Red Card Bench is issued for which fault?

• A. Bar not lowered to chest
• B. Bar not lowered to the chest; or the bar touches the belt
• C. Elbows locked too early
• D. Feet not flat on floor

Answer: (B)

In the bench press, a legal lift hinges on the bar path and where the bar makes contact during the descent. The bar must be lowered under control to the chest and touch the chest; this is what judges look for to confirm the lift followed the rules. If the bar is not lowered all the way to the chest, or if it instead touches the lifter’s belt, that means the movement didn’t meet the required chest-contact standard. Both of those situations violate the rule and are treated as red-card faults because they indicate the lift wasn’t performed with the proper technique or safety criteria. The other options describe different faults (like timing of the press or base stability) that don’t address the chest-contact requirement in the same way.