A beautiful double layout can impress gymnastics fans and judges alike. But how can you tell which ones are truly the best? While a controlled landing is important, the amplitude, body position, form, and ability to maintain the layout position are also evaluated during this tumbling pass.
In the next section, I picked seven gymnasts who have competed double layouts this season, breaking down each phase of the skill with comparisons. I started with a video of the full skill and screenshots of each part. After you review the article, check out the videos, see which one you think is the best, and if you can catch the deductions in real-time.
Amplitude
The Ideal: The gymnast should show an adequate rise of the body and hips relative to the athlete’s size. The height should peak at the midpoint of the skill and be sufficient to allow the safe and apparent effortless completion of the skill. There should be a good balance between height and the speed of rotation. The deduction for insufficient height is three-tenths. With great amplitude, gymnasts usually avoid landing-position or pike-down deductions.
Good Example
Although an amplitude deduction is rare in college gymnastics, these DLOs rotate quickly but don’t have much hip rise throughout the trajectory of the skill (0.05 to 0.1). Larger amplitude deductions would be reserved for gymnasts who noticeably under-rotate, land in a low squat, or fall forward on their landing.
Great Example
Here you can see a nice hip rise and a “float” in the skill, where it looks like they are momentarily suspended in the air as their body continues to rotate around their hips. This would not be a deduction.
Excellent Example
These are above and beyond what is expected. You can see where the “great” double layouts float in the air, these continue to rise throughout the majority of the skill, making it look effortless.
Body Position and Form
The Ideal: The gymnast should maintain a straight or slightly open body shape throughout the layout with their legs straight and together and their toes pointed. Common deductions include insufficient exactness of stretch position (0.2), Flexed feet (0.05), leg separation (0.2), and bent legs (0.3).
Good Example
Leg bend (0.05)
Leg separation (0.1)
Excessive arch (0.05)
Great Example
Leg separation (0.05)
Leg separation (0.05)
Excellent Example
All three of these examples show an excellent straight body position with good leg form throughout the DLO.
Maintaining the Layout
The ideal: The gymnast should initiate a layout position at the beginning of the skill and maintain the same stretched position throughout the skill into the proper landing position. The deduction for failure to maintain a stretched body position (pike down) is two-tenths. Generally, if it’s around 90 degrees, I’d take one-tenth, less than 90 degrees but still noticeable would be half a tenth, and more than 90 degrees one-and-a-half tenths. I would take the full two-tenths if their chest was close to touching their legs.
Good Example
Pike down (0.1)
Pike down (0.15)
Pike down (0.1)
Great Example
Pike down (0.05)
Pike down (0.05)
Excellent Example
Both of these show a straight body through the entire flip, with little to no pike down to prepare for the landing.
Landing Position
The ideal: Gymnasts should land with their shoulders in line with or behind their knees, with their knees slightly in front of or in line with their toes. The knees can be bent up to 90 degrees without deduction. The feet should not be staggered or further than hip-width apart. Gymnasts are allowed a controlled step backward without deduction. Common deductions include steps or foot adjustments (0.05 to 0.2 each, max 0.4), posture on landing (up to 0.2), trunk/body movements to maintain balance (0.2), arm swings to maintain balance (up to 0.1), and squat on landing (0.3).
Good Example
Posture on landing (0.1 to 0.15)
Posture on landing (0.05 to 0.1)
Great Example
Posture on landing (0.05 – 0.1)
Posture on landing (0.05)
Posture on landing (0.05)
Excellent Example
Both of these athletes land with their shoulders at or behind their knees and their chests slightly forward, which is the proper safe landing position and so important for such a dynamic and forceful skill.
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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.
