WAG Scoring and Competing Order Question

[armbmom]

My daughter completed level 4 for the 1st time last fall and is currently training for level 5 (the new 4). I had a question on the order in which the girls complete on each event. At the beginning of the season, the coach would have her start first on each event except for vault and then with vault, she would complete 6th or 7th on vault. Near the end of the season, she would complete 1st or 2nd on bars and then about middle of the pack on floor and then 8th or 9th out of 10 on the rest of the events. Why was that? Was it to improve her scores? Why was order important? I did discover one thing throughout the season, my daughter could never handle going first. She aways did terrible when she was the 1st one to compete.

 

[Quadqueen]

Sometimes, coaches put the gymnasts in the order they are expected to perform, with the "expected" lowest scores coming first and highest scores coming last. Sometimes, though, they will put kids up first that they know are rock solid and can set the tone for the rest of the team. Sometimes, the gymnasts are in order of birth date, or alphabetical by last name, and the coach just puts them up in the order of the rotation schedule.

Coach may have been testing out different people to go first to see how they handle it.

So, to answer your question - there's no way to know why your gymnast was put where she was in the rotation, and in the whole scheme of things, it doesn't really matter. I know some kids have an issue of where they are placed in the rotation, but there's not anything anyone can do about it!

 

[MeetDirector]

At any meet below State, the competition order of the athletes is up to the coach. At State and above, the competition order is usually required to be randomized and in the specified order from event to event. A coach will assemble thier competition order based on all kinds of things; sometimes it is weakest to strongest, sometimes gymnast choice, sometimes the phase of the moon. There is an old adage out there that the judges expect the athletes going last to be the strongest and therefore "reserve" the highest scores for them; I don't think that is entirely true anymore. Hope this helps.

Good Luck.

 

[gymmomtoo]

Not all meets allow coaches to pick the order of the gymnasts--the one we host we assign order (in fact all meets we've been at this year have been assigned). But at the meets where they can choose, they take the gymnasts preferences into account--my own daughter hates going last--prefers first or second (she doesn't like waiting around getting nervous!).

No idea what theory your daughter's coach is going on .

 

[Amber]

From what I have seen, the worst position to be in, is the first on any event in the first rotation. Judges almost always give out a middle score, even if the routine is great. My DD had to go first on floor once, at the beginning of the meet (first one on floor out of everyone), did an awesome routine, and got an 8.6. Two meets later, same judge, she went almost last on the last rotation, did an ok floor routine (not as good as the previous one), and got a 9.4! Same gyms, too. The first one out there on any event is the "sacrificial lamb", in my view

 

[GymBeeMom]

Our coaches put the person first that they expect to score the lowest and the one they expect to score the highest last. This does indeed usually end up being the way it works out (first one will score lowest and scores goes up down the line).

 

[Gymmommy71]

There was a thread on here that discussed gymnast order a while back. I found it interesting and I'm paying attention to it this season (I never did before). I do notice that my DDs coach is tending to order my DDs team w/ the best gymnasts on each event going last. I'd say my DD's coach does the following...above average girl goes first, then it alternates between below average and above average w/ the worst girls on that event somewhere in the middle, and then at the end the two or three best on that event go last. I'm actually learning a lot about what my DDs coach thinks of her ability/scoring potential compared to her teammates by watching this all transpire......

 

[2G1B]

do they do the same thing for boys (where the coaches pick the order)? I'm going to start paying more attention. For the boys I have noticed my son often goes within the first 3 on the first rotation (often first or second). He is generally the top placer on his team. On the flip side, his twin sister has been first up on first event once and I definitely felt like she was scored low (as did the other people around me). I do agree that the kid who is the first to go at the start of the meet is kind of at a disadvantage on that event.

 

[Quadqueen]

do they do the same thing for boys (where the coaches pick the order)? I'm going to start paying more attention. For the boys I have noticed my son often goes within the first 3 on the first rotation (often first or second). He is generally the top placer on his team. On the flip side, his twin sister has been first up on first event once and I definitely felt like she was scored low (as did the other people around me). I do agree that the kid who is the first to go at the start of the meet is kind of at a disadvantage on that event.

same goes for the boys...some coaches use a strategic order, although it's anyone's guess what the coach's strategy might be!! Especially if your son typically places well...

 

[2G1B]

very interesting. I will be paying more attention to it this weekend, though only my son competes this week. I'm also going to pay attention for the other teems to see who they put up first and how they do the rest of the competition.

 

[JBS]

We put best up last on bars...floor...vault.

We put most stable up first on beam...followed by weakest to strongest non-fallers...followed by fallers. It kills the beam vibe when a kid falls...so they go last.

EDIT: It really rattles the next team up too when you go 9.3...9.5...9.4...9.6..........8.3...8.7..........they have no idea what to think.

 

[skschlag]

Our coach will frequently ask the boys who wants to go first. My DS will often go last on floor, pommel, but prefers to go first on bars. He still typically scores pretty high. He will ask to go first on vault/bars because they make him the most nervous and he wants to be done.

 

[Gymmommy71]

We put most stable up first on beam...followed by weakest to strongest non-fallers...followed by fallers. It kills the beam vibe when a kid falls...so they go last.

Sounds like an excellent strategy on beam...I've seen first hand the contagious effect that early falls can have on the rest of the rotation :/... Even the ones that don't fall tone back their routines so much out of fear of falling that they score lower even if they manage to stay on...

 

[kwnative]

My daughter always went last in her Level 3 season. Then the coach spent the whole season threatening to take her anchor spot away if she didn't get the highest score. I thought that was a bit much at such a low level, and a lot of pressure to put on her in her first year of competing. But that has been my only real complaint in five years at this gym, and she got moved up to Level 4, so she no longer has that coach. I don't mind them pushing the girls, I just didn't like it to that extent at that level.

 

[krisnkids]

At the home practice meet the girls went youngest to oldest. Ever since then they go in order from low to high from the last meet. In a way its pretty cool because they 'earn' the anchor spot.

 

[cbifoja]

it is interesting to see how prevalent this practice is because there are some who claim the order does not affect the score.

all I know is my daughter has gone first on bars all year long and has been scoring low to mid eights. this past meet she went last and got a 9.25. it was a good routine yes, but I don't know that it was that much better.

this past meet my daughter was up on bean first and gave a beautiful routine that scored in the high 8s. a couple gymnasts later, we had 2 girls with back to back falls..... our to anchors. and not their usual performance because they have lots of wobbles. yet still managed to get in the nines.

I definitely believe in the correlation between order and score.

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[cbifoja]

I'm curious if any of you coaches have ever had a gymnast refused to go first because of this relationship between score and place.

I ask because we had a princess who was told she would be up first because of a week skill. princess informed her coach that no she would not be going first and then proceeded to go into the lobby and basically tell to her mother. mother was offended that daughter was going to have to go first and complain to the gym owner. I would have loved to be a fly on the wall for that conversation!

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[Canadian_gym_mom]

One reason I am thankful to be in Canada.... we don't have the whole "team" thing and starting order is always determined by the meet host/Gymnastics Ontario.

Reading this made me feel terrible.

 

[Bajanswife]

One reason I am thankful to be in Canada.... we don't have the whole "team" thing and starting order is always determined by the meet host/Gymnastics Ontario.

Reading this made me feel terrible.

I don't think we've ever been to a meet where the order wasn't pre-determined. I had no ideas that coaches actually picked the order (except in in-house or fun meets)!

 

[lhmom]

At most of the meets we've been to this year, the start order was pre-determined (and listed in the program). I think there was only one meet where coaches determined who went 1st and last. Maybe it's just the area where we compete.