Common deduction traps, changes for the 2024 college gymnastics season

To prepare for the season, I’m going to go over some of the skills and errors that can be deduction traps for college athletes, as well as some of the deduction changes that will impact the scores this year.

First off, the biggest change is that gymnasts are now required to stand with their legs extended, feet together and arms up (essentially in a solute position) for a full second before they walk off the mat and/or celebrate with their teams. This rule will really help judges see which athletes can and cannot control their landings and make the “college stick” much harder to fudge. Judges have been instructed to count the full second and to take any deductions for steps, adjustments, wobbles or arm circles that the athletes perform before they show the controlled finish. Gymnasts receive a half-tenth deduction for not holding their finishing position. Be prepared to see stricter landing deductions, including the heartbreaking moment when a gymnast does stick their landing with perfect control but in their excitement forgets to hold the salute for the full second and loses a half-tenth.

Another significant change this year is the “squat on landing” deduction. Gymnasts can still receive up to three-tenths for landing in a deep squat, but now gymnasts can land in a squat with their hips parallel to their knees and receive no deduction. Before this was a one-tenth deduction. Although this is not a deduction trap and will help athletes score better (and land safely!), it bears mentioning since it’s a significant change from previous years.

Previous Guidelines vs. New Guidelines

Finally, another change has to do with fulfilling the composition requirement for both front/side and backward saltos on floor. In the past, athletes could do a side salto to fulfill the forward salto requirement, but that is no longer the case. Forward and side saltos must take off from two feet to be considered, so athletes who were using this to fulfill that requirement will lose a tenth in composition if they don’t tweak their routines.

In addition to these changes, there are some other skills and combinations that, when done poorly, can turn into major deductions for the athlete.

Front Entry Vaults

There are two traps I see in both the front handspring flipping vaults and the Yurchenko half-on front flipping vaults. Although a tight arch is allowed, many gymnasts use an excessive arch with a shoulder angle to generate power and rotation for the second half of the vault. This usually means the athlete will get a deduction for the arch, head alignment, shoulder angle and often leg separation, which can range from two to four-tenths, depending on the severity. For athletes doing tucked saltos, it is an up-to-three-tenth deduction for tucking the knees before leaving the table.

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Bars

Blind full: If this turn is done too late, it can be an up-to-three-tenth deduction. Gymnasts can also often lose points for having their head out of alignment during the turn. You’ll see gymnasts do this into a double back dismount in order to get bonus and not incur a composition deduction, but if it’s not done well, they can lose more points than they gain.

Double front half-out dismount: If you’re an Oklahoma or Audrey Davis fan, you’re well aware of this potential deduction trap. Gymnasts perform forward double tuck saltos with a slight leg separation for safety, but if the legs are not together during the turn, it makes a very unflattering picture that the judges have a front row seat for and will often deduct.

Beam

Beam Full turns: Although simple, these should be done on high relevé and with a controlled finish, which can be difficult for some athletes. Seen as an “easy” skill, it’s also very easy to wobble, ove-turn or step out uncontrolled, all of which are deductions. However, since this is a special requirement, it’s a deduction trap that the athletes will have to continue to live with.

Switch leap half: This is a very difficult leap on beam and for good reason. It’s very common for athletes to not hit a full split, not be parallel to the beam on their split or to have poor posture or arm placement during the leap.

Cat leap/hitch kick connections: These tend to be connected to a switch half or a side aerial for an extra tenth in bonus, but if the leg drops and lifts again or if the connection is too slow, they can incur a rhythm deduction or not receive credit for the connection at all. You also sometimes see these slow connections out of a switch leap, but since that leap moves forward quite a bit more than the cat leap or hitch kick, the athletes tend to move out of it better than the two jumps.

Ring and sheep positions: The guidelines are very clear as to the leg positioning, and it can be very difficult to hit them consistently. Gymnasts either do not bend their back leg enough, they don’t release their head back far enough or they can’t get their back foot to the level of their head. All of these errors can incur deductions, or the skill will be devalued, which could impact the athlete’s start value. On beam, the gymnast completely loses sight of the beam, which makes wobbles very common on the landing. On floor, if the timing is off or their legs are tired, hitting the ring position and landing with grace can be a tall order.

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Floor

Switch side, straddle full: It is so common for gymnasts to slightly overturn their switch side and then underturn their straddle full. Both of these are deductions. Gymnasts have to have dance bonus to avoid a composition deduction, but for those gymnasts that overturn their switch side, a switch side half (D) to a straddle jump (B) is also a valid option and would likely be very attainable for these athletes.

Tour jete half and full: Similar to the switch side, gymnasts will “cheat” this jump by cheating the first quarter turn on the floor before they take off, which could cause the skill to be devalued or deducted if the judge catches it. For the full, gymnasts commonly under-rotate this turn but will try to step back and lunge out of it to complete the twist. Judges are trained to carefully watch the feet on both floor and beam and if they catch these errors, it can be costly for the gymnast.

Double layouts: With the exception of Trinity Thomas, almost every double layout I’ve watched on floor has some sort of deduction. The most common are leg separation in the air, failure to maintain a stretched body on landing (a.k.a. a pike down) or landing with a low chest. Even greats like Sunisa Lee, Jordan Chiles and Selena Harris all have built-in deductions on this skill, although whether or not the judges catch it or deduct for it is another topic of conversation.