Does smiling really matter?

[Beammom]

I've noticed that sometimes girls that smile during their floor routines have a tendency to score better. I've heard that its part of their "performance." I just want to know if it really makes a difference in the judging.

[gymrunner]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Beammom I've noticed that sometimes girls that smile during their floor routines have a tendency to score better. I've heard that its part of their "performance." I just want to know if it really makes a difference in the judging.

It absolutely makes a difference! Keep Smiling!

[Shawn]

Does that mean that judges could/ would deduct for not smiling???

[MdGymMom01]

I am new to gymnastics, but a veteran to cheerleading and I know for a fact that the judges DEFINITELY DO NOT score the routine as high if the girls are not smiling. Psychologically speaking, when you smile at someone that person's natural reaction is to smile back and this produces endorphins which make you feel good...so with this logic it may make the judges feel better about the routine thus resulting in higher scores. Also, when the athlete smiles, it looks like that athlete is having a good time and ENJOYING herself. In cheerleading, the routines where the kids have tons of energy and are smiling and generally look like they are having a great time generally score higher.
My daughter's cheer team came in 2nd place by only TWO ONE HUNDREDTHS of a point (.02) at the NCA National Championships in Dallas TX in February and the reason according to the score sheets was "Not enough energy, looked a bit scared, and You SEEMED to have more energy yesterday". We had no deductions whatsoever, but the final score was based on the girls facials (smiling or not enough smiling). Cheerleading and gymnastics can be both very subjective and skill alone can not always guarantee a win.
So...the moral of the story is--SMILE!!!!!!
Kat

[skfleming255]

My dd just will not smile during meets. She puts her game face on. Her coach has told her numerous times to at least smile at the judge when saluting, but she is just so serious about what she is doing. If kids are having a good time and smiling, I know that I would feel more excited about their routine if I was a judge. Maybe my dd will get the smile down one day.

[Aussie_coach]

Which routines do you enjoy watching more? The ones where the kids are using their faces and expressing themselves, smiling and looking like they are having fun. For the judges it's no exception, I've seen udges completly miss gigantic mistakes in routines simply because they were enjoying watching it so much and scoring girls over a whole mark higher than they should as a result.

[Gymmonkeymomma]

My oldest DD spent the first year competing with her serious game face, and I repeatedly had to remind her to smile and look like she was having fun. Definitely noticed a slight difference in scores!

[gymgymgymnast08]

I think if you have happy floor music you should smile. I have walking on sunshine and I never usually smile although I should but last meet I smiled and had fun with it and I got a better score then usual. Not a lot higher but a difference. But then if you have serious music I don't think you would smile. And you definitely wouldn't smile during your beam routine.

[NYgymfan]

Smiling is one of those things that can add a "personality" to anything. It shows you are a person with emotions just like the fans and judges. It can make you stand out (in a good way), which is what you want when you are being judged in anything in life.

[gracefulone]

Absolutely! You want to have a good time. I had a parent from another team tell me that she enjoyed watching my floor routine because I look like I'm having so much fun. I'm not a great tumbler, but I score decently because of ym energy.