NCAA Gymnastics four-on-the-floor Finals

I’m happy.

The NCAA Women’s Gymnastics Committee did approve a new format for Collegiate Team Finals after all. (There was some doubt after the concept was opposed by some in the dominant SEC Conference.)

… Instead of the top six teams competing for the team title on the second day of the championship, the gymnastics committee wants the top four teams to advance to the finals (a concept the committee has dubbed “four on the floor”). The change would eliminate byes during the NCAA finals, making it easier for fans to follow the standings. The change also would shorten the competition, making it easier to broadcast live, which in turn could give college women’s gymnastics more fan appeal. …

That’s a slight improvement, in my opinion. I’ve attended Finals the past 3yrs and the old 6 team Final did drag a bit.

Even better, is this change:

… The committee also is recommending that the score of every gymnast who competes on an apparatus count toward the team’s final score. Currently, six gymnasts compete on each apparatus but only the top five scores count, allowing a team to make a mistake and still contend for the title. Making all six scores count toward a team’s final score will help fans be more involved in the event, Plinske said. The change would be in effect only during NCAA regional and national competition. …

NCAA – Gymnastics seeks to shift gears with ‘four-on-the-floor’ idea

This will favour teams that have depth. And consistency.

And will also result in more upsets. Delicious uncertainty.

The downside is that teams will take fewer risks.

If NCAA Championships/Sport Management Cabinet approves the change, it starts not next year in Florida, but in 2011 at a neutral site in Cleveland. (That’s a good decision as Florida opposed this change in the original vote.)

commentary by Dwight Normile – International Gymnast – NCAA Women’s Rules Could Change for Better