How judges mark (Rules 1 to 4)
Before the final, judges mark which couples they want to recall. In the final, every judge places every couple in every dance, from first to last, and may not tie two couples. Each dance is worked out on its own.
Skating System calculator
Type in each judge's places for a ballroom final and see the result the Skating System gives, with every rule it used explained. Free, nothing to sign up for, and nothing you type leaves your browser.
Start from an example
For 2nd place, couples 22 and 35 both have three judges at 2nd or better. Couple 22's marks there add up to 5 and couple 35's to 6, so 22 is second.
Judges Couples DancesOne column per judge. Each judge places every couple once, 1 to 6. Change a couple's number in the first table.
Cha Cha
| Couple | A | B | C | D | E |
|---|
The result
Cha Cha: the scrutineer's sheet
Each column counts the judges who placed the couple there or better, with the sum of those marks in brackets. A majority is 3 of 5.
| Couple | 1 | 1-2 | 1-3 | 1-4 | 1-5 | 1-6 | Place |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 | 3(3) | 3(3) | 4(6) | 5(10) | 5(10) | 5(10) | 1 |
| 22 | 1(1) | 3(5) | 4(8) | 5(12) | 5(12) | 5(12) | 2 |
| 35 | - | 3(6) | 4(9) | 5(13) | 5(13) | 5(13) | 3 |
| 41 | 1(1) | 1(1) | 3(7) | 5(15) | 5(15) | 5(15) | 4 |
| 57 | - | - | - | - | 3(15) | 5(27) | 5 |
| 68 | - | - | - | - | 2(10) | 5(28) | 6 |
How each place was decided
Place 1: couple 14
Majority of judges at this place or better (Rule 5)
- Place 1: 14 has 3 of 5, sum 3
Place 2: couple 22
Lower sum of the majority marks (Rule 7)
- Places 1 to 2: 22 has 3 of 5, sum 5 · 35 has 3 of 5, sum 6
Place 3: couple 35
Majority of judges at this place or better (Rule 5)
- Places 1 to 2: 35 has 3 of 5, sum 6
Place 4: couple 41
Majority of judges at this place or better (Rule 5)
- Places 1 to 3: 41 has 3 of 5, sum 7
Place 5: couple 57
Majority of judges at this place or better (Rule 5)
- Places 1 to 5: 57 has 3 of 5, sum 15
Place 6: couple 68
The only couple left
- Places 1 to 6: 68 has 5 of 5, sum 28
These placings come from the same Skating System code DanceFlow uses to score real competitions. See judging in DanceFlow.
How the Skating System works
The Skating System turns judges' places into a result. It was introduced in Britain in 1937 and is still how most ballroom finals are scored. Here it is in plain language, rule by rule.
A majority wins the place (Rule 5)
To win 1st place, a couple needs more than half of the judges to have placed them 1st. With five judges that is three. For 2nd place, a majority must have placed them 2nd or better, and so on down the places. This is why the winner is not always the couple with the most 1sts.
The larger majority (Rule 6)
If two or more couples have a majority for the same place, the couple with more judges in that majority wins it. The others with a majority there take the next places before anyone else is looked at.
The lower sum (Rule 7)
If the majorities are the same size, add up the marks that make up each majority: the lower sum wins. If the sums are equal too, look at the next place for just those couples. Couples still level when the places run out share them, and each counts their average.
No majority yet (Rule 8)
If nobody left has a majority for the place being decided, widen to the next place, then the next, and apply Rules 5 to 7 where a majority first appears.
Several dances: the totals (Rule 9)
In a multi-dance final, each dance is placed on its own, then each couple's places are added up. The lowest total wins.
Equal totals (Rule 10)
When totals are equal for a place, the couple placed at that place or better in more dances wins it. If that is equal too, the lower sum of those places wins.
Still equal (Rule 11)
If Rule 10 cannot separate them, every judge's mark in every dance for those couples is treated as one big dance, with a majority of all the marks, and Rules 5 to 8 decide the place. If even that leaves them level, the place is shared.
The examples at the top show each case: a clear majority, a tie that Rule 7 breaks, and a three-dance tie that Rule 10 breaks.
The words used here are in the glossary: marks, placement, tie and scrutineer.
This follows the published Skating System, Rules 1 to 11, as used by WDSF, WDC, NDCA and most national federations. Some competitions add tiebreaks of their own; the calculator applies only the published rules. DanceFlow is not affiliated with any of these bodies.
Questions about the Skating System
Why is the winner not the couple with the most 1sts?
Because a place needs a majority. If no couple has 1st from more than half of the judges, the count widens to 1st and 2nd together, and the couple most of the judges rated highly wins, even with fewer 1sts than another.Do I need an odd number of judges?
No. A majority is more than half, so with six judges it is four. Odd panels are common because they reach a majority more easily.Does it work for recall rounds?
No. In a recall round judges mark which couples should go through rather than placing them, so there is nothing for the Skating System to place. This calculator is for finals.Is what I type sent anywhere?
No. The calculation runs in your browser. If you copy a link, the marks travel in the link itself, so whoever opens it sees the same final.Where DanceFlow does this for you
Read next
- Guide Ballroom levels, age groups and categories Working out which level and age group you dance in.
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- Glossary 268 terms Ballroom glossary Looking up a word you heard in a lesson or read on a heat sheet.
- Tool Competition budget Budgeting a competition before you enter it.
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Judges mark on a phone or tablet, the Skating System places every final as the last sheet is signed, and the results publish when you are ready.