Unpopular opinion: I don’t believe in ties in gymnastics.
In a subjectively judged sport, judges should first and foremost be able to rank athletes from the strongest to the weakest performances. Scores are a way to try to quantify this ranking, but when it comes down to it, the rankings are more important than the actual score. So when there are results like a seven-way tie for first place on floor at the 2023 Norman regional final, all with a 9.950, the judges failed to do their job and properly rank the athletes.
In this article, I picked a tie for first place on each event from four different competitions over the past two seasons, all of which tied with a 9.950. Check out the videos below to see the full routine breakdowns with my commentary, as well as who I think should have won the title.
Vault
2023 SEC championship
Four-way tie with a 9.950
No. 1 Gabby Gladieux (Alabama): 9.950
Deductions: honestly nothing, an actually perfect Yurchenko full
No. 2 Sloane Blakely (Florida): 9.95?
Deductions: small hop forward, but did she present to the judges?If so, it would be an additional tenth off.
No. 3 Cassie Stevens (Auburn): 9.850
Deductions: shoulder angle on table, body position in the air, squat on landing
No. 4 Jocelyn Moore (Missouri): 9.800
Deductions: small step back, under rotation, squat on landing
Bars
2022 NCAA championships semifinals
Three-way tie with a 9.95
No. 1 Audrey Davis (Oklahoma): 9.900
Deductions: leg separation on front giant, body position in dismount
No. 2 Lexi Ramler (Minnesota): 9.850
Deductions: landing position, arm bend on toe circle to handstand
No. 3 Jade Carey (Oregon State): 9.850
Deductions: leg separation on Bhardwaj, short cast on high bar, foot adjustment backward on dismount
Beam
2023 Los Angeles regional final
Three-way tie with a 9.950
No. 1 Selena Harris (UCLA): 9.950 or 10?
Deductions: maybe a squat on landing; this was a very clean routine
No. 2 Maile O’Keefe (Utah): 9.900 or 9.950
Deductions: balance check in leap series, flexed feet in side aerial
No. 3 Kara Eaker (Utah): 9.900
Deductions: rhythm in leaps, height in dismount
Floor
2023 Denver regional final
Tied with a 9.950
No. 1 Haleigh Bryant (LSU): 9.850 or 9.900
Deductions: crossed legs in front one and a half, legs apart on landing of split jump, ring leap position
No. 2 Lynnzee Brown (Denver): 9.800 or 9.850
Deductions: pike down and hop to lunge on double layout, ring leap position, under rotation of last pass
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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.
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