The NCAA Women’s Gymnastics Committee is recommending changes in both the championship format and the scoring system to make the sport more appealing to spectators and television.

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.

The top 12 teams would still compete to earn one of the top four spots, with the top two from each of the semifinal sessions earning their way to the finals. The top 36 teams still will compete at the regionals.

“The four-on-the-floor concept received great support from our coaches association,” said committee Chair Paul Plinske, athletics director at Wisconsin-Whitewater. “It has the potential to create a more exciting, fan-friendly and understandable championship final.”

Plinske said the committee thought it was in the best interests of the sport to explore an option that is consistent with other NCAA championship sports and that offers more appeal for live television.

“We think it can draw a greater interest from individuals who don’t necessarily understand the sport,” he said. “It’s going to put our top four teams on the floor at the same time and allow them compete for a championship.”

Some in the gymnastics community believe that the change would reduce opportunities for gymnasts, but proponents argue that the same number of student-athletes get the championship experience by participating in the semifinals on the first day of competition and vying for the chance to compete in the finals.

“While some say that these proposed changes aren’t an effective way to run a championship and will decrease opportunities for women, we’ve heard mostly positive feedback from people who agree that change is needed,” Plinske said.

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.

“With the ‘six-up, six-count’ principle, every point counts,” Plinske said. “We know that it will separate programs because teams will be required to have depth and make strategic decisions. It creates a ‘chess-match’ challenge for our coaches that makes every move count.”

The committee is also recommending changes to the date formula. Rather than competing on a Thursday-Friday-Saturday (with the team championship on Friday and the individual championships on Saturday), the events would move to Friday-Saturday-Sunday. The regional competitions to determine the 12 finalists would be conducted the first Saturday in April. The national championship would be the third weekend in April.

“Consistency creates better understanding,” Plinske said. “With men’s and women’s basketball and The Master’s (golf tournament) being held the first two weekends in April, the third is wide open. We figure that a set date will make our event the premier sporting event of the weekend and something our fans can count on each year.

 “As a committee, we feel it’s time for our sport to make a change that can give our female gymnasts ‘front-page’ attention. Our goal is to enhance the sport by increasing exposure and opportunities. We feel that all of these changes will do just that.”

The committee hopes to have the changes implemented with the 2011 championship, set for a neutral site in Cleveland.  The Championships/Sport Management Cabinet must approve the recommendations.

In other business, the committee voted to change the way officials are assigned to regional sites. The national meet referee will serve a two-year term, and with a minimum of one judge selected from each of the six regions.  All remaining judges will be assigned based on geographic proximity with no more than two from the same state (three can be from California). The changes will help keep travel costs down and still ensure a diverse representation of judges.