Judge’s Inquiry: Breaking Down Denver’s Jessica Hutchinson’s 9.850 Vault

Last weekend we watched the season-opener for most NCAA gymnastics teams, witnessing beautiful gymnastics from the time-tested veterans to the breakout stars in this year’s freshman class. Each week, I will be breaking down some of the most controversial scores, starting with Denver’s Jessica Hutchison’s Yurchenkoone and a half. 

HELLO Jessica Hutchinson! She sticks her Y1.5 her first time competing it!

Score: 9.850#GoPios | #NCAAGym pic.twitter.com/fqZcTZ73xd

— Denver Gymnastics (@DU_Gymnastics) January 8, 2023

Start Value: 10.0 | Judging Panel Score: 9.8/9.9 | Average: 9.85 | My Score: 9.8 to 9.9

High Points

Hutchinson had great height, distance, control and of course the stuck landing. She absolutely made a strong statement with this vault. From the televised wide angle shot, it looks like a perfect vault with a stuck landing, and I know many of you were outraged at the 9.850 score she received. But most of her deductions were more easily viewed by the judging panel than the view from our couches.

Deductions 

Leg Form/Body Position

As Hutchison starts to twist, her legs are apart and slightly bent, and she has a slight pike in the hips. In real time it’s unlikely the judges caught all three of these, but they likely took half a tenth to a full tenth, depending on how it looked in full speed. As she continues her twist, she pulls her legs together but also crosses them slightly. It’s very hard to see in the video with the wide angle, but is easily seen by the angle of the judging panel (half a tenth deduction).

Squat on Landing

According to the code of points, hips at the level of knees is a one-tenth deduction. While I’m not sure if the judges took the landing deduction or not, they would be within their right to do so based on the graphic from the Code of Points below. Although it is definitely a safe landing position, the judges may or may not have taken the deduction, with judges that were or are coaches or were gymnasts less likely to take a deduction that is “safe” technique. At full speed, Hutchinson does move quickly out of the squat to a stand, and it does not look quite as deep as the screen shot would suggest. It’s likely the judges took zero to half a tenth for the squat on the landing. 

Landing positions continue to be a point of contention between coaches and judges, where coaches generally advocate for no deductions for “safe landings,” which can sometimes be in conflict with what is written in the Code of Points. The National Association of Women’s Gymnastics Judges put out a video educating judges and coaches alike about safe landing techniques. However, judges are still bound by the rules in the Code, especially when they are so explicitly diagrammed as to leave little room for subjective judgment. Are there some rebel judges out there that won’t take these deductions? 100%, yes. But again, therein lies the problem with consistency, and whether or not the deduction comes will depend on the panel.

READ THIS NEXT: Judge’s Inquiry: Illustrating the Differences Between Level 10 and NCAA Judging

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Article by Rhiannon Franck

Rhiannon Franck is a former national-rated NAWGJ women’s gymnastics judge with over 15 years of USAG judging experience and nine seasons judging NCAA gymnastics. Outside of gymnastics, Franck works at a university as a nursing professor and loves to travel. You can follow her on Instagram and Twitter.

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