What Is Execution in Cheer Scoring?

Quick answer: execution is how well a team performs its skills - clean technique, control, timing and confidence - regardless of how hard those skills are. It's scored alongside difficulty in every category, and small imperfections that aren't bad enough to be deductions (a wobble, a bent leg, a late arrival) are taken off the execution score.

What the Term Means

Where difficulty measures what a team attempts, execution measures how well they perform it. The terms vary between score sheets - "execution", "technique" and "performance" are all used - but the idea is the same: credit for doing skills correctly, cleanly and together.

What Judges Look For

Execution is judged in each part of the routine:

• Stunts, pyramids and tosses - tight, still flyers; locked arms; smooth, matched loads and dismounts; secure, controlled catches.
• Tumbling - straight body lines, correct shapes, height, and controlled landings that stay on the spot.
• Jumps - height, straight legs, pointed toes and clean landings - see jumps.
• Motions and dance - sharp, precise arm positions and energy - see motions.
• Across everything - synchronisation, spacing and confident performance.

Execution vs Deductions

This is one of the most misunderstood parts of cheer scoring. A skill that wobbles but is saved doesn't usually cost a deduction unless it's a defined error such as a "building bobble" - but it still loses execution credit. Being slightly out of sync, a bent knee in a jump or a formation that isn't quite in place all lower execution, never appearing as deductions. That's why a team can hit zero and still lose to a cleaner team.

How It Affects a Routine

A routine full of hard skills performed shakily will often score worse overall than a slightly easier routine performed beautifully. That's why most coaches choose the hardest routine their team can perform cleanly rather than the hardest routine possible - and why teams spend so much practice time "cleaning" a routine they already know.

Difficulty vs Execution

Difficulty and execution are scored separately in most systems, often side by side for each category. A team can score high on one and low on the other - so the best routines balance both.

Scoring-System Differences

How execution is scored and weighted varies between event producers and changes between seasons. Always check the score sheet used at your event for exact criteria.

Related Terms

See Difficulty, Technique, Synchronisation and the scoring overview.