Gymnastics

What Exactly Is Gymnastics?

Gymnastics is a sport that requires physical exercises of balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, artistry, and endurance. It involves movements that develop the arms, legs, shoulders, back, chest, and abdominal muscle groups.

Origins and Evolution

The most common form of competitive gymnastics is artistic gymnastics (AG), which includes events for women such as floor, vault, uneven bars, and balance beam, and for men, including floor, vault, rings, pommel horse, parallel bars, and horizontal bar. The governing body for competition in gymnastics is the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG).

Gymnastics can be traced to exercises performed in Ancient Greece, specifically in Sparta and Athens. It was not until after the Romans conquered Greece that gymnastics became more formalized and was used to train men in warfare. The discipline of educating the body and the mind was combined at the Palestra, allowing for a form of gymnastics that was more aesthetic and individual.

Modern Gymnastics

The word ‘gymnastics’ derives from the Greek adjective γυμνός (gymnos), meaning ‘trained naked.’ The first person to introduce educative gymnastics in France was Don Francisco Amorós y Ondeano, while Friedrich Ludwig Jahn began the German gymnastics movement in 1811. Germans Charles Beck and Charles Follen, and American John Neal brought gymnastics to the United States in the 1820s.

The Federation of International Gymnastics (FIG) was founded in 1881, and men’s gymnastics competition was included in the first modern Olympic Games in 1896. Women began participating in gymnastics events during the 1920s, with the first women’s Olympic competition taking place in 1912. These games were held in 1928 in Amsterdam.

By 1954, Olympic Games apparatus and events for men and women had been standardized in a modern format, and uniform grading structures (including a point system from 1 to 15) had been agreed upon. Television has helped publicize and initiate a modern age of gymnastics. Both men’s and women’s gymnastics now attract considerable international interest, and excellent gymnasts can be found on every continent.

Artistic Gymnastics

In 2006, a new points system for Artistic gymnastics was put into play, introducing A Scores (difficulty score) and B Scores (execution score). The system is used in the US for elite-level competition.

The following disciplines are governed by FIG:

• Artistic Gymnastics: Usually divided into men’s and women’s gymnastics. Men compete on six events: floor exercise, pommel horse, still rings, vault, parallel bars, and horizontal bar. Women compete on four: vault, uneven bars, balance beam, and floor exercise.
• Rhythmic Gymnastics: Combines ballet, gymnastics, dance, and apparatus manipulation for women only. Gymnasts compete individually or in groups, performing four routines on different apparatuses. Groups consist of five gymnasts performing two routines together with different apparatus each year.
• Trampolining and Tumbling: Consists of four events: individual and synchronized trampoline, double mini trampoline, and tumbling. Individual trampoline involves a build-up phase with ten bounces followed by a sequence of aerial skills. Routines are marked out of 10 points, with additional points for difficulty and time.
• Acrobatic Gymnastics: Disciplines for men and women. Performances to music in groups of two, three, and four. Four international age categories: 11–16, 12–18, 13–19, and Senior (15+). Routines require balance and dynamic movements.
• Aerobic Gymnastics: Individual or group performances emphasizing strength, flexibility, and aerobic fitness. Seniors perform on a 10m x 10m floor for 70-90 seconds. World Championships have been held since 1995.
• Para-Gymnastics: Recognized as a new FIG discipline in October 2024, currently only covers artistic gymnastics.
• Aesthetic Group Gymnastics: Developed from Finnish ‘naisvoimistelu.’ Emphasizes body movement, flexibility, balance, strength, coordination, and sense of rhythm. Large teams perform without apparatus. Competition program features varied body movements and lifts.
• TeamGym: Created by EU of Gymnastics. First competition held in Finland in 1996. Three sections: women, men, and mixed teams. Three disciplines: floor, tumbling, and trampette. European Championships held since 2010. No World Championships.
• Wheel Gymnastics: Exercises on a large wheel called Rhönrad. Four core categories of exercise. First World Championships held in 1995.
• Mallakhamba: Traditional Indian sport performed with a vertical wooden pole or rope. Declared state sport in Madhya Pradesh, India. First Mallakhamb World Championship held in Mumbai in 2019.
• Non-Competitive Gymnastics (Gymnastics for All): Enables people of all ages and abilities to participate. Synchronized and choreographed routines performed by troupes. Largest exhibition: quadrennial World Gymnaestrada.

Scoring and Safety in Gymnastics

The current method of scoring in gymnastics is called ‘open-end’ scoring, where there is no theoretical cap on the D-score and total possible score for a routine. Before 2006, gymnast’s final scores were deducted from a maximum of 10. The Code of Points or guidelines for scoring are revised every four years.

Gymnastics has undergone many changes over the years, including the removal of events such as rope climbing, flying rings, and club swinging. The sport is highly dangerous, with a high injury rate among girls aged 11-18. Some movements have been banned due to safety concerns, and proper technique is crucial for avoiding injuries.

Landing is a critical skill in gymnastics, where proper technique must be used to avoid injuries and receive high scores. A successful landing is classified as soft, meaning the knee and hip joints are at greater than 63 degrees of flexion. Another important variable that affects linear and angular momentum is the time the landing takes. Gymnasts can decrease the impact force by increasing the time taken to perform the landing. Gymnasts can achieve this by increasing hip, knee and ankle amplitude.

Podium Training

Podium training refers to the official practice session before a gymnastics competition begins. The purpose of this is to enable competing gymnasts to get a feel for the competition equipment inside the arena in which they will be competing, primarily for reasons of safety.

Challenges and Concerns

Gymnasts tend to have short stature, but it is unlikely that the sport affects their growth. Parents of gymnasts tend also to be shorter than average. There have been recorded cases of emotional and sexual abuse in gymnastics in many different countries. The USA Gymnastics sex abuse scandal is considered one of the largest abuse scandals in sports history. In 2022, the Whyte Review was published, criticizing extensive abusive practices by British Gymnastics that included sexual and emotional abuse and excessive weight management of athletes.

Compared to athletes who play other sports, gymnasts are at higher than average risk of overuse injuries and injuries caused by early sports specialization among children and young adults. Gymnasts are at particular risk of foot and wrist injuries. Strength training can help prevent injuries.

Gymnastics is a sport that requires physical exercises of balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, artistry, and endurance. It involves movements that develop the arms, legs, shoulders, back, chest, and abdominal muscle groups. The sport has evolved over centuries, from its origins in Ancient Greece to modern-day competitions governed by FIG. While it offers numerous benefits, gymnastics also faces challenges such as safety concerns and historical issues of abuse. Nonetheless, it remains a captivating and dynamic discipline that continues to inspire athletes around the world.