What is gymnastics?

Gymnastics

If you are interested in a sport which combines flexibility, balance and elegance, then the ideal sport would be gymnastics. Many schools in our country have included gymnastics as a sport in the school.

It is really impressive to see gymnastic performances on different occasions. We certainly enjoy watching these performances, but have very little knowledge as to what exactly it is all about. Let's explore gymnastics in today's edition.

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History and evolution

The origin of gymnastics can be traced back in time to Greece, where they considered physical fitness as something of great importance. All Greek cities have had a building called 'Gymnasia' which was a place for running, jumping and wrestling. This is somewhat similar to the gymnasiums we have today.

The modern form of gymnastics is believed to have evolved in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries where two physical educators, Johann Friedrich GutsMuth (1759 - 1839) and Friedrich Ludwig Jahn (1778 - 1852) created exercises for boys and young men on apparatus. Their designs have ultimately led to what is considered modern gymnastics.

With its rising popularity, men's gymnastics were included in the first modern Olympic Games in 1896. During the 1920s, women organised and participated in gymnastics events, and the first women's Olympic competition was held at the 1928 Games in Amsterdam.

By the 1954 Olympic Games apparatus and events for both men and women had been standardised in modern format, and uniform grading structures had been agreed upon.

In 2006, a new points system was put into play. Instead of being marked 1 to 10, the gymnast's start value depends on the difficulty rating of the exercise routine.

Also, the deductions became higher: before the new point system developed, the deduction for a fall was 0.5, and now it is 0.8. The motivation for a new point system was to decrease the chance of gymnasts getting a perfect score.

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Forms of gymnastics

Gymnastics is divided into many forms depending on the skill set tested. There are few main forms such as 'Artistic gymnastics', 'Rhythmic gymnastics', 'Trampolining and Tumbling', 'Display gymnastics', 'Aerobic gymnastics', 'Acrobatic gymnastics' and 'Team Gym'. Let's have a brief check on them.

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Artistic gymnastics

Artistic gymnastics is usually divided into Men's and Women's Gymnastics. Men compete on Floor Exercise, Pommel Horse, Still Rings, Vault, Parallel Bars, and High Bar, while women compete on Vault, Uneven Bars, Beam, and Floor Exercise.

Though routines performed on each event may be short, they are physically exhausting and push the gymnast's strength, flexibility, endurance and awareness to the limit.

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Rhythmic gymnastics

Rhythmic gymnastics is competed only by women, and involves the performance of five separate routines with the use of five apparatus which are ball, ribbon, hoop, clubs and rope on a floor area.

Here, more focus is on aesthetic beauty rather than the acrobatics. The music used by the gymnast can contain vocals, but may not contain words.

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Display gymnastics

This focuses more on having a diverse group of participants to engage in synchronised, choreographed routines. The groups can have six to more than 150 athletes who can be of all ages as well as a mixture of genders.

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Acrobatic gymnastics

Acrobatic gymnastics, often referred to as acrobatics is a sport for both men and women. This is a group discipline. Acrobats in groups of two, three and four perform routines with the heads, hands and feet of their partners. They may pick their own music, but lyrics or Disney music are not allowed.

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Trampolining and Tumbling

Trampolining consists of four events; individual, synchronised, double mini and tumbling.

In individual routines in trampolining, the gymnast jumps constantly to achieve height and goes through a sequence of ten leaps at a stretch while performing a sequence of aerial tumbling skills. Only individual trampoline is included in the Olympics.

Synchronised trampoline is similar except that both competitors must perform the routine together and marks are awarded for synchronicity as well as the form of the moves.Double mini trampoline involves a smaller trampoline with a run-up.

Two moves are performed and the scores marked in a similar manner to individual trampoline. In power tumbling, athletes perform an explosive series of flips and twists down a sprung tumbling track.

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Aerobic gymnastics

Aerobic gymnastics involves the performance of routines by individuals, pairs, trios or groups up to six people. The main emphasis is on strength, flexibility, and aerobic fitness rather than acrobatic or balance skills.

The specialty of this is that although the sequences are very fast, they are done on a small area for a short time of about 60 to 90 seconds.

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TeamGym

This sport has a team which can have from six to twelve members, either all male, all female or a mixed squad. The team shows three disciplines; trampette, tumbling and floor. This variant of gymnastics has originated from Scandinavia and this has been a major event for over 20 years.

In every run of tumbling and trampette only six gymnasts compete. Their movement is a fast one, which happens one after the other, and the best move is the one performed last.

Both are performed to music. In floor, all members of the team take part and it is a mixture of dance, flexibility and skill, which requires an excellent level of choreography.

Compiled by Aravinda Dassanayake