Oregon State University and the University of Utah have been approved to host the 2006 and 2007 National Collegiate Women's Gymnastics Championships.

The two sites, approved recently by the Division I Championships/Competition Cabinet, were recommended by the NCAA Women's Gymnastics Committee.

"We received a number of excellent bids," said committee Chair Donna Sanft, associate athletics director at the University of Pittsburgh. "Oregon State and Utah will be outstanding hosts, and we look forward to exciting championships at both sites."

The Championships/Competition Cabinet also approved regional sites for 2004: Oregon State University, University of Denver, University of Arizona, Louisiana State University, Pennsylvania State University and North Carolina State University. In 2005, the regional hosts will be the University of Washington; University of Utah; University of Nebraska, Lincoln; University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa; University of Michigan; and University of Florida.

The women's gymnastics committee, which held its annual meeting June 17-20 in Indianapolis, added to the national championships bid specifications that it prefers an institution that has been a regional host in the five years before hosting the championships round.

The committee also outlined its process for evaluating judges. The coaches will be asked to evaluate after each meet, and the form with each judge's name will be given to the coaches just before the meet.

"Our previous procedure required coaches to evaluate judges after the end of the season and submit those evaluations by May 1," Sanft said. "This new procedure will require them to evaluate judges after each meet, while the events are still fresh in everyone's minds, and we hope to get improved information in this manner."

The committee also discussed judges training, and agreed to begin conducting a meeting at the judges association to outline differences between Junior Olympic rules and collegiate rules and explore ways of developing a certification program for collegiate gymnastics.

In other actions, the committee will recommend to the Championships/Competition Cabinet a fee increase for alternate judges at regionals from $60 to $75.

Also, starting in 2004, coaches not directly returning from spotting a student-athlete on the floor to the corral area will be warned for being on the floor during competition. If a coach receives a second warning, he or she will be confined to the team's corral for the rest of the competition session.

Reviewing rules changes from the National Association of Collegiate Gymnastics Coaches, the committee approved the recommendation that each gymnast be allowed a minimum of two vaults during the three-minute touch warm-up. A jump from the vault does not count toward the two-vault limit. The vault table will be raised to the maximum height allowable.

Two recommendations from the coaches were not accepted, including the use of voice in floor music and a national and regional assignor program. The committee has requested that the assignor program be further developed and submitted for review in 2004.

To deal with future rules changes, the committee set forth a procedure for future use. Rules questions and requests for clarifications will be forwarded to the Women's Collegiate Program Committee (WCPC) for interpretation and then forwarded to the women's gymnastics committee for final approval. New skills and values after November 1 also will be sent to the WCPC for a decision that will also need to be approved by the gymnastics committee.

Any rules changes made after November 1 will be in effect only until the championships. After the championships, the changes must be voted on by the coaches and reconsidered by the committee at their next annual meeting.

Other highlights

Women's Gymnastics Committee
June 17-20/Indianapolis

Clarified that all gymnasts would wear competitor numbers on their practice leotard and their competition leotard. At all other times, the official championships credential should be visible, and the pin credential should be worn on the team warm-up at the national championships.

Outlined the procedure for making adjustments to the event finals draw for individual event finals when a student-athlete is competing in both events during the same event session. All events will be divided into two flights, and a gymnast performing in both events of the session will not compete in the same flight during the session. In an even year, such as 2004, the vault and bars order of draw will not be changed. During odd years, such as 2005, the beam and floor draws will not be altered. When possible, the student-athlete with a conflict will be replaced with the same position from the other flight. If this isn't possible, then the gymnast will switch with the gymnast in the opposite flight in the following order: one position up, one position down, two positions up or two positions down.