[Carol]

I think this thread is moving away from the original question and into the
area of judge bashing. Judges are volunteers, using their vacation time and
paying their own way to events. They aren't perfect, but they are trying
to do the best job they can. And it is a difficult job. Statements such as
"Many judging decisions at competitions are made based on the wrong
criteria" aren't based on fact and certainly don't show the spirit of
GP.

If you feel that your team was unfairly denied an award, remember that you probably don't know enough about all the teams to make that judgment, congratulate the winners, move on to the next challenge, and try harder next time. But don't badmouth the judges.