The accusation was false.

The competition used blind scoring and published the finalists’ technical evaluations.

Brian’s firm had sponsored a booth at the event, but it had no authority over the judging.

Still, the rumor traveled faster than the correction.

Nathan came home with his jaw tight.

Zachary wanted to send a furious public response.

I asked them to wait until we had spoken with the competition organizers.

The director confirmed in writing how the scoring worked and agreed to issue a brief public statement correcting the misinformation.