Judges - Consultation

[GymDad57]

Hi,

Have a question about judging/scoring. Some gyms have a judge/coach as the owner, obviously this owner/judge/coach can consult the gymnast on technical scoring. If a gym does not have a judge involved and lets say the parents/gymnast cannot get a sufficient explanation of some low scores from the coaching staff, is there such a thing as bringing in a judge lets say to evaluate each gymnasts routine and provide judging consultation/opinions. I guess my question is, is it common practice in gymnastics to bring in a judge to evaluate routines or should this strictly be a coaches thing. Are judges allowed to consult and evaluate upon request.

Any thoughts on this would be appreciated.

[Ingymmom]

If you are asking should I go around the coaches & have a judge come in - I would say a definate no - no. I would talk to the owner or the head coach or both and see if this is something that could be arranged. In many gyms this is common practice to bring in a judge, and I think its a great idea.

[Scout's Mom]

Our gym hires a judge prior to meet season, and we have an in-house critique meet. The head coach tells the judge to be extra picky. All of the results are analyzed, and changes are made accordingly.

Many gyms in our area do this. The parents do have to pay a small amount for this in-house meet in order to cover the judge's expenses.

[Bay Valley]

Our gym pays judges too come in before meet season starts to critique the routines also for the optional levels. The judges talk to each girl after the routine and tells them what they can do to improve scores. It makes a world of difference!

[hammy]

A lot of gyms that do not have a judge on the staff will hire a judge to come in and evaluate the gymnasts prior to meet season. It's a great way to help both the gymnasts and the coaches understand more about the sport.

[gymjourneymom]

Our gym holds a "mock meet" every year prior to the start of competition season. The gym hires judges to come in & "judge the meet". Scores aren't posted, but after each girl's routine the judge has a short private consultation with the gymnast (& coach)tells her what she would have gotten, had it been a "real" meet. They give helpful tips & corrections for improvement & POSITIVE FEEDBACK too It's very beneficial!!! Plus it helps the girls work out some preseason jitters! Maybe you could suggest this idea to your dd coaches???

[lannamavity]

We have coaches who are judges and we still bring judges in to evaluate the kids periodically. It's a good practice at any gym.