The superstar effect in gymnastics

Leah Meissner, Aishwarya Rai and Kurt William Rotthoff

Applied Economics, 2021, vol. 53, issue 24, 2791-2798

Abstract: Tournament structures provide a unique opportunity to assess the factors that affect an agent’s decision-making. In this paper, we seek to determine the peer-effects of Simone Biles’ ‘superstar’ presence on her fellow competitors, both before and after her rise to dominance in 2013. Specifically, with our unique data, we can utilize both meet-level and athlete-level fixed effects on the athletes’ performances. We find that the gymnasts attempted more difficult routines in Biles’ weakest events. There is also evidence of support for the idea that risk taking changes when a superstar is present, showing how athletes change their approach to big events changes with and without a superstar. Lastly, we find that the standard for perfection in the sport has changed over time, which could be related to forms of judging bias.

Date: 2021
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DOI: 10.1080/00036846.2020.1869170

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