Here's why Simone Biles received points deduction for not saluting judges after her balance beam final

PARIS, FRANCE: Simone Biles solidified her status as the greatest gymnast of all time at the 2024 Olympic Games, despite not winning gold in the women's balance beam and floor exercise finals on Monday, August 5.

In the balance beam final, the 27-year-old gymnast fell during a flip, scoring 13.100 and finishing in fifth place, according to People magazine.

Her Team USA teammate, Suni Lee, also fell off the beam during her final performance, scoring the same 13.100 and finishing in sixth place, just behind Biles.

Italian gymnast Alice D'Amato won the gold medal in the event, with Yaqin Zhou of China securing the silver and D'Amato's teammate, Manila Esposito, taking home the bronze.

Additionally, judges deducted three-tenths of a point from Biles' overall score for allegedly not saluting the judging panel long enough.

After her floor exercise in the final later that day, Biles kept her hands raised in salute to the judges for a few extra seconds, even as she left the floor, to avoid any further deductions.

Why were Simone Biles’ points deducted during women's balance beam final?

Simone Biles' coach Cecile Landi confirmed to reporters, including USA Today, that Biles did receive that deduction during the beam final and made sure "she sure did not get deducted for it" after her floor exercise.

The deduction occurred because the International Gymnastics Federation’s Code of Points requires gymnasts to "present themselves properly with their arms up to acknowledge the D1 Judge at both the start and end of their routine."

The Code of Points also specifies that gymnasts must salute before and after their routine, but no salute is required when resuming an exercise after a fall.

Per USA Today, Biles' coach thought the deduction was "a little harsh, but at the end, it didn't matter. So no, we're not going to make a big deal out of it."

Following the beam and floor final, where the American gymnast won the silver medal behind Brazilian gymnast Rebeca Andrade, Biles shared at a press conference on August 5 that she "can't be mad at my performances" after she stepped away during the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

"I've accomplished way more than my wildest dreams, not just at this Olympics, but in this sport,” Biles said. “Competing and then walking away with four medals, I'm not mad about it. I'm pretty proud of myself, and it's always so exciting to compete."

Simone Biles backed after receiving points deduction for not saluting judges

Online critics blasted the judges for deducting points from Simone Biles' performance in the women's balance beam final on Monday.

One person remarked, "Literally all I can think about this is 'thank god it didn't impact standings.'"

Another person said, "lol she just saluted them for an extra long time on floor." [sic]

Another person wrote, "So surprised. When I first thought it was an actual lack of salute I thought that it was rude and Simone should know better. Seeing this has me thinking what were the judges thinking and thank god it didn’t impact standings."

One person claimed, "I think this was an absurd deduction to take. In cases like this we have to think 'what is the deduction there for?', or what is the spirit of the rule. In theory, it is there so that judges know when a routine is complete. There is absolutely no doubt that that was a dismount, a salute and a completion of the routine. Which is why I think it's beyond silly to take this deduction." [sic]

Another person argued, "Here’s my chance: I’ve always thought saluting is unnecessary and never understood why it’s a thing. You don’t see it in a lot of other sports. It just seems like whoever came up with it needed their ego stroked because why make someone do superhuman, amazing, dangerous, exhausting skills and then turn around and pay deference to someone sitting on their a**?"

Finally, this individual commented, "Both arms up, body turned to face the judging panel = no salute = 0.3 off. Gymnasts just kneel in front of the judges from now on. F**king ridiculous thing to deduct for." [sic]

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