Why do gymnasts perform difficult skills one after another instead of stopping to prepare? Certain combinations earn extra difficulty points because the gymnast has to carry the movement, timing and control of one skill directly into the next.
That extra credit is called Connection Value (CV). The individual skills keep their own difficulty ratings, while the qualifying connection adds further credit. Simply placing two skills together does not guarantee a bonus: the combination must meet the rules for the event.
This article explains connections under the 2025–2028 FIG rules for women’s and men’s artistic gymnastics, then compares them with USAG Development Program, Xcel and NCAA women’s scoring. Rules and published updates were checked through September 14, 2026.
What Is Connection Value in Gymnastics?
Connection Value rewards an approved combination of skills performed with the required continuity. Under FIG rules, it adds to the D-Score, which reflects the routine’s difficulty. It does not raise the execution score or cancel deductions for mistakes.
FIG women’s connections are worth 0.10 or 0.20, depending on the combination. A routine can earn points from several connections, and a longer sequence may contain more than one qualifying link.
Connection Value vs. Individual Difficulty
A skill’s letter rating describes its individual difficulty. Under FIG rules, for example, a D-rated element is worth 0.40.
Suppose a gymnast performs two D-rated elements in a combination that qualifies for 0.10 CV:
| Part of the combination | Credit |
|---|---|
| First D-rated element | 0.40 |
| Second D-rated element | 0.40 |
| Qualifying connection | +0.10 |
| Combined contribution, if both elements count for difficulty | 0.90 |
Both skills remain D-rated. The extra tenth belongs to the link between them. The FIG difficulty-value system explains individual ratings in more detail.
The example is not a universal D + D rule. The same letters can produce different connection credit on different apparatus, depending on the movements, their order and the relevant formula.
Who Decides Whether a Connection Counts?
The D-Jury, or difficulty judges, identifies the skills and decides whether the connection meets the rules. The E-Jury, or execution judges, deducts for performance errors.
A gymnast can receive CV while also losing execution points for bent legs or poor body position. An error that breaks the connection or changes the recognized skills can affect difficulty as well.
Connection credit is one part of how the FIG D-Score is calculated, alongside individual skill values, required content and applicable bonuses.
Direct vs. Indirect Connections
A direct connection moves straight from one skill into the next. An indirect acrobatic connection links saltos through specified preparatory elements within one continuous tumbling sequence.
A salto is a flip without hand support. Round-offs and back handsprings use the hands, so they can provide the link between saltos in an indirect Floor connection.
| Connection type | What happens between the main skills? | Movement example |
|---|---|---|
| Direct | The gymnast immediately begins the next skill | A backward salto followed directly by a forward salto |
| Indirect acrobatic | Preparatory flight elements with hand support connect the saltos | A salto followed by a round-off and back handspring into another salto |
These examples describe movement patterns; the skill difficulties still have to match a CV formula.
In FIG women’s gymnastics, Uneven Bars and Balance Beam use direct connections. Floor can award both direct CV and indirect acrobatic CV.
An indirect connection does not allow a gymnast to stop, take a fresh run or insert unrelated choreography. The preparatory elements must continue the same acrobatic sequence.
For direct connections, judges look for interruptions such as an extra step, a balance adjustment or an excessive arm swing. The exact standard depends on the apparatus and combination; speed alone does not prove that a connection counts. The definitions appear in Section 7.4 of the FIG Women’s Code of Points.
Connection Value on Women’s Events
Women’s artistic gymnastics, shortened to WAG, awards CV on Uneven Bars, Balance Beam and Floor Exercise. Each event has its own formulas.
Uneven Bars: Flight and Turning Combinations
Bars connections can combine releases, transitions between the bars and qualifying turning elements. A flight element may release and regrasp the same bar or travel to the other bar.
The main formulas include:
| Direct Bars combination | CV |
|---|---|
| D + D or harder, when a higher-credit formula does not apply | 0.10 |
| D flight + C or harder, with the conditions below | 0.20 |
| E + E, with at least one flight element | 0.20 |
| F + D, with both elements having flight | 0.20 |
For the D-flight-plus-C formula, the D element must be a same-bar flight or a low-to-high-bar flight. The second element must be performed on the high bar, in that order. C- and D-rated elements used for CV must have flight or at least a half turn.
One familiar example is Maloney → Pak salto. The Maloney takes the gymnast from the low bar to the high bar; the Pak returns her to the low bar. Both are D-rated flight elements, and the combination can earn 0.10 CV when the required connection and swing conditions are met.
Bars also has specific rules about empty and intermediate swings. A disqualifying swing between the elements, or after the second or last element, can prevent CV.
Some transitions have stated exceptions, so this cannot be reduced to a general rule that every visible swing breaks a connection. See Section 11.4 of the WAG Code.
Balance Beam: Acrobatic, Dance and Mixed Connections
Beam can reward acrobatic combinations, connected dance elements and mixed connections combining acrobatics with dance.
Selected formulas illustrate the differences:
| Beam combination | Important condition | CV |
|---|---|---|
| C + C acrobatic flight elements | Rebounding connection | 0.10 |
| C/D + D or harder acrobatic flight elements | Rebounding connection | 0.20 |
| C + C dance elements | Valid direct connection | 0.10 |
| B + D mixed connection | Acrobatic element must have flight | 0.10 |
| D + D or harder dance/mixed connection | Valid direct connection; acrobatics must have flight | 0.20 |
These examples exclude dismounts. Other formulas have additional conditions, including the direction of travel or the order of the skills.
For two-element acrobatic CV, the gymnast must produce the required rebound from the landing into the next element. A smooth-looking sequence may fail to qualify if it lacks that action. Dance and mixed connections have their own technical standards.
Connected turns also have particular footwork requirements. The gymnast must step into the next turn on the opposite leg; the prohibited intervening knee bend, called a demi-plié, breaks the required connection.
Beam Series Bonus is separate from CV. A qualifying sequence of at least three elements, starting from B + B + C in any order, can earn another 0.10 Series Bonus (SB).
The series may contain dance, mixed or acrobatic elements. Qualifying acrobatic series can be rebounding or non-rebounding. A dismount included in the series must be at least C-rated, and the remaining conditions still apply.
One series can earn both CV and SB. However, extending the same series does not keep adding Series Bonus: the maximum is 0.10 SB per series, regardless of its length. These distinctions and examples appear in the WAG Help Desk’s Beam section.
Floor Exercise: Direct and Indirect Tumbling
Floor connection credit depends on both the skill difficulties and how the saltos are linked.
The current acrobatic formulas are:
| Connection type | 0.10 CV | 0.20 CV |
|---|---|---|
| Indirect acrobatic | B + D; A + A + D | C + D/E; A + A + E |
| Direct acrobatic | A + D; C + C | A + E; B/C + D |
The letters in these formulas describe the saltos receiving the connection reward. In an indirect combination, the round-off or handspring between them supplies the link.
Two examples make the distinction clearer:
| WAG Floor sequence | Formula | CV |
|---|---|---|
| Back layout with 1½ twists → front layout with a full twist | Direct C + C | 0.10 |
| Back layout with 1½ twists → round-off → back handspring → double back tuck | Indirect C + D | 0.20 |
These values assume that judges recognize the stated skills and the uninterrupted connection. They are construction examples, not guaranteed credit for any attempted version of the sequence.
Floor also awards 0.10 for specified mixed combinations: a D salto followed directly by B dance, or an E salto followed directly by A dance, in that order. A qualifying D + B connection of one-leg turns can also earn 0.10, with the required step onto the opposite leg and without a demi-plié.
A routine’s required dance passage does not automatically earn CV. Satisfying required dance content and earning extra connection points are separate checks. The formulas appear in Section 13.4 of the WAG Code.
Why Vault Does Not Earn Connection Value
A vault has one predetermined Difficulty Value for the complete movement. Its entry, push from the table, flips and twists identify which vault was performed; they are not separate elements linked for CV.
Event-specific vault bonuses follow different rules and should not be counted as Connection Value.
Connection Points in Men’s Gymnastics
Men’s artistic gymnastics, or MAG, awards connection points on Floor Exercise and Horizontal Bar. Its formulas differ from the women’s rules, even when two combinations appear similar.
Continuous movement on Pommel Horse, Still Rings or Parallel Bars does not receive these separate connection points. A complex combination may instead have its own listed element value.
Men’s Floor Exercise
| Qualifying direct combination | Connection points |
|---|---|
| D or harder + B/C | 0.10 |
| D or harder + D or harder | 0.20 |
The Code places restrictions on these formulas. Directly connected single saltos with twists do not receive connection points, and counter-salto combinations are excluded. The Code gives a twisting double backward salto immediately into a twisting forward salto as an example of the latter.
The elements used for connection points must be among the gymnast’s eight counting elements. If a connected sequence includes a fall, the affected connection does not earn the intended points.
Horizontal Bar
High Bar rewards eligible release combinations and certain links between releases and difficult swinging, turning or in-bar elements.
| High Bar combination | Connection points |
|---|---|
| C flight + D-or-harder flight | 0.10 |
| D flight + D flight | 0.10 |
| D-or-harder flight + E-or-harder flight | 0.20 |
| D-or-harder Group I or III element + D flight | 0.10 |
| D-or-harder Group I or III element + E-or-harder flight | 0.20 |
These formulas allow either order. Group I contains long swings and turns; Group III includes in-bar and Adler work. The connected elements must belong to the eight counting difficulty elements.
The Floor and High Bar rules are set out in Sections 10 and 15 of the FIG Men’s Code of Points.
What Happens When a Connection Is Broken?
Judges assess the skills and the connection separately. If a gymnast completes two recognized skills but has a balance check between them, both skills may keep their individual difficulty while the planned CV is lost.
| What happens | Possible scoring effect |
|---|---|
| Pause, extra step or balance adjustment between skills | The planned connection may receive no credit |
| One skill receives a lower difficulty rating | Judges reassess whether the revised combination qualifies |
| Fall during the combination | The affected connection can lose credit |
| Form error that leaves the skills and connection valid | CV can remain while execution deductions are taken |
A fall later in a longer sequence does not necessarily erase every earlier connection. Judges assess the individual links and any Series Bonus under the relevant event rules.
There is no universal “broken connection deduction” with one fixed amount. The gymnast loses the connection points that were not earned, and any execution mistake is evaluated separately. A break may also affect a routine requirement if that requirement depended on the series.
For example, losing 0.10 CV and receiving a 0.10 execution deduction for a balance error can lower the final score by 0.20, assuming everything else stays the same. The FIG E-Score explanation covers the execution side.
Can More CV Produce a Lower Final Score?
Yes. Consider two hypothetical WAG routines with no separate penalties:
| Routine | D-Score | E-Score | Final score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fewer connections, cleaner performance | 5.40 | 8.30 | 13.70 |
| An additional 0.20 in credited connections, more execution errors | 5.60 | 8.00 | 13.60 |
The extra connection credit does not outweigh the execution loss. Coaches therefore consider how reliably a gymnast can complete a combination, as well as how many tenths it offers.
How USAG, Xcel and NCAA Connections Differ
The domestic women’s programs generally use a Start Value: the maximum available score before execution deductions. Eligible connection bonus helps build that value, rather than adding to an open-ended FIG D-Score.
| Program | How connected skills are used |
|---|---|
| USAG Women’s Development Program | Eligible combinations earn CV bonus at Levels 9 and 10. At lower optional levels, connections can fulfill routine requirements or Composition Credit conditions without earning this bonus. |
| Xcel Bronze–Diamond | Connections can satisfy division requirements; these divisions do not use Sapphire’s bonus structure. |
| Xcel Sapphire | Eligible connections can earn bonus toward Start Value, alongside qualifying individual difficulty. |
| NCAA women | CV bonus contributes toward a 10.0 Start Value under Level 10 rules with NCAA modifications. |
The applicable domestic rules are published in the USAG Development Program materials and the updated Xcel Code pages. The broader guide to gymnastics bonus rules across programs compares the bonus amounts and conditions.
The Same Bars Connection Can Receive Different Credit
The Maloney → Pak salto combination illustrates why FIG values cannot simply be carried into college gymnastics.
| Scoring system | Treatment of Maloney → Pak |
|---|---|
| FIG WAG | Can earn 0.10 CV when FIG conditions are met |
| NCAA women, 2026–27 | Receives 0 CV bonus; the combination can receive 0.20 Difficulty Value bonus |
Difficulty bonus and connection bonus are separate categories in NCAA scoring. The two tenths for this combination do not satisfy the NCAA requirement to include at least 0.10 CV within the full bonus amount.
Section 3.5 of the 2026–27 NCAA Women’s Rules Modifications specifies this exception. It applies to the 2026–27 season; coaches should use the document governing their competition season.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a Skill Outside the Counting Eight Earn CV?
In FIG women’s gymnastics, yes. An element does not have to be among the final eight counting Difficulty Values to help earn CV, but it must be recognized and satisfy the connection rules. MAG Floor and High Bar require the elements used for connection points to be among the counting eight.
Can the Middle Skill in a Series Help Earn Two Connections?
Yes, when the formulas permit it. In a three-skill sequence, the middle element can finish one connection and begin the next. Its individual Difficulty Value is not counted twice. Overlapping direct and indirect combinations still follow the Code’s specific rules.
Can a Gymnast Repeat the Same Connection for More Points?
Under FIG women’s rules, elements generally cannot be reused in another connection to collect more CV. There are limited exceptions for repetition within a sequence and specified B-rated acrobatic skills on Beam. The rules for dance repetition are stricter. Section 7.4.2 and the apparatus sections govern these cases.
Does Every Required Series Earn Connection Bonus?
No. A series can meet a routine requirement without matching a CV formula. Judges check whether it satisfies the required content and whether it earns additional connection credit separately.
