THE SPORTS ACRO JUDGE

As a judge, we work with coaches and gymnasts to achieve a standard which competition judges are looking for, and will give our gymnasts the best results for themselves and the club.  We look at their performances shortly before competition and point out where they would lose marks and suggest to their coach and them tips on what would improve and polish their routines to the satisfaction of the competition judges.

Two weeks or so prior to competition, some of us find ourselves with tariff sheets to check and initial but if there is something not right about them we contact the coach named on the tariff sheet to sort out the problem.  However it often means a late night the night before the comp putting them into order ready to hand them over to the organisation staff in the morning so they can sort them into the rounds for the panels.  On competition day, our club kit is gone and replaced by our judging kit and from that point on we are required to be unbiased and fair to all competitors, regardless of whatever club they are from.   The judges are now remote from gymnasts, coaches and audience but will March On with the gymnasts at the start of the competition.  There is always a judges meeting to start with when the two panels, A and B, are decided upon, ie who will be on which Panel, who is to be Chair of Judges, Difficulty Judge, Jury, who are the four Technical or Execution Judges and the four Artistry Judges.   The two panels are arranged with the CJP and DJ in the centre and the Technical and Artistry Judges seated alternately each side of them so no judge sits next to somebody doing the same job.  Each judge is given a number which they keep right through the competition.   Usually Technical and Artistry Judges swap over halfway through a competition so that everybody gets experience in both.  

Technical Judges consider the way each element is performed taking deductions where the element is less than perfect.   They look at the balances through all three stages ie. the entry, the shape of the static hold and the exit as all three phases are equally important.  In Tempo or Dynamic elements, again they look at the entry, the shape of the element and how much flight there is and how controlled is the landing.  Individual elements are considered in the same way but as each member of a partnership is marked individually there is scope for a greater number of deductions.

Artistry Judges look at the routine as a whole from the choreography and dance aspect and how it is performed, ie have they used all five areas of the floor – the four quarters and the centre?  Are they showing a variety of pathways, forwards, backwards, sideways, curved etc.  as well as variety in the dance?  Have they used all three levels?  Have they shown amplitude throughout, are they synchronised when they should be?  Were there any pauses or breaks in the routine from a fall? Are the partners well matched, are they working at a level suitable for their ability?  Other aspects they are looking for are – does it go with the music, did it end before or after the music, does it look good, have they shown expression, does it flow, does it have variety and does it have a ‘wow’ factor?  Artistry Judges may deduct on all of these aspects.

Judges are required to get their scores in very quickly so that the CJP can check that all marks from each set of judges are within 1.0 range, that the middle two counting marks are within tolerance, normally 0.5 but in the 9.0 scores it is 0.3, and if they are not he/she will ask the judge who is adrift to adjust their scores to bring them into line.  The CJP deductions include time faults, stepping out the floor area, problems with inappropriate dress ie theatrical styles, dark trouser legs not broken with lighter design down them, heavy or theatrical makeup and flowers/feathers or dangly ribbons in hair.  The DJ checks the routine as it progresses to make sure that everything is performed exactly as declared on the tariff sheet and if not he/she will adjust the Difficulty of the routine accordingly and it will be retariffed.  The CP then completes his/her score sheet and hands all the tickets to the runner who takes them to the score table.  As tariff sheets are not allowed to be given back, at the end of the competition any coach can approach the CJPs to ask why their competitors have lost their marks – was it general performance, was there an error on the tariff sheet, did somebody miss something out.  Discussions like this are often very useful particularly for newcomers - clubs or coaches – as at the end of the day we are all out for one thing, to produce the best gymnasts we can!

Breaks are welcomed by the judges as it’s a long time to sit concentrating hard, making sure that you give the right marks and that the right people are taking medals (and the chairs are not always that comfortable for any length of time!).   Lunch is taken away from everyone, in our room, before we have to return to our panels.  At the end of the competition judges are often called upon to present medals to the winners.  Finally, along with everybody else, we can leave the venue to go home, hang up our judging kit and once more become ordinary members of our clubs.

By Jackie Harris and Bert Newman