Skip to main content

Rewriting the Code of Points - the missing link

Image
By
There has been quite a discussion about the Code of Points going on at the Gymnastics Coaching blog - with particular reference to the safety angle - there have been 35 comments to date from all corners of the world, so it's an interesting read.

In the meantime, I have been looking back at the 1989 edition of the Code.   I found this introductory section:

'It is the responsibility of the judges, based upon the present Code of Points, to grasp in its totality:
  • the construction of the exercises as a whole
  • the difficulty value of elements and connections
  • the flow of the movements
  • the synchronization of the music with the floor exercise
while sufficiently considering, aside from the technical perfection of execution, the harmony and strength of expression as well as the aesthetics of presentation'   

Doesn't this somehow encapsulate so much of what is missing from the current, highly deconstructed, Code?

PS  I also did a little review of the current Code - a word count with the help of the search tool.  For what it's worth,  I found the following:

'Artistry' appears 16 times
'Deduction' 68 times
'Bonus' 0 times
'Originality' 2 times
'Harmony', 'Risk' 'Virtuosity' 0 times
'Amplitude' 5 times
'Choreography' 3 times
'Dance' 26 times
'Elements' 154 times

I make no claims as to the validity of this method in extracting the overwhelming focus (or lack thereof) of a text.

Labels:

Comments

  1. usa reel deal6 September 2011 at 07:19

    Agree to you girl, Personally, I thought Rebecca’s bad landing off Beam was extremely dangerous, too. She really did looked primed for injury at VISA Championships.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Queen Elizabeth6 September 2011 at 11:26

    Gymnasts' bodies will wear out when the Code demands quantity, not quality.

    Re-introducing a requirement to assess the whole routine and its appearance would reward time spent on choreography (body alignment, amplitude, etc) and integration of individual skills into a consummate routine (all four apparatus. We need to reward originality in such a way as to encourage the development of single moves of new difficulty. Such an emphasis on performance would help to mitigate the risk of injury and also make the sport better to watch.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Mustafina, Melnikova and Afanasyeva - Russia’s three divas train together to the tunes of Michael Jackson

By
M elnikova, Mustafina and Afanasyeva take creative control at Round Lake.     You can see the video on Angelina Melnikova’s YouTube channel. They are discussing a new floor routine for Angelina; she wants to dance to Michael Jackson. Afanasyeva, 2012 Olympic medalist and a world champion on the floor, has been a choreographer for the national team for a few years now.    She says, ‘Gel, first we need to understand the plan—what we’re actually doing.’ They discuss how many tumbles Angelina will perform, and where the tumbles will come in the routine.    Angelina says, she likes ‘Billie Jean’, it’s her favourite … But Afanasyeva has other ideas, linking into the dance shapes she has seen in a video: ‘Thriller . Start with  Thriller . It begins with that image, right from the beginning when it starts.’    She shows us the dance. ‘I suggest taking a 1.5-minute or 1-minute segment of the dance directly.’ They promise to be in touch by email. ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Andrei Rodionenko explains Russia's performance at Worlds - Lupitatranslates

By
Rodionenko with European Champion David Belyavski  Courtesy RGF/Elena Mikhailova This is the interview that many people on the internet have already commented on, regarding Andrei Rodionenko's alleged racism.  The original, Russian language version, appears on VTB Bank's website (VTB are sponsors of Russian gymnastics).  It takes cleverer people than me to decide what is racism, what is deliberately perjorative, and what is inferred in an interviewer's question.  For now, I will not comment on this, therefore, but I would ask you to read Lupita's translation carefully before you form your own opinion.   I am providing some links below which might help you to decide where you stand. Definition of racism Definition of sexism BBC Sport article by Matthew Syed : Is it wrong to note that 100m winners are always black?            Updated 24/10 CSKA Moscow: UEFA opens racist chants case         ...
48 comments
Read more

Simone and the others - results and reflections

By
In the end, it was as predicted : Simone and the others, with Simone's teammate, Alexandra Raisman, providing the back up.  I do not need to point out that, by definition, the Americans are scoring significantly higher marks than the rest of the field.  Congratulations to them! Aliya Mustafina finished in third place.  The 2012 bronze medalist led the competition after vault and uneven bars, but had a very nervous outing on beam that might have taken a less experienced gymnast out of the medals.  A bravura performance on floor brought Aliya back though to confirm her third place all around.  From her senior debut in 2010 to today, Mustafina has continuously set high standards of grace.    It is the first time since 2000 that a gymnast (Amanar) has medalled in the all around at two consecutive Olympics, and  if Aliya can medal on Saturday's uneven bars final, she will once again be Russia's biggest medal winner of the women's gymnastics.  Russ...
56 comments
Read more

RRG Archive - scroll by date, from 2024 to 2010

Show more