rest of the world now that he's a Level 3. Thanks and congratulations Adam!
Originally posted by David Lyford-Smith:
Ray has been a Level 3 before, but took some time away from the role to focus on other games. He never stopped judging Magic though, and has for years been a quietly capable and experienced hand across many UK events. There are few judges who I'm happier to delegate something to and know I don't need to think about it again - because it'll be done and done well. Away from events Ray has lead our L1 certification effort through a time of massive and rapid expansion with outstanding professionalism and efficiency. He's always been an asset to the programme and now he's L3 again I can't see that stopping any time soon. Well done and thank you Ray!
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