"It's all about the scores for gymnasts Your guide to scoring college gymnastics" - http://media.wildcat.arizona.edu/media/storage/paper997/news/2007/02/06/Sports/Its-All.About.The.Scores.For.Gymnasts-2700124.shtml?sourcedomain=wildcat.arizona.edu&MIIHost=media.collegepublisher.com Overview: [quote]In a typical gymnastics meet, six gymnasts compete in each of the four events: vault, uneven bars, balance beam and floor exercise. The lowest score for each rotation is dropped, and the remaining scores make up the team score for that rotation. At the end of the meet, the four rotation scores are added together to determine the team's total score. The average of a team's total scores determines the team's NCAA ranking. [/quote] Judging: [quote]As a gymnast performs, two judges record each skill as it is completed. At the end of the routine, each judge adds up the elements and assigns the routine a score, and the average between the two scores makes up the final score as it is assigned to the gymnast. Although a routine can't technically have a start value higher than 10, many routines are loaded with extra skills in case a gymnast misses a skill or a judge doesn't see something, Ryden said. "Most of our routines start higher than a 10.0 if you were actually to add up all the 10ths," he said. "They're sort of like insurance 10ths."[/quote] [quote]As soon as a gymnast falls, she receives an automatic 0.5 deduction, and often her start value will drop because she didn't complete a key skill.[/quote]