The scoreboard didn't even have enough digits to display the perfect 10! In recent years, however, more and more gymnasts started achieving perfect tens so that the 10 lost it's meaning. It was no longer a reliable score because there wasn't a way to differenitate betwee varying skills levels and execution points.
In 2006, the Code of Points and the entire gymnastics scoring system were completely overhauled.
The new system works more like ice skating and diving. It is a two-part score that factors in both difficulty of a skill and the successful execution of a routine.
To set the context, the following explanation is provided for the old "perfect 10" system. In some ways, difficulty was built into the system through bonus points that you could earn on top of a fixed start value (8.4 Men, 8.8 Women) but you could also lose points for mistakes. In other words...
| Difficulty | Any points above start value |
| Execution | Any point deductions |
| Final Score | Start Value + Bonus Points - Deductions =< 10 |
In the new scoring system, difficulty and execution are two separate scores that get added together. While a perfect 10 is no longer a viable total score, the advantage is that the new systems allows room for innovation and for ever increasing complexity and creativity of routines. It is also much easier to interpret. I was not a believer of this new system when it first began, favoring, like so many others the ideal of a "perfect score". However, now that I understand the new scoring, and the limitations the older system had embedded ("reaching an upper limit of creative and complex routines"), I am now a proponent. Physically speaking, who knows what is still possible with the human body and the art of gymnastics. My only criticism of the new system is that it does not value artistic skills, such as dance and fluidity. It's more about skills crammed together to make complex routines. There are those who who think this is a good thing, but I am not among them. I believe that gymnastics should be both powerful but graceful; acrobatic and artistic; difficult and beautifully executed.
So, let's get into the details. The "A" score measures the difficulty of the routine. Their is a code of points with every skill listed and assigned a value. The values range from .1 to .7. You can also earn an additional .2 through connection points. The way to get the highest difficulty score is by doing as much high point skills as close together as possible. The "B" score TO BE CONTINUED http://www.slate.com/articles/sports/fivering_circus/2008/08/down_with_the_perfect_10.html
http://gymnastics.about.com/od/majorcompetitions/a/WomensRules.htm
http://www.stickitmedia.com/explaining-the-new-olympic-gymnastics-scores/
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/06/sports/olympics/06scoring.html?pagewanted=all
WAG Code of Points: http://figdocs.sportcentric.net/external/serve.php?document=1969
MAG Code of Points: http://figdocs.sportcentric.net/external/serve.php?document=2921
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