For those interested in gymnastics, there's always something happening. After all, the World Championships are an annual event, except for years when the Olympic Games occur.
This brings us to the Olympics, a thrilling event that captivates the world. For those interested in or looking to get into gymnastics, the Olympic Games are where many of us eagerly watch gymnastics events.
As we delve into the women's floor exercise, a key event in the Olympic gymnastics program, it's crucial to note its significance in the upcoming 2024 Paris Olympic Games. This guide is designed to help you understand and appreciate this event as you prepare for the games.
Let's see what it is, how the scoring works, and who the greatest gymnasts are.
What Is the Floor Exercise?
In gymnastics, the floor is both the name of the surface (or apparatus) and the event in gymnastics events like the World Championships and the Olympic Games.
Both male and female gymnasts participate in the floor event, though not against one another. The same applies to the vault, though only women participate in uneven bars and balance beam.
One of the unique aspects of the women's floor exercise is the sprung floor. This specialized surface, made of springs, rubber, and plywood, provides a bouncy platform that allows gymnasts to jump higher and land more softly, adding a dynamic element to the routine.
The floor in artistic gymnastics is 12m (39ft) long and wide, making it a large square. This square surface has a diagonal of around 17m (56ft), which is why many performances take place along this axis.
The goal is to perform a choreographed routine using gymnastic moves and skills, a feat that requires immense dedication and practice. Gymnasts have a maximum of 90 seconds for their performances.
to complete their floor routine!
Due to their complexity, the top-level gymnasts choreograph and practice their routines extensively, showcasing their incredible skill and dedication.
What Makes up the Floor Exercise?
Before gymnasts can start assembling their routine and choreography, they must consider the requirements.
There are four requirements, each worth 0.5 towards the gymnast's starting value (more on points in a moment). The same applies to the uneven bars and the balance beam, which have four requirements.
These requirements are as follows:
- Connection of two dance elements (one must be a 180° split)
- Saltos forward/sideways and backward
- Double saltos
- Saltos with a minimum of one full twist
Don't worry too much about these if you're new to women's gymnastics. Just know that several elements must be included in a gymnast's routine, so if you start recognizing the same skills, it's likely because they're one of the requirements.
Of course, there are other rules and requirements, but these are the four in terms of obligations to the routine.
So, what else can you expect in the floor exercise?
In the women's floor exercise, skills typically included are tumbling, dance, and acrobatics.
Tumbling refers to flips, twists, and somersaults. Dance typically involves leaps, jumps, turns, and poses. Lastly, acrobatics are specific dynamic skills that showcase strength, flexibility, and balance.
How Are You Scored in the Floor Exercise?
Suppose you only watch gymnastics during the Olympic Games. In that case, you might need a refresher on the scoring system.
After all, the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG; International Gymnastics Federation) uses a scoring system that reflects the discipline's intricacies and competitiveness. Gymnastics and floor exercise can be complex, and the scoring system is designed to match this level of competition.
The scoring system for the women's floor exercise, as with other gymnastics events, is a combination of the D-score and the E-score. The D-score, or difficulty score, is based on the complexity of the routine, while the E-score, or execution score, reflects how well the routine was performed.
The D stands for difficulty, and E for execution.
Every gymnast has a starting score calculated from the difficulty of their performed skills. For floor exercise skills, there are 10 different tiers of difficulty:
- A = 0.1
- B = 0.2
- C = 0.3
- D = 0.4
- E = 0.5
- F = 0.6
- G = 0.7
- H = 0.8
- I = 0.9
- J = 1.0
Gymnasts are scored on their 8 most difficult elements plus a connection values (CV) score, which gives the routine its starting value.
The execution score always starts at the fabled “perfect 10” and gymnasts have deductions applied to their performance.
Since gymnasts compete against one another, the winning score for the floor exercise can vary. Still, scores typically fall between 12 and 15.
The high end of this range will likely win a medal, and the 15s will likely take home the gold. The 14s are probably going to be on the podium.
The Best Floor Routines in History
Since the scoring system introduced in 2006 changed everything, comparing is challenging.
Carly Patterson, 2004 Olympic Games
At the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Carly Patterson's floor routine scored 9.712 and won the gold medal.
Remember, this was before the scoring change in 2006, so a perfect 10 was still possible.
Watch Carly Patterson's gold medal routine here.
Kim Zmeskl, 1991 World Championships
With this performance in 1991, Zmeskal became the first American gymnast to win a gold medal at the World Championships.
The score wasn't a perfect 10, but a 9.987 on the old scoring system is incredible.
Check out Kim Zmeska's 1991 floor exercise.
Nastia Liukin, 2008 Olympic Games
Nastia Liukin's floor routine at the Olympic Games in Beijing scored 15.425, earning the bronze medal in the process. The silver and gold scores were 15.500 and 15.650, respectively.
Watch her amazing 2008 performance here.
Aly Raisman, 2012 Olympic Games
American gymnast Aly Raison performed incredibly in the 2012 games in London to the traditional Jewish folk song Hava Nagila, winning the gold medal.
Her score was 15.600.
Watch the 2012 routine here.
Simone Biles, 2016 Olympic Games
In 2016, American gymnast Simone Biles won the gold medal at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
Her floor routine scored 15.966, and while this isn't a "perfect 10", it may as well be because it was such an impeccable performance. The routine was right at home in Rio de Janeiro, and the crowd loved it just as much as the judges.
You can watch it and her other highlights from the all-around Final here.
The Best Gymnasts
Naturally, the best gymnasts will likely do some of the best floor routines. Still, it can be challenging with apparatus specialists to put together a comprehensive list of the best gymnasts.
Instead, these gymnasts won the most medals at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships (commonly known as the World Championships or simply Worlds).
Oksana Chusovitina
Oksana Chusovitina is an Uzbekistani gymnast who represented the Soviet Union, Germany, and Uzbekistan.
She won a gold medal representing the Unified Team at the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games and a silver medal for the vault representing Germany at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.
She won 3 gold medals, 3 silver medals, and 4 bronze medals at the World Championships. While most of these were for the vault, she won the gold for the floor exercise in the 1991 Worlds in Indianapolis.
Yelena Shushunova
The Soviet gymnast Yelena Shushunova was one of the most successful gymnasts ever. She belongs to an exclusive group of gymnasts who have medaled at every major event (Olympic Games, World Championships, Continental Championships).
As for the floor, she won the gold medal at the 1987 World Championships in Rotterdam.
Nellie Kim
Nellie Kim is another Soviet gymnast. She won several gold medals at the Olympic Games in 1976 and 1980, with two gold medals for the floor exercise.
At the World Championships, she also won the gold medal for the floor exercise in 1978 in Strasbourg.
Ludmilla Tourischeva
Ludmilla Tourischeva represented the Soviet Union in gymnastics, winning medals at the 1968, 1972, and 1976 Olympic Games.
She won gold medals in the floor exercise at the World Championships in 1970 and 1974.
Aliya Mustafina
The Russian gymnast Aliya Mustafina never managed a gold medal for the floor exercise in the Olympic Games or the World Championships. Still, she did win consecutive gold medals for the uneven bars at the Olympic Games in 2012 and 2016.
She also won World Championship gold medals in 2010 and 2013 in Rotterdam and Antwerp, respectively.
Lavinia Miloșovici
The Romanian gymnast Lavinia Miloșovici won the gold medal in the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona for the floor exercise.
She's among the most decorated gymnasts at the World Championships.
Larisa Latynina
Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina won nine Olympic Gold medals in the 1956, 1960, and 1964 games, three of which were for the floor. She also won nine gold medals at the Worlds.
Gina Gogean
Gina Gogean is a Romanian gymnast who won 9 gold medals at the Worlds, including 3 for the floor exercise.
While Olympic gold medals eluded her, she remains one of the most medaled gymnasts ever.
Svetlana Khorkina
Russian gymnast Svetlana Khorkina is the second most successful gymnast at the World Championships, with nine gold, eight silver, and three bronze medals.
She won the silver medal for the floor exercise at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney and the 1997 World Championships in Lausanne.
She also won the bronze medal for the floor exercise at the 1999 and 2001 Worlds.
Simone Biles
Last but certainly not least, we have the American gymnast Simone Biles, who, with 23 gold medals at the World Championships, is easily the most decorated gymnast of all time.
She won the gold medal in the floor exercise at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics and six World Championship gold medals in the same event.
Remember that if you'd like to learn more about gymnastics, you can search for tutors or coaches on the Superprof website today!
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