Beyond the "Perfect 10"

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/olympics/beijing/gymnastics/news?slug=ap-gym-notsoperfect&prov=ap&type=lgns

BEIJING (AP)—Turns out, the perfect 10 wasn’t so perfect.

At least not in the minds of international gymnastics officials.

Four years after a series of scoring errors marred the competition at the Athens Olympics, fans who tune into gymnastics once every four years are in for a big shock Saturday. The perfect 10 is passe. Fifteens, 16s—maybe even a, gasp! 17—are all the rage.

The FIG’s solution was an open-ended scoring system. Unlike the 10-point scale, where evaluations of artistry and difficulty had to be jammed together, each now gets its own space and, theoretically at least, there is no limit on how high a gymnast can go.

The first score, the difficulty mark, measures how hard the routine is. Starting from zero, the values of the 10 hardest tricks in a routine are added together. The harder the routine, the higher the difficulty score will be.

The second mark is for execution. Starting from 10—the FIG’s way of claiming the 10 still exists—deductions are taken for errors big (wobbles) and small (bobbles).

Put the two together, and that’s the final score.

Depending on the event, scores at the Beijing Games should range from the high 14s to the high 16s. Oh sure, there’ll be some 13s thrown out there, maybe even an 11 if someone really struggles.

But see a 16, and you know somebody is doing something right. See a 17, and you’ll have seen something really special; there have only been a handful awarded in the three years the scoring system has been used.

In this new scoring for gymnastics, I would have to say that it is a wise decision for the International Gymnastics Federation to come up with this scoring system. I have to agree that this scoring will be more objective and accurate, and this scoring can please certain athletes, as well as fans.

And although some professional and amateur contenders might violently react to this system, in my opinion, they will soon understand the reason for this. In short, I would say that this scoring is beneficial to officials, athletes, and fans of the Olympics.