This month, we saw a significant uptick in perfect 10s, with 10 awarded—up from just two in January but still far below the 24 handed out in February 2024. Notably, six of those came on floor, while vault saw its first perfect score of the season. This is particularly interesting given that floor has arguably the most opportunities for deductions, with leaps, jumps, dance elements, and multiple tumbling passes, whereas vault consists of just one skill.
Perhaps the artistry and choreography on floor captivate judges, making them less inclined to take deductions. Or maybe the nature of vault—where judges are positioned so close to the table and hyper-focused for just a few seconds—makes deductions easier to spot. Either way, I’ll be reviewing all of this season’s 10.0 routines based on what I observed in real time, ranking each from one to five stars.
Since my viewing angles aren’t always identical to those of the judging panel, we may see different things, but I’ll focus on deductions that should have been apparent from a standard judge’s perspective. As a reminder, here’s my rating scale:
⭐ This was clearly not a 10.0 routine (but still very good!)
⭐⭐ There was definitely a deduction there, but maybe the judges blinked?
⭐⭐⭐…
