Section 6: Scoring
6.1 The Trivium Judging System
WDSF uses the Trivium judging system for all sanctioned breaking competitions. Each judge evaluates athletes across two complementary dimensions, each containing three criteria. The system is designed to balance athletic execution with artistic expression and cultural authenticity.
6.2 Physical Dimension
The physical dimension evaluates the tangible, observable elements of the performance:
- Technique: The quality of movement execution, including control, precision, form, balance, and physical difficulty. Clean landings, smooth transitions, and mastery of foundational and advanced moves are assessed.
- Vocabulary: The breadth and depth of the athlete's movement repertoire. This includes toprock (standing dance), footwork (floor-level legwork), power moves (acrobatic spins and rotations), freezes (held positions), and transitions between these categories.
- Execution: The overall delivery and completeness of the throwdown. This encompasses the athlete's confidence, composure under pressure, and ability to recover from mistakes without losing momentum.
6.3 Artistic Dimension
The artistic dimension evaluates the interpretive and creative qualities of the performance:
- Musicality: The athlete's ability to interpret, respond to, and ride the music. This includes hitting beats, accenting musical phrases, adapting to tempo changes, and demonstrating rhythmic sensitivity beyond simply moving on the beat.
- Originality: The uniqueness and personal signature of the athlete's style. Judges reward distinctive movement vocabulary, creative concepts, and innovation. Copying or "biting" another athlete's signature moves is penalized.
- Creativity: The inventiveness of transitions, combinations, and overall set composition. This includes unexpected movement choices, risk-taking, and the ability to create visually and kinetically surprising moments.
6.4 Score Aggregation
Each judge determines a round winner based on their holistic assessment across all six criteria. Judges do not assign numerical scores to individual criteria — they render a binary decision selecting the winner of each round. The nine judges' decisions are collected, the highest and lowest outliers are dropped, and the remaining seven votes determine the round winner by simple majority. In the event of a systematic tie across rounds, the head judge casts the deciding vote.
The Trivium system ensures that breaking is judged as both an athletic discipline and an art form, honoring the sport's cultural heritage.