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Gymnastics scoring on 10 point scale, changed in 2006

A perfect 10 is a score of 10.000 for a single routine in artistic gymnastics, which was once thought to be unattainable—particularly at the Olympic Games—under the code of points set by the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG). It is generally recognized that the first person to score a perfect 10 at the Olympic Games was Romanian Nadia Comăneci, at the 1976 Games in Montreal. Other women who accomplished this feat at the Olympics include Nellie Kim, also in 1976, Mary Lou Retton in 1984, Daniela Silivaș and Yelena Shushunova in 1988, Lu Li and Lavinia Miloșovici in 1992. The first man to score a perfect 10 is considered to be Alexander Dityatin, at the 1980 Olympics in Moscow. (However, in the 1924 Paris Olympics, 22 men achieved a mark of 10 in rope-climbing, with Albert Séguin getting a second 10 in the sidehorse vault, events that are no longer part of artistic gymnastics.)

The FIG changed its code of points in 2006. There are now different top scores, all greater than 10, for the various events, based upon difficulty and artistic merit; there is no consistent perfect score. Execution scores are still out of 10, so the theoretical possibility exists for a gymnast to get a partial "perfect 10" (for execution) in addition to whatever maximum number they get for difficulty, but no such score has been awarded in decades.

History

Men's artistic gymnastics had been an Olympic sport since the beginning of the modern games. Women's gymnastics were introduced as a single (team) event in the 1928 games, but were not expanded until the 1952 games, when there were seven events.

The International Federation of Gymnastics first drew up a code of points—for men—in 1949. Although the code was based on a maximum score of 10, until 1976 it was considered impossible to achieve a score of greater than 9.

September 5, 2000

For a Japanese Gymnast, Honor Thy Father

OKYO -- Naoya Tsukahara bounced up and down on the trampoline that had been lowered into the floor. Up and down and up and down again, then suddenly, in a split second, he lofted himself high into the air and did two graceful, twisting, vertical somersaults before landing, like a butterfly, on his tiny feet.

In that momentary performance, at the end of a recent, sweaty three-hour practice session with the Japanese men's gymnastic team, was a flash of déjà vu. For that peculiar pretzeled somersault, a hallmark of Naoya's performance, is a derivation of Japan's most famous gymnastic stunt, the "moon" somersault. It was concocted by his father, Mitsuo Tsukahara, who used it 28 years ago in Munich to win his first individual Olympic gold medal, on the horizontal bar, scoring a 9.9 out of 10 in the process.

"I would fold my body and somersault in the air while twisting," the elder Tsukahara said. "What Naoya does is twist his body while keeping it straight. The style is different, but the basic skills are those of the moon somersault."

Now there is a chance that Naoya will use that somersault to do something that his father never did -- win an individual gold medal in the all-around men's gymnastic competition. He won the silver in the all-around at last year's world championships, and the gymnast who beat him there, Nikolai Krukov, damaged his Achilles' tendon this past spring and is not expected to be in peak condition in time for the Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, which begin on Sept. 15.

"Well, that's a possibility," Naoya's father said of his son's odds for a gold medal. "He has a chance."

The

All four Turkish men made history in Tokyo

Athletes competing for 29 countries in the men’s gymnastics field set, matched, or broke records for their nations at the Olympic Games in Tokyo.

Some nations did big things, like Taiwan and Turkey shattering records for just about every event to show the world they’re going to be the guys to watch out for going forward, but even the guys who made only small leaps ahead of what their compatriots did before them are still incredibly important for the growth of a program, especially for the smaller programs only just getting started where this sort of representation can change their trajectory into the future.

Below are all of those who made history for their countries in the sport.

ALBANIA

Matvei Petrov became the first gymnast from Albania to qualify for the Olympic Games, and set the program’s record by finishing 10th in pommel horse qualifications.

ARMENIA

Artur Davtyan finished 3rd in the vault final, breaking his own 11th place record from 2016. This is the first Olympic medal for Armenia in men’s gymnastics.

AUSTRALIA

Tyson Bull finished 5th in the high bar final, breaking Brennon Dowrick’s 40th place record from 1992. This is the first Olympic apparatus final for Australia in men’s gymnastics.

AZERBAIJAN

Ivan Tikhonov broke two records in Tokyo.

• He finished 20th on rings, breaking Oleg Stepko’s 47th place record from 2016.
• On high bar, he finished 41st, breaking Petro Pakhniuk’s 50th place record from 2016.

CHINA

China has finished 1st on every event currently contested in men’s artistic gymnastics, and two athletes in Tokyo added their names to the country’s history of gold medalists.

• Liu Yang finished 1st on rings, joining Li Ning (1984) and Chen Yibing (2008) to win China’s Olympic gold medal on the event.
• Zou Jingyuan finished 1st on parallel bars, joining Li Xiaopeng (2000 and 2008) and Feng Zh