| I hate to be a broken record here BUT look to ZNA varieties. Kawari = all others. Kawarimono = all other ones
So you should ask yourself- OTHER than WHAT??? This brings us right back to the evolution of varieties- black to white and black to patterns- solid, wrapped, dorsal and lateral. Then skin- metallic and non metallic and then scales- ginrin and doitsu.
So ALL OTHERS go into kawarimono. There is an exception however- all black based primitive types also go here- the karasu and relatives of the karasu goi. In truth, kawari is built around this clan of koi.
How do we judge these koi? Like all beauty contests there is a standard and we look for the best, most beauty individual representing it’s type. From here, competition comes down to level of accomplishment as a nishikigoi regardless of type. Meaning certain kawari have a natural advantage over other types of kawari. A crow, for instance, will have a very difficult time besting almost anything else in the tank. And a good tancho kanoko showa will likely ‘have it’s way with anything in the tank’.
To summarize:
1) best representation of varieties in the kawari tank, then a competition among the levels of accomplishment of those best of representations–
Note: there are always surprises in a real competition with unexpected types over coming normal shoe-ins, due to deformities, conformation issues, damage, poor conditioning etc.
JR
small correction for the record Larry, kikusui is in hikarimoyo ( metallic fish) |