Severn Trampoline Club

Please click here for a printable version of the Competition Information

There are three age groups in regional competitions, under 11 years, under 15 years and over 15 years. Each grade (club I to regional D) is divided into these age groups for boys and girls and each of these groups then competes for individual and team places.

Deductions

As trampolining is a gymnastics discipline, in competition you start with a perfect score of 10 (for style).When scoring judges make deductions dependant on how far from perfect a move is. It is helpful to know what counts as a deduction, so you can improve your technique to avoid losing points

The level of deductions applied is standard in all competitions, it is set by the gymnastics governing body F.I.G. (Federation Internationale Gymnastique) in their Code of Points document 2009. Further information on the scoring system is given in the documents below.

Click here for information on the deductions system. This includes explanations and diagrams.

Click here for the old BTF diagrams of the deductions system.This has been superseded by the system described above, but it gives more detailed diagrams of body shape and arm / leg positions and so it may be easier to understand.

Quick Tips

Please click for our quick tips to competitions

Cost

Each competition entry costs £ 9. Please note we offer reductions on the entry fee for those that bring volunteers to help with official tasks, see below or ask for more details.

Types of Competition

There are 4 competitions a year that Severn Trampoline Club (STC) enter. These are the Regional Grading Competitions that are official competitions run under the guidance of British Gymnastics. There are 4 a year, and it is only at these competitions that performers may qualify to higher grades.(See below)

Grades

Competitors are separated for competitions by age group and grade. Age group is determined by year of birth, NOT academic year. Grades are from A to I, A being for the most advanced, I for beginners. Depending on the gymnasts skill level, they can enter at either grade I, H, G. They then progress up the grades.

Routines

For every competition, the competitor needs two 10-bounce routines memorised. The first is a SET routine; this is specific to the appropriate grade and age group. Everyone in the group will be doing the same one. The routine must be performed exactly as listed with no extra bounces in between. All routines for the appropriate grade and age are available for reference on the STC website (severntrampolineclub.org) or an STC Coach. The other routine needed is the voluntary or VOL. This routine is designed in negotiation with the coach; every one can be different but must comply with the rules for the competition grade. It is normally more difficult than the SET as extra marks are given for difficulty from grade F and above. (See Scoring). Performers only get one chance to complete their routines and if they make a mistake they cannot try again. In higher grades, there is sometimes a third Final round. In this round, the VOL is performed again.

Structure

In the week or so leading up to the competition you will receive a note informing you of the time for your warm up and the panel that you will be competing on. As it is possible for the competitions to run a maximum of 30 minutes ahead of time you should always plan to arrive 30 minutes before you warm up time. When you arrive at the competition, please find an STC coach so that we know that you have arrived and can help with any arrangements. There is one warm up before the competition and in this available time you should warm up both your SET and your VOL. When your round is ready, you will have a choice of 2 adjacent trampolines. You should pick one and start to warm up on it, if you do not like this trampoline do try the other one. During warm up, if the competitor does not like the feel of the bed they have chosen, they can choose to try their next practice on the other one and swap back if they chose. Once they have had their allocated practice goes, they may be asked to stop and return to the competitors area for that panel. Sometimes they can keep practicing for longer if time allows. After general warm-up, the competition marshal for that panel will round up the competitors and get them in order to confirm that they are present.

Etiquette and Procedure

During competition, no-one must walk in between the judging panel and competing bed in case they are judging a routine. Whenever someone is bouncing, they must have spotters. When actually COMPETING, you must bring TWO spotters only, stood at the two open corners of the bed. Spotters cannot communicate with you during your routine. When called to compete by the competition marshal, you should mount the trampoline and sit neatly in the seat drop position on the cross. The chair of judges will then inform you that you may begin. At this point you should neatly turn to face the judges and present (Right arm for the boys, both arms for the girls). Then quarter twist to face the direction you want to start when you bounce. At the end of the routine you should stop dead and stay still for 3 seconds to show you are under control. You are then free to leave the bed. Sportsmanship and composure should be shown at all times.

Scoring

At all competitions, judging panels consist of:

• 5 form judges who judge the neatness of the routine,
• a chair of judges, who advises of deductions and makes important decisions with regards to disputes,
• a tariff judge who checks that the routine is correct and calculates the difficulty score of a routine during the 'vols'.

As the routine is performed, the form judges are looking at every single move and deciding how close it was to perfect. This eventually equates to a score out of 10 for the routine. When the judges show their scores, to avoid any bias, the top and bottom scores are disregarded and the middle three are added together. In the vol round, the tariff score is also added to make the total score for the routine. Following, are reasons why extra marks may be deducted from a routine:

• Instability at the end of a routine.
• More than 10 elements in the routine.
• Less than 10 elements in the routine.
• Communicating or being communicated with during the routine.
• Taking too long to start the routine (more than 60 seconds).

These are reasons why the judging of a routine could be stopped before the end:

• Landing on one leg.
• Performing the incorrect move during a 'set'.
• 'Killing the bed' during a routine.
• Landing on any pads, mats or springs, or touching them with any part of your body or clothing (This includes hair and hair ties!).
• Putting hands down, or landing on knees etc. during a routine.

Obviously, the competitor with the highest sub-total for both 'set' and 'vol' added together will be the winner.

Clothing

As a general rule, the clothing regulations are the same for all competitions. They are as follows:

• Boys should IDEALLY wear a sleeveless leotard and light-coloured or white gym stirrups with plain socks in white or in the same colour as the stirrups; or trampoline shoes. They CAN wear a plain white t-shirt and plain white short-shorts, but it is discouraged.
• Girls should wear a leotard (long-sleeved, or sleeveless) with plain white socks or trampoline shoes. Over 25's MAY be able to wear hot-pants/shorties, depending on the competition and the grade, but they must match the colour and material of the leotard exactly.
• If the competitors are in a TEAM, all team members MUST be wearing identical kit.
• NO jewellery is allowed.

Although not an official rule, at STC we hope that all competitors come to competitions in the club rugby top and ideally compete in the club leotard. These can be bought, or hired as appropriate. We take no profit from hiring them, as all costs are offset as a discount for them to be bought second hand.

Officialling at Competitions

At EVERY competition there is an obligation for competing clubs to provide competition officials. The number required is proportional to the number of club competitors entering.

As coaches, we feel that our time at competitions is best spent supporting and encouraging competitors. We too often end up needing to be officials instead though. We hope that in the future, parents will be willing to help us out in this regard so that we can be left to help the kids. There will be an opportunity on the termly costing sheets, to indicate if any help can be provided. Please think about volunteering, it would be a great help to the kids and the club. Officials (with the exception of warm-up marshals) generally get a free lunch on the day, and STC will also throw in free entry for your child! Below are descriptions of all the official positions:

Form Judge

A form judge is someone who watches the competing routines and allocates scores for the neatness of the execution (form). To be a form judge, you must attend a 1 and a half day training course, which STC will happily fund if people are willing to volunteer for this role.

Tariff Judge

A tariff judge is someone who watches the competing routines and checks that the set routine is correct, and for the vol, adds up the difficulty scores for the moves in the routine as they are performed. To be a tariff judge, you must also attend the BG judges course.

Recorder

The recorder is an administrator who takes down judges scores and calculates totals as necessary. There are two types of recorder, and both are normally found working in parallel. One is a manual recorder who does everything on paper and uses a calculator. There is also a computer recorder who types in the scores into special scoring software and works everything out on computer. Neither position requires any qualifications as such, but experience would be essential. As such, if any parents are interested in gaining experience, I am sure that you could sit in at a recorders station during future competitions to learn the job first hand.

Competition Marshall

The competition marshal organises the traffic flow of competitors and warm-ups during competition. They check attendance and organise everyone into order after the general warm-up. They make sure that all competitors know when they are about to compete or warm-up. A good competition marshal ensures the quick and smooth running of a panel.

Warm-Up Marshall

This easy role is only required during the general warm-up before the competing round starts. There are two per panel, one for each bed. The job involves ensureing that everyone gets his or her fair share of practice and the warm-up process remains smooth and calm.