The 1988 Seoul Olympics gymnastics competition introduced a new six-judge scoring system for women's artistic events, marking a procedural change in Olympic judging.
Key Facts
- Disciplines contested
- Artistic gymnastics and rhythmic gymnastics
- Venue
- Olympic Gymnastics Hall, Seoul
- Artistic gymnastics dates
- September 18–25, 1988
- Rhythmic gymnastics dates
- September 28–30, 1988
- Women's artistic judges
- 6 (highest and lowest dropped)
- Men's artistic judges
- 4
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
The 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea, hosted gymnastics as a core event. Two disciplines — artistic and rhythmic gymnastics — were scheduled across separate days at the Olympic Gymnastics Hall. Ongoing efforts to improve judging fairness in women's artistic gymnastics led organizers to expand the judging panel for women's routines.
Artistic gymnastics competitions ran from September 18 through 25, while rhythmic gymnastics took place from September 28 through 30, both held at the Olympic Gymnastics Hall in Seoul. Women's artistic routines were evaluated by six judges for the first time, with the highest and lowest scores discarded; men's routines retained the established four-judge format.
The introduction of a six-judge panel for women's artistic gymnastics established a new standard intended to reduce scoring bias by discarding extreme marks. This procedural change reflected growing scrutiny of judging consistency in elite gymnastics competition and influenced subsequent discussions about scoring reform in the sport.