I'd appreciate it if you could help me
The beginnings of rhythmic gymnastics can be traced back to 18th century Germany. At that time, gymnastics (Gymnastik) was primarily a method of physical education for women and girls. Its main purpose was to develop the physical abilities of women and girls through gymnastic movements and to create a healthy body. Through the ages, its rhythmic gymnastics is now recognized as an official event of the Olympic Games.
However, there is a problem with the current scoring of rhythmic gymnastics. This is because rhythmic gymnastics is not a sport of absolute numbers (i.e., competing on the actual score or time put in at a competition), but a sport of relative numbers (i.e., scores based on judges' evaluations). The results of matches in major competitions such as the Olympics and World Championships are greatly influenced by the judges' decisions and evaluations. Therefore, athletes concentrate on how to get a high score rather than attracting spectators as an "art".
As in the quote above, the judges do not grade by "I was impressed" and so on. For each technique, they score according to a set standard, such as "how many points if you do this," "how many points minus if you don't do this," and so on. Since the athletes know how the judges will score their performances, they perform in accordance with those standards to easily obtain high scores.
The value of manipulation of hand tools used to be 7 points, but from 2009, it was raised to a maximum of 10 points. As a result, in addition to the difficulty of manual manipulation, even the manipulation of hand tools has become more hectic, and the situation has become more like a list of techniques rather than a performance with feeling and expressing the music. In addition, it is undeniable that the performances tended to be similar in content, since those aiming for high scores performed safe and easy-to-use techniques and manipulations of hand tools with high value points.
-- 新体操の採点規則に関する哲学的研究
As in the quote above, the judges do not grade by "I was impressed" and so on. For each technique, they score according to a set standard, such as "how many points if you do this," "how many points minus if you don't do this," and so on. Since the athletes know how the judges will score their performances, they perform in accordance with those standards to easily obtain high scores.
The current rules have eliminated most of the aspects that can move people's hearts from the scoring rules. The scoring rules are supposed to be for "artistic sports" that move people's hearts, but in reality, there is no room for human "emotion," and the scoring rules can only be understood by a few people who are well versed in the sport.
-- 新体操の採点規則に関する哲学的研究
A "scoring rule that only a few people familiar with the competition can understand" is not a good way to attract new customers. It would be difficult for someone who has never seen a rhythmic gymnastics competition to watch a rhythmic gymnastics match and ask why this athlete won.
Figure skating, ice dancing, gymnastics competitions, street sports such as breaking dancing and skateboarding, and comedy contests are also destined to face such problems.
Incidentally, consider another sport, ballet, which has elements of competition, but whose primary purpose is to attract an audience. While competitions and other competitive events certainly involve scoring, the heart of ballet is the performance in the theater or on the stage.
How to strike a balance between receiving good scores and entertaining the audience at the same time is the difficult part.
