WAG Regions and scoring

[CCGymbug]

I keep reading things about some regions are scored harder than others but I still haven't seen a breakdown of which ones and why. Could someone explain this to me?

 

[MILgymFAM]

Everyone thinks their region- and specific start of a region- is one of the hardest. I'm in NorCal (R1), and I'm a part of everyone.

 

[Natasha]

The only "somewhat" objective data available is at L10 where you have national championships. When you notice that most girls from a certain state or region consistently score significantly higher or lower at state meet vs regionals vs nationals then you can start to see the harder/easier scoring trends. However, you would need data across years and a significant number of gymnasts to look for trends and to account for 'off' meets.
As far as lower levels go, the only information available is subjective experience of those competing in different states/regions and even then it varies so much meet to meet that it is hard to have any meaningful data.

 

[CCGymbug]

I have also seen comments about certain regions are better than others. Why?

 

[GYM0M]

Are there regions that produce more college/elite athletes? Yes, but I don't think that makes one region better than the next. Some regions are larger, some are smaller, some have an abundance of powerhouse gyms, some don't have any. That being sd, the only thing that should matter is the gym that's best for each individual gymmie, and sometimes the best gym yesterday is not the same gym as tomorrow, if that makes sense.

 

[txgymfan]

Are there regions that produce more college/elite athletes? Yes, but I don't think that makes one region better than the next. Some regions are larger, some are smaller, some have an abundance of powerhouse gyms, some don't have any. That being sd, the only thing that should matter is the gym that's best for each individual gymmie, and sometimes the best gym yesterday is not the same gym as tomorrow, if that makes sense.

And most of the time the best gym for one athlete is not the best gym for the next.

 

[GYM0M]

And most of the time the best gym for one athlete is not the best gym for the next.

So true!!!

 

[cbifoja]

Everyone thinks their region- and specific start of a region- is one of the hardest. I'm in NorCal (R1), and I'm a part of everyone.

I think that our region is competitive but I don't know that I would say one of the hardest. We are region 5 but I don't think that we have all the powerhouse gyms of Texas and SoCal, which are in regions that I would consider the hardest (1 & 3).

 

[AgingHippie]

This topic is usually one that can cause quite a bit of debate. I've heard our region is one of the tougher scoring ones (R7) and in particular our State is a tough one within the region. We are still in compulsaries and have never competed out of the region so there is really nothing to go on. We have gone to one neighboring State to compete and scores seems comparable to me.

I am close with two families that moved to our gym from out of State. One from within the region who said they couldn't believe how much the lower the scores are here.

The other family came from another region as far from ours as you could get. They have also indicated they are in shock over the difference. They initially felt our gyms 36 move up rule was no big deal but now that they have competed here they think it's crazy.

I guess it's good to hear we are in a tough area but I don't worry about it since we aren't planning on going anywhere.

 

[mom2newgymnast]

Everyone thinks their region- and specific start of a region- is one of the hardest.

I am far from an expert, but one thing I have learned on these boards is that our region (region 8) is not one of the hardest or most competitive. And that our state appears to score higher (easier?) than many other states, at least at the compulsory levels. Winning scores are usually in the upper 37's- low 38's AA. And often 9.5-9.6 or even higher to win an event.

My dd just finished level 3 and her gym doesn't leave the state for compulsory meets, so who knows how they would score in another state or region. Our optional girls do travel to many of the big meets around the country and their scores seems pretty consistent across the many regions they compete in. So maybe it is more just at the compulsory level that you see this.

 

[cadybearsmommy]

I am far from an expert, but one thing I have learned on these boards is that our region (region 8) is not one of the hardest or most competitive. And that our state appears to score higher (easier?) than many other states, at least at the compulsory levels. Winning scores are usually in the upper 37's- low 38's AA. And often 9.5-9.6 or even higher to win an event.

My dd just finished level 3 and her gym doesn't leave the state for compulsory meets, so who knows how they would score in another state or region. Our optional girls do travel to many of the big meets around the country and their scores seems pretty consistent across the many regions they compete in. So maybe it is more just at the compulsory level that you see this.

We are region 8, but my dd is Xcel. I can't speak for compulsories or opttionals but Xcel (at least bronze, silver and gold) are VERY competitive in this region. Last year our girls traveled to other states for meets and scored about the same as they did in state and my dd's score was actually a little higher at regionals than it was all year long. It wasn't uncommon to see high 38's and even some 39's at regionals, as well as many 9.8-9.9's on events. So I would say we are not one of the low scoring regions, but I will say I've noticed that judges score lower at the beginning of the season than at state/regionals (that seems to be common everywhere though.) I don't think Region 8 is a powerhouse as far as producing elites (maybe a couple at the most), but there are several gyms in this region that have girls getting D1 scholarships regularly, so I do think it is a competitive region based on that and based on regional scores/competitions.

 

[mom2newgymnast]

I don't think Region 8 is a powerhouse as far as producing elites (maybe a couple at the most), but there are several gyms in this region that have girls getting D1 scholarships regularly, so I do think it is a competitive region based on that and based on regional scores/competitions.

Oh, I definitely didn't mean that there aren't girls that are competitive in our region.I don't know about the other states in the region, but Everest Gymnastics in the Charlotte area has 2 elites right now and several Hope athletes from what I understand. And I agree with there being many gyms in the region with D1 scholarships (my dd's gym has a few even). I just think that overall this region is not considered to be as competitive as some of the others. Just the impression I have from reading threads on this board. And I think scores in the upper 38's and 39's, which I have seen in the compulsory levels too, probably do contribute to the idea that the scoring is not as hard here.

 

[wnl256]

I know that on average our region is scored harder than at least half of all the other regions.

 

[cadybearsmommy]

Oh, I definitely didn't mean that there aren't girls that are competitive in our region.I don't know about the other states in the region, but Everest Gymnastics in the Charlotte area has 2 elites right now and several Hope athletes from what I understand. And I agree with there being many gyms in the region with D1 scholarships (my dd's gym has a few even). I just think that overall this region is not considered to be as competitive as some of the others. Just the impression I have from reading threads on this board. And I think scores in the upper 38's and 39's, which I have seen in the compulsory levels too, probably do contribute to the idea that the scoring is not as hard here.

Yes Everest has some awesome girls. Saw some of them at a meet last year. I agree our region gets higher scores than some but I've seen some very well executed routines and it may be partly bc gyms in this region tend to really keep girls in levels they are very proficient at while still doing some good up training leading to some very well executed routines and high scores.

 

[NH~GymMom]

Our scores are not typically high compared to other parts of the country, but I don't think that means were a hard-scoring region. I think our scores tend to stand up to regional and national competitions, we just don't have the same number of strong athletes as other regions. We have some incredible standouts especially in states like MA and NY, but overall as a region we're definitely not the strongest. We do have elite producing gyms, and we did have 3 athletes on the 2011 worlds (Sacramone, Raisman, Vega), so we definitely breed successes, just not at the same rate as some other regions.

I think it's kind of pointless to truly compare regions though. There are so many variables.

 

[dmbgymnast]

Our scores are not typically high compared to other parts of the country, but I don't think that means were a hard-scoring region. I think our scores tend to stand up to regional and national competitions, we just don't have the same number of strong athletes as other regions. We have some incredible standouts especially in states like MA and NY, but overall as a region we're definitely not the strongest. We do have elite producing gyms, and we did have 3 athletes on the 2011 worlds (Sacramone, Raisman, Vega), so we definitely breed successes, just not at the same rate as some other regions.

I think it's kind of pointless to truly compare regions though. There are so many variables.

I'm in 100% agreement on this one. Region 6 is the the best of all the worlds

 

[AmandaLynn]

And I think scores in the upper 38's and 39's, which I have seen in the compulsory levels too, probably do contribute to the idea that the scoring is not as hard here.

You mentioned a different NC gym,but I couldn't find any video from their kids at this year's compulsory state meet, so I chose another well known gym in NC.

Looked this kid up on mymeetscores after finding the video. 38.475. But look at the quality of the routines. I don't really feel like this state is a state that scores abnormally high. This set of routines should probably go 38+ just about anywhere.

 

[mom2newgymnast]

You mentioned a different NC gym,but I couldn't find any video from their kids at this year's compulsory state meet, so I chose another well known gym in NC.

Looked this kid up on mymeetscores after finding the video. 38.475. But look at the quality of the routines. I don't really feel like this state is a state that scores abnormally high. This set of routines should probably go 38+ just about anywhere.

I am going to defer to you on this one! I think you are right. Southeastern (and Everest) and several other gyms in NC have some very talented gymnasts. And I think they have earned their scores. I loved watching the video of Hailey too. I've seen her name a lot. My dd will be a level 4 next year and it was great to see what a high scoring level 4 routine looks like.

Honestly, I was only saying what I did based on the impressions I got from this site. My dd has done well at her meets and I feel like she is getting the scores she deserves, but I have nothing to compare to. Some other threads have made it seem like she would be scoring lower in other areas, so I assumed we were thought of as scoring high. But I will happily admit if I am wrong.

 

[gymgal]

I think two things are getting confused/combined. Region 3, Texas in particular, is known to be easy on scoring, but "harder" in terms of the level of competition. Region 5 definitely holds their own in national competitions and often wins. They are right up there with regions 1 and 3. Region 8 has some strong gyms that win on the national level but not enough to put them at the caliber of region 1, 3, 5 - at least not yet. There are more gyms, particularly in FL, NC and GA that are having better showings at nationals. If this continues, they may be able to compete more evenly with 1, 3, and 5 in a few years.

Honestly, I was only saying what I did based on the impressions I got from this site. My dd has done well at her meets and I feel like she is getting the scores she deserves, but I have nothing to compare to. Some other threads have made it seem like she would be scoring lower in other areas, so I assumed we were thought of as scoring high. But I will happily admit if I am wrong.

coring in Region 8 varies by state. Mid scoring gymnasts tend to score lower when competing in NC and GA than when in the rest of the region and this is mainly true outside the region as well. You will definitely see high scores in these states at all levels but as Amanda said, they are a different caliber of routine and unless they are competing against other top gyms (the elite gyms), then their scores are going to seem unnaturally high. Take these gymnasts out of the mix and you will get a better picture. It is easier to see differences in scores if you look at the middle-of-the-road gymnasts, where there are more deductions to take or ignore.

 

[Natasha]

I have also seen comments about certain regions are better than others. Why?[/QUOTE

I think "better" is a rather subjective term. There are definitely regions that are more competitive than others in terms of making it to nationals at L9/10, which again, I think is the only level you can really compare across regions. The fact that some age groups in some regions can have 40+ athletes competing for the national slots and girls staying home that scored in the 36's and then other regions do not have enough girls who met the minimum 34 to fill their team slots shows that the competitiveness level is not balanced between regions.