It’s a monster week for torches.

Joe Biden passed his to Kamala Harris.

And the Olympic torch illuminates the City of Light for the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics starting Friday. Athletes arrive via la Seine for la grandiose affaire at la tour Eiffel.

Six years of French in the Arlington Public Schools finally paid off.

The official languages of the Olympics are English, French, and the language of the host country. But for bettors in Massachusetts, the Games include the original ancient Greek.

As in: “The rules on Olympic betting in Massachusetts are Greek to me.”

On the surface, that makes sense. The Games made their debut in Olympia 2,800 years ago in 776 BC. The modern Games returned to Greece in 1896.

These are the first Olympic Games since sports betting launched in the Bay State. Retail betting kicked off at the state’s three casinos on Jan. 31, 2023. Mobile betting began 38 days later. In addition to the Sports Wagering Act of 2022, there are more than 250 rules, regulations and policies that govern legal wagering in the Bay State.

Among those codicils is the following in the catalog of betting events allowed in the Bay State:

Wagers on Summer and Winter Olympic competition (including trials) . . .  in which the final outcome of the event is primarily based on the evaluation or assessment of a judge or panel of judges is not allowed.

That means no legal betting in Massachusetts on the following Summer Olympic events:

Boxing
Gymnastics
Rhythmic Gymnastics
Judo
Freestyle BMX
Surfing
Equestrian
Skateboarding
Taekwondo
Rhythmic Gymnastics
Diving
Trampoline
And . . . Break Dancing

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission reiterated these rules at a meeting on July 11. They were discussed in depth last year. At the time, the Commission voiced its concerns about the lack of consistency and oversight in judging across many sports, especially during the Olympics.

There are seven legal, licensed online betting sites in Massachusetts, in addition to the three on-site books run at MGM Springfield, Encore Boston Harbor, and Plainridge Park Casino. Andrew Steffen of the MGC said during the July 11 meeting that all operators have been made aware of the rules in the Bay State.

“That was a large debate,” interim MGC Chair Jordan Maynard said of the decision not to allow betting on judged sports.

Speaking judgment calls, the Athens of America averted a Greek tragedy this month. Boston had hoped to host these Games days a decade ago. Thankfully, the Boston 2024 Olympic movement went the way of the Lobsters and New England Tea Men. Imagine a four-hour Commuter Rail delay ahead of the Opening Ceremonies at Gillette Stadium? Or the Green Line imploding on the final day of gymnastics at TD Garden. Or the bus  carrying beach volleyball athletes and VIPs getting Storrowed on its way to Fenway Park.

Boston-based DraftKings Director of Race and Sports Johnny Avello has been booking Olympics action for decades, going back to his days at Bally’s and the Wynn in Las Vegas. He recalls the monster odds on the 1992 Dream Team to win Gold was -10000, meaning you had to wager $100 to win just $1. The men’s Team USA odds to win gold in 2008 was -4000, meaning a $40 wager won $1. This time, the Americans are -650 to win Gold, meaning winning $6.50 bet nets $1.

“The competition keeps getting tougher for the Americans,” Avello told bookies.com before Team USA escaped the mighty men of South Sudan 101-100.

“We’re going to see quite a bit of money on men’s basketball – and a real push on women’s basketball,” Avello said. Bettors can expect a full list of available betting options on USA Olympic basketball games, including player parlays, similar to what is available for the NBA.

Terrible judgment calls are an Olympics staple. Nefarious judges in gymnastics and figure skating have long cast a sinister shadow. And the end of the 1972 Olympic Gold Medal basketball game is the single worst moment of officiating in the history of sport.

A clear and unequivocal outcome is vital to sports, period. Never mind wagering.

Yet there remains judging in every sport on every play, snap, shot, pitch or kick. In football, many penalties are called based on judgment, such as holding, and offensive and defensive pass interference. The strike zone in baseball is anyone’s guess. We didn’t need legalized betting to have NBA refs fixing games 20 years ago to Tim Dongahy and friends. Was he related to Jontay Porter?

Even with no-time-limit replays, fans are often left unsatisfied with the outcome of those judgment calls.

Someday, sooner than later, “judgment” will be a sports relic like “amateurism.” We’re not too far from a universal, electronic strike zone in baseball. Geotagging devices embedded in equipment and/or uniforms will enable us to know if a player was safe, in bounds, onside, or made contact on the court. Immediately.

Until then, we’ll have to anguish over terrible calls and shaky officiating.

Unless you happen to be on the right side of a bad call with your wager.

Then it’s the best call ever made.

Bill Speros is a Senior Betting Analyst for Bookies.com when he’s not writing for the Herald. He posts on X as @BillSperos and @RealOBF. And can be reached at bsperos1@gmail.com.