Yabu:

GYMNASTICS

History of Gymnastics

Gymnastics, as an activity sport,

has been around for over 2000
years but as an competitive
sportit is a little more than 100
years old. Mass and individual
exhibitions were conducted by
variousclubs and ethnic groups
such as the Turnvereins and
Sokols.While it was slow-growing
in the club area, it was fast-
growing sport in the Turnvereins
andSokols. In 1830s, the sport of
gymnastics was introduced to
United States and its school
systems by such immigrants as
Charles Beck, Charles Follen
and Francis Libber.In 1881 the
International

Gymnastics Federation (FIG)

was formed,
later was renamed to
Bureauof the European Gymnast
ics Federation. This organization 
pioneered the internationalcomp
etition. The Amateur Athletic
Union (AAU) was formed in
United States in 1883.
Alongwith other amateur sports
in United States, this organizatio
n took over
the control of thegymnastics in U.
S. Various "championships" start
ed to develop by various clubs a
ndorganizations at about the
same time during 1880s. As an
organized and truly competitive
sport,gymnastics has existed for
a little more than a century. It
was introduced in the mid 1800s
to theUnited States, where it
inexorably gained in popularity
within school systems.The first
large-scale competition was the
1896 Olympics in Athens,
Greece. There Germanyhave
been the dominant team by
almost sweeping every medal.
Five countries have
participatedin this event. Men's
competitions included horizontal
bar, parallel bars, pommel horse,
rings, andvault.The first
international event following
1896 Olympics was held in 1903
in Antwerp,
Belgium.There competed gymna
sts from such places as Belgium, 
France, Luxembourg and the Net
herlands. This event is now
considered the first
World Championship. The first
men's teamcompetition was
added and held in 1904
Olympics at St. Louis. The first
women’s Olympicgymnastics
events were held in 1928. After
the Olympics began to officially
host gymnastics, theWorld
Championship gymnastics meet
emerged in the early 1900s, and
it is still held to this veryday.By
ninth World Championship in
1930 at Luxembourg, the
gymnastic competition
includedtrack and field events
such as pole vault, broad jump,
shot put, rope climb, and 100-
meter dash.Following that, track
and field events started to
disappear from gymnastics
events, such as
WorldChampionships. They fully 
disappeared from the sport of gy
mnastics by 1954 WorldChampio
nships.During 1924 Olympics in
France marked the beginning of
what they are today. In
gymnastics,men started to
compete for individual Olympic
titles in each gymnastic event.
The first
women'sgymnastic team debute
d during the 1928 Olympics. The 
first
women's event during 1928Olym
pics was the team combined
exercise, where it was dominated
by Netherlands. The firstU.S.
women's gymnastic team
competed in the 1936 Olympics
in Berlin, Germany.
Advertisement
 
In 1962, rhythmic gymnastics we
re recognized as a sport by the I
nternational GymnasticsFederati
on (FIG). In 1963 in Budapest,
Hungary, the first Rhythmic
World Championship took  place.
It included 28 athletes from 10
countries. In 1973, the United
States joined the sport
of rhythmic gymnastics during
the Rhythmic World
Championships. During the 1984
Olympics inLos Angeles, the
rhythmic individual all-around
competition was held for the first
time. At theCentennial Olympics
this year in Atlanta, the rhythmic
group event will be a medal-sport
for thefirst time.In 1970, the
United States Gymnastics
Federation, now formally known
as USA Gymnastics,was
organized and became the
governing body on this sport in
the U.S. It is still exist
today.Gymnastics does not
encourage violence in the same
way contact sports
do -- indeed, when oneis part of
a gymnastics team, one has to
work in synchronicity with and
have a certain trust for the other
members, a valuable lesson in
this individualism-driven social
environment.

This cancertainly help in any

future employment, especially if
your child is interested in
professions thatinvolve lots of
interpersonal
communication.Beyond practice,
gymnastics also requires
physical discipline. For instance,
if you do not
movein the way that you are taug
ht to move when on parallel bars, 
you will have falls anddisappoint
ment--and then, of course, you
learn from the mistake, pick up,
and try it again.Playing at
gymnastics braces a person for
the future in that way: it prepares
them for
theinevitable necessity of determi
nation an
d endurance in any of life’s ende
avors, whether in business or in
education. In conjunction with
school study habits, practice for
gymnastics canindeed lead a
young person into a level and
graceful confidence. In fact, for
as physically drivenas
gymnastics happens to be, it is
also an extremely intellectual
sport: every motion
requiresforethought, for in the
game, if you do not think of what
you are going to do before you
do it,you’ll end up on the mat.
 
Phases of Gymnastics
Gymnastics may seem to be
nothing more than a competition
for many people. This is
becauseUS people have the
exposure of gymnastics is
restricted to the Championships
meets that areaired via
Television or the Olympics. But,
the truth is something else.
Gymnastics is indeed
a“gateway” sport. Confidence
and body awareness are great
attributes to Gymnastics,
whichenable a person to
participate in lot of other
activities.Another attribute of
Gymnastics is an increased
awareness of your body. If you
undergo trainingin Gymnastics,
you will be able to accomplish
easier recovery from falls and
strategic changes inyour body
position. Now let us know what
the phases of Gymnastics that
actually help you to quickly
recover fromfalls and changes in
your body position are.
 
The three phases in gymnastics
are:
•
takeoff phase
•
the skill performance
•
landing phase.Though the
takeoff phase and the skill
performance
phase are enjoyable, the real
enjoyment inthe sport lies in the
landing phase.
To complete performing the skill,
you have to land safely andto
land safely, you need a lot of
practice. The gymnastic coach
helps you to accomplish the
task and trains you to achieve
ultimate success in your
performance.The whole set up m
akes it interesting to undergo trai
ning in gymnastics. When you ar
eintroduced to a skill, you will
have the advantage of plenty of
mats, soft foam-filled pits, and
aninstructor to physically guide
(spot) you through the proper
performance of the skill.You will
ultimately perform the skill
without the aid from an instructor
or training devices because in
the phase of training,
you will develop enough
confidence and competence.
Areas/ Forms of Gymnastics
•
Artistic Gymnastics
Artistic gymnastics is usually
divided into Men's and Women's
Gymnastics. Each group
doesdifferent events; Men
compete on Floor Exercise,
Pommel Horse, Still Rings, Vault,
ParallelBars, and High Bar, while
women compete on Vault,
Uneven Bars, Beam, and Floor
Exercise. Insome countries,
women at one time competed on
the rings, high bar, and parallel
bars (for example, in the 1950s
in theUSSR ). Though routines
performed on each event may be
short,they are physically
exhausting and push
the gymnast's strength, flexibility,
endurance andawareness to the
limit.Traditionally, at the
international level,
competitions on the various
apparatus consisted of
twodifferent performance
categories: compulsory and
optional. For the compulsory
event, eachgymnast performing
on a specific apparatus
executed the same required
routine. At the optionallevel, the
gymnast performed routines that
he or she choreographed.
Nowadays, each countrymay use
compulsory and optional routines
at their discretion in the training
of young gymnasts.
Women's events
Vault

In the vaulting events gymnasts:

sprint down a 25 meter (about 82
feet) runway, jumponto a
beatboard - a kind of
springboard, (run/ take-off
segment), land
momentarily,generally inverted
on the hands, on the vaulting
horse or vaulting
table, (pre flightsegment), then
spring or block off of this platform
to a two footed landing (post
flightsegment). The post flight se
gment may include one or more 
multiple saltos or somersaults,
and or twisting movements.
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In 2001, the traditional vaulting
horse was replaced with a new
apparatus, sometimesknown as
a tongue or table. The new
apparatus is more stable, wider,
and longer than theolder vaulting
horse - approx. 1m in length and
1m in width, gives gymnasts a
larger  blocking surface, and
is therefore safer than the old
vaulting horse. With the addition
of this new, safer vaulting table,
gymnasts are attempting more
difficult and dangerousvaults.
Uneven Bars
On the uneven bars (also known
as
asymmetric bars
, UK), the gymnast navigates
twohorizontal bars set at different
heights. The height is generally
fixed, but the width may be
adjusted. Gymnasts perform
swinging, circling, transitional,
and release moves,thatmay pass
over, under, and between the two
bars. Movements may pass
through thehandstand. Gymnasts
often mount the Uneven Bars
using a beatboard (springboard).
Balance Beam
The gymnast performs a choreog
raphed routine from 60 to 80 sec
onds in lengthconsisting of leaps,
acrobatic skills, somersaults,
turns and dance elements on a
paddedsprung beam. Apparatus
norms set by the International
Gymnastics Federation (used
for Olympic and most elite
competitions) specify the beam
must
be 125 cm (4' 1") high, 500cm
(16' 5") long, and 10 cm (4")
wide.
[6]
The event requires
in particular, balance,flexibility
and strength.
Floor
The floor event occurs on a
carpeted 12m × 12m square,
usually consisting of hard
foamover a layer of plywood,
which is supported by springs or
foam blocks generally called
a"sprung" floor. This provides a
firm surface that will respond with
force whencompressed, allowing
gymnasts to achieve extra
height and a softer landing than
would be possible on a
regular floor. Female gymnasts
perform a choreographed
exercise 70 to90 seconds long.
In levels 7 and up, they can
choose an accompanying music
piece,which must be instrumental
and cannot include vocals.
In theUSA, the other levels
must perform a routine that is
choreographed for them by
USAG and these routines
come withmusic. The routines of
a female gymnast consist of
tumbling passes, series of
jumps,dance elements, acrobatic
skills, and turns. A gymnast
usually performs three or
four tumbling passes that include
three or more skills or "tricks".
Elite gymnasts can have upto six
or seven tumbling passes.

 
At the compulsory levels (1-6)
gymnasts are judged on a scale
of 10, but as they reach the
higher levels, particularly levels 9
and 10, the gymnasts' start-
values may vary depending upon
anumber of different factors such
as skill level and skill
combinations. Also, every skill
has aletter grade describing its
difficulty. At level nine,
to reach a start value of ten, the
gymnast hasto acquire bonus
points, which she can achieve by
connecting two or more skills of a
certain highlevel of
difficulty.Compulsory levels of
gymnastics have choreographed
routines, and all women
competing at thatlevel do the
same routines. In the United
States, compulsory levels go
from 1-6; most gymnastsstart at
levels 1-4 . In optional level
competitions, however, all
routines are different and
havedifferent floor music.
Optional levels in the U.S.
include levels 7 - 10 (elite). The
Olympics, andcollege level
gymnastics are also optional. In
the Olympics, gymnasts are
considered elite levelgymnasts,
which is higher level than the
U.S. level 10.

Men's events
Floor Exercise
Male gymnasts also perform on a
12m. by 12m. sprung floor A
series of tumbling passesare
performed to demonstrate
flexibility, strength, and balance.
The gymnast must alsoshow
strength skills, including circles,
scales, and press handstands.
Men's floor routinesusually have
four passes that will total
between 60–70 seconds and are
performed withoutmusic, unlike
the women's event. Rules
require that gymnasts touch each
corner of thefloor at least once
during their routine.
Pommel Horse
A typical pommel horse exercise
involves both single leg and
double leg work. Single legskills
are generally found in the form of
scissors, an element often done
on the pommels.Double leg work
however, is the main staple of
this event. The gymnast swings
both
legsin a circular motion (clockwis
e or counterclockwise depending 
on preference) and performs
such skills on all parts of the
apparatus. To make the exercise
more challenging,gymnasts will
often include variations on a
typical circling skill by turning
(moores andspindles) or by
straddling their legs (Flares).
Routines end when the gymnast
performs adismount, either by
swinging his body over the
horse, or landing after a
handstand.
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Still Rings
Still Rings
is arguably the most physically
demanding event. The rings are
suspended onwire cable from a
point 5.75 meters off the floor,
and adjusted in height so the
gymnasthas room to hang freely
and
swing. He must perform a routine
demonstrating
balance,strength, power, and dyn
amic motion while preventing the 
rings themselves fromswinging.
At least one static strength move
is required, but some gymnasts
may includetwo or three. A
routine should have a dismount
equal in difficulty to the difficulty
of theroutine as a whole.
Vault
Gymnasts sprint down a runway,
which is a maximum of 25
meters in length,
beforehurdling onto a spring boar
d. The body position is maintaine
d while "punching"(blocking
using only a shoulder movement)
the vaulting platform. The
gymnast thenrotates to a
standing position. In advanced
gymnastics, multiple twists and
somersaultsmay be added
before landing. Successful vaults
depend on the speed of the run,
thelength of the hurdle, the
power
the gymnast generates from the
legs and shoulder girdle,the
kinesthetic awareness in the air,
and the speed of rotation in the
case of more difficultand
complex vaults.
Parallel Bars
 
Men perform on two bars slightly
further than a shoulder's width
apart and usually 1.75mhigh
while executing a series of
swings, balances, and releases
that require great strengthand
coordination.
High Bar
A 2.4cm thick steel bar raised
2.5m above the landing area is
all the gymnast has to holdonto
as he performs
 giants
(revolutions around the bar),
release skills, twists, and
changesof direction. By using
all of the momentum from giants
and then releasing at
the proper  point, enough
height can be achieved for
spectacular dismounts, such as a
triple-back salto. Leather grips
are usually used to help maintain
a grip on the bar.As with the
women, male gymnasts are also
judged on all of their events, for
their execution,degree of
difficulty, and overall presentation
skills.
Rhythmic gymnastics
The discipline of rhythmic
gymnastics is competed only by
women (although there is a
newversion of this discipline for
men being pioneered in Japan,
see Men's rhythmic gymnastics),
andinvolves the performance of
five separate routines with the
use of five apparatus — ball,
ribbon,hoop, clubs, rope — on a
floor area, with a much greater
emphasis on the aesthetic rather
than
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the acrobatic. Rhythmic routines
are scored out of a possible 20
points, and the music used bythe
gymnast can contain vocals, but
may not contain words.

Trampolining and Tumbling
Trampolining and tumbling
consists of four events,
individual, synchronized, double
mini and power tumbling.

Since 2000 individual trampoline

has been included in the Olympic
Games.Individual routines in
trampolining involve a build-up
phase during which the gymnast
jumpsrepeatedly to achieve
height, followed by a sequence
of ten leaps without pauses
during whichthe gymnast
performs a sequence of aerial
skills. Routines are marked out
of a maximum scoreof 10 points.
Additional points (with
no maximum at the highest
levels of competition) can
beearned depending on the
difficulty of the moves. In high
level competitions, there are
two preliminary routines, one
which has only two moves
scored for difficulty and one
where theathlete is free to
perform any routine. This is
followed by a final routine which
is optional. Somecompetitions
restart the score from zero for
the finals, other add the final
score to the preliminaryresults.
Synchronized trampoline is
similar except that both
competitors must perform the
routinetogether and marks are
awarded for synchronicity as well
as the form and difficulty of
themoves. Double mini
trampoline involves a smaller
trampoline with a run-up, two
moves are performed for
preliminaries and two more for
finals. Moves cannot be repeated
and the scoresare marked in a
similar manner to
individual trampoline. In power
tumbling, athletes perform
anexplosive series
of flips and twists
down a sprung tumbling track. Sc
oring is similar totrampolining.
Display gymnastics
General gymnastics enables
people of all ages and abilities to
participate in performance
groupsof 6 to more than 150
athletes. They perform
synchronized, choreographed
routines. Troupesmay be all one
gender or mixed. There are no
age divisions in general
gymnastics. The
largestgeneral gymnastics
exhibition is the quadrennialWorl
d Gymnaestradawhich was first
held in1939.

 

Aerobic gymnastics
Aerobic gymnastics (formally Sp
ort Aerobics) involves the perfor
mance of routines byindividuals, 
pairs, trios or groups up to
6 people, emphasizing
strength, flexibility,
and aerobicfitness rather than
acrobatic or balance skills.
Routines are performed on a
small floor area andgenerally last
60-90 seconds.
Acrobatic Gymnastics
Acrobatic gymnastics (formerly
Sports Acrobatics), often referred
to as acrobatics, "acro" sportsor
simply sports acro, is a group
gymnastic discipline for both men
and women. Acrobats ingroups
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.Performers must
compete in preparatory grades A
and B, then move on to grades 1,
2, 3, 4 and 5; by 3, 4 and 5 two
routines are required, one for
balances and another for
tempos.
TeamGym
TeamGym originates from
Scandinavia and this particular
type of Gymnastics has been a
major event for over 20 years. A
team in this sport can have from
6 to 12 members, either all male,
allfemale or a mixed squad. The
team shows three disciplines,
Trampette, Tumbling and Floor.In
every run of Tumbling and
Trampette only six gymnasts
compete. They stream their
abilities(meaning that one
gymnast goes after one another
very quickly) The best move is
the one performed last. Both are
performed to music.
Floor
All members of the Team take
part here. It is a mixture of
Dance, flexibility and skill.The
routine has to be skillfully
choreographed and the judges
look out for changes inshape.
There need to be at least two
body waves involved, one spin,
two balances andsome actual
gymnastic acrobatics. The Floor
is performed to music.
Trampette 
Here a trampette is used. There
are two components of this; Vault
and the Trampette onits own.
There has to be three runs in
total. At least one of these runs
has to be a vaultrun. Another run
has to include all the gymnasts
doing the same move. This is
generallythe first run. This is also
performed to music.
Tumbling
Again, here there are three runs
(rounds) involved. One of which
has to include all
sixgymnasts doing a forwards se
ries. Another run also has to incl
ude the gymnastsco
mpleting the same move. Each
series must have at least three
different acrobaticelements.
GYMNASTICS
History of Gymnastics
Gymnastics, as an activity sport,
has been around for over 2000
years but as an competitive
sportit is a little more than 100
years old. Mass and individual
exhibitions were conducted by
variousclubs and ethnic groups
such as the Turnvereins and
Sokols.While it was slow-growing
in the club area, it was fast-
growing sport in the Turnvereins
andSokols. In 1830s, the sport of
gymnastics was introduced to
United States and its school
systems by such immigrants as
Charles Beck, Charles Follen
and Francis Libber.In 1881 the
International Gymnastics
Federation (FIG) was formed,
later was renamed to
Bureauof the European Gymnast
ics Federat
ion. This organization pioneered t
he internationalcompetition. The
Amateur Athletic Union (AAU)
was formed in United States in
1883.
Alongwith other amateur sports
in United States, this organizatio
n took over
the control of thegymnastics in U.
S. Various "championships" start
ed to develop by various clubs a
ndorganizations at about the
same time during 1880s. As an
organized and truly competitive
sport,gymnastics has existed for
a little more than a century. It
was introduced in the mid 1800s
to theUnited States, where it
inexorably gained in popularity
within school systems.The first
large-scale competition was the
1896 Olympics in Athens,
Greece. There Germanyhave
been the dominant team by
almost sweeping every medal.
Five countries have
participatedin this event. Men's
competitions included
horizontal bar, parallel bars,
pommel horse, rings,
andvault.The first international
event following 1896 Olympics
was held in 1903 in Antwerp,
Belgium.There competed gymna
sts from such places as Belgium, 
France, Luxembourg and the Net
herlands. This event is now
considered the first
World Championship. The first
men's teamcompetition was
added and held in 1904
Olympics at St. Louis. The first
women’s Olympicgymnastics
events were held in 1928.

After the Olympics began

to officially host gymnastics,
theWorld Championship
gymnastics meet emerged in the
early 1900s, and it is still held to
this veryday.By ninth World
Championship in 1930 at
Luxembourg, the gymnastic
competition includedtrack and
field events such as
pole vault, broad jump, shot put,
rope climb, and 100-meter
dash.Following that, track and
field events started to disappear
from gymnastics events, such as
WorldChampionships. They fully 
disappeared from the sport of gy
mnastics by 1954 WorldChampio
nships.During 1924 Olympics in
France marked the beginning of
what they are today. In
gymnastics,men started to
compete for individual Olympic
titles in each gymnastic event.
The first
women'sgymnastic team debute
d during the 1928 Olympics. The 
first
women's event during 1928Olym
pics was the team combined
exercise, where it was dominated
by Netherlands. The firstU.S.
women's gymnastic team
competed in the 1936 Olympics
in Berlin, Germany.
Advertisement
 
In 1962, rhythmic gymnastics we
re recognized as a sport by the I
nternational GymnasticsFederati
on (FIG). In 1963 in Budapest,
Hungary, the first Rhythmic
World Championship took  place.
It included 28 athletes from 10
countries. In 1973, the United
States joined the sport
of rhythmic gymnastics during
the Rhythmic World
Championships. During the 1984
Olympics inLos Angeles, the
rhythmic individual all-around
competition was held for the first
time. At theCentennial Olympics
this year in Atlanta, the rhythmic
group event will be a medal-sport
for thefirst time.In 1970, the
United States Gymnastics
Federation, now formally known
as USA Gymnastics,was
organized and became the
governing body on this sport in
the U.S. It is still exist
today.Gymnastics does not
encourage violence in the same
way contact sports do -- indeed,
when oneis part of a
gymnastics team, one has to
work in synchronicity with and
have a certain trust for the other
members, a valuable lesson in
this individualism-driven social
environment. This cancertainly
help in any future employment,
especially if your child is
interested in professions
thatinvolve lots of interpersonal
communication.Beyond practice,
gymnastics also requires
physical discipline. For instance,
if you do not
movein the way that you are taug
ht to move when on parallel bars, 
you will have falls anddisappoint
ment--and then, of course, you
learn from the mistake, pick up,
and try it again.Playing at
gymnastics braces a person for
the future in that way: it prepares
them for
theinevitable necessity of determi
nation and endurance in any of lif
e’s endeavors, whether in busine
ss or in education. In conjunction
with school study habits,
practice for gymnastics
canindeed lead a young person
into a level and graceful
confidence. In fact, for as
physically drivenas gymnastics
happens to be, it is also an
extremely intellectual sport:
every motion
requiresforethought, for in the
game, if you do not think of what
you are going to do before you
do it,you’ll end up on the mat.
 
Phases of Gymnastics
Gymnastics may seem to be
nothing more than a competition
for many people. This is
becauseUS people have the
exposure of gymnastics is
restricted to the Championships
meets that areaired via
Television or the Olympics. But,
the truth is something else.
Gymnastics is indeed a“gateway”
sport. Confidence and body
awareness are great attributes to
Gymnastics, whichenable a
person to
participate in lot of other
activities.Another attribute of
Gymnastics is an increased
awareness of your body. If you
undergo trainingin Gymnastics,
you will be able to accomplish
easier recovery from falls and
strategic changes inyour body
position. Now let us know what
the phases of Gymnastics that
actually help you to quickly
recover fromfalls and changes in
your body position are.

 
The three phases in gymnastics
are:
•
takeoff phase
•
the skill performance
•
landing phase.Though the
takeoff phase and the skill
performance
phase are enjoyable, the real
enjoyment inthe sport lies in the
landing phase.
To complete performing the skill,
you have to land safely andto
land safely, you need a lot of
practice. The gymnastic coach
helps you to accomplish the
task and trains you to achieve
ultimate success in your
performance.The whole set up m
akes it interesting to undergo trai
ning in gymnastics. When you ar
eintroduced to a skill, you will
have the advantage of plenty of
mats, soft foam-filled pits, and
aninstructor to physically guide
(spot) you through the proper
performance of the skill.You will
ultimately perform the skill
without the aid from an instructor
or training devices because in
the phase of training, you will
develop enough confidence and
competence.
Areas/ Forms of Gymnastics
•
Artistic Gymnastics
Artistic gymnastics is usually
divided into Men's and Women's
Gymnastics. Each group
doesdifferent events; Men
compete on Floor Exercise,
Pommel Horse, Still Rings, Vault,
ParallelBars, and High Bar, while
women compete on Vault,
Uneven Bars, Beam, and Floor
Exercise. Insome countries,
women at one time competed on
the rings, high bar, and parallel
bars (for example, in the 1950s
in theUSSR ). Though routines
performed on each event may be
short,they are physically
exhausting and push
the gymnast's strength, flexibility,
endurance andawareness to the
limit.Traditionally, at the
international level, competitions
on the various apparatus
consisted of twodifferent
performance
categories: compulsory and
optional. For the compulsory
event, eachgymnast performing
on a specific apparatus
executed the same required
routine. At the optionallevel, the
gymnast performed routines that
he or she choreographed.
Nowadays, each countrymay use
compulsory and optional routines
at their discretion in the training
of young gymnasts.
Women's events
Vault
In the vaulting events gymnasts:
sprint down a 25 meter (about 82
feet) runway, jumponto a
beatboard - a kind of
springboard, (run/ take-off
segment), land
momentarily,generally inverted
on the hands, on the vaulting
horse or vaulting table, (pre
flightsegment), then spring or
block off of this platform to a two
footed landing (post
flightsegment). The post flight se
gment may include one or more 
multiple saltos or somersaults,
and or twisting movements.
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In 2001, the traditional vaulting
horse was replaced with a new
apparatus, sometimesknown as
a tongue or table. The new
apparatus is more stable, wider,
and longer than theolder vaulting
horse - approx. 1m in length and
1m in width, gives gymnasts a
larger  blocking surface, and
is therefore safer than the old
vaulting horse. With the addition
of this new, safer vaulting table,
gymnasts are attempting more
difficult and dangerousvaults.
Uneven Bars
On the uneven bars (also known
as
asymmetric bars
, UK), the gymnast navigates
twohorizontal
bars set at different heights. The
height is generally fixed, but the
width may be adjusted.
Gymnasts perform swinging,
circling, transitional, and release
moves,thatmay pass over, under,
and between the two bars.
Movements may pass through
thehandstand. Gymnasts often
mount the Uneven Bars using a
beatboard (springboard).
Balance Beam
The gymnast performs a choreog
raphed routine from 60 to 80 sec
onds in lengthconsisting of leaps,
acrobatic skills, somersaults,
turns and dance elements on a
paddedsprung beam. Apparatus
norms set by the International
Gymnastics Federation (used
for Olympic and most elite
competitions) specify the beam
must be 125 cm (4' 1") high,
500cm (16' 5") long, and 10 cm
(4") wide.
[6]
The event requires
in particular, balance,flexibility
and strength.

Floor
The floor event occurs on a
carpeted 12m × 12m square,
usually consisting of hard
foamover a layer of plywood,
which is supported by springs or
foam blocks generally called
a"sprung" floor. This provides a
firm surface that will respond with
force whencompressed, allowing
gymnasts to achieve extra
height and a softer landing than
would be possible on a
regular floor. Female gymnasts
perform a choreographed
exercise 70 to90 seconds long.
In levels 7 and up, they can
choose an accompanying music
piece,which must be instrumental
and cannot include vocals. In
theUSA, the other levels
must perform a routine that is
choreographed for them by
USAG and these routines
come withmusic. The routines of
a female gymnast consist of
tumbling passes, series of
jumps,dance elements, acrobatic
skills, and turns. A gymnast
usually performs three or
four tumbling passes that include
three or more skills or "tricks".
Elite gymnasts can have upto six
or seven tumbling passes.

 
At the compulsory levels (1-6)
gymnasts are judged on a scale
of 10, but as they reach the
higher levels, particularly levels 9
and 10, the gymnasts' start-
values may vary depending upon
anumber of different factors such
as skill level and skill
combinations. Also, every skill
has aletter grade describing its
difficulty. At level nine, to reach
a start value of ten, the gymnast
hasto acquire bonus points,
which she can
achieve by connecting two or
more skills of a certain highlevel
of difficulty.Compulsory levels of
gymnastics have choreographed
routines, and all women
competing at thatlevel do the
same routines. In the United
States, compulsory levels go
from 1-6; most gymnastsstart at
levels 1-4 . In optional level
competitions, however, all
routines are different and
havedifferent floor music.
Optional levels in the U.S.
include levels 7 - 10 (elite). The
Olympics, andcollege level
gymnastics are also optional. In
the Olympics, gymnasts are
considered elite levelgymnasts,
which is higher level than the
U.S. level 10.
Men's events
Floor Exercise
Male gymnasts also perform on a
12m. by 12m. sprung floor A
series of tumbling passesare
performed to demonstrate
flexibility, strength, and balance.
The gymnast must alsoshow
strength skills, including circles,
scales, and press handstands.
Men's floor routinesusually have
four passes that will total
between 60–70 seconds and are
performed withoutmusic, unlike
the women's event. Rules
require that gymnasts touch each
corner of thefloor at least once
during their routine.
Pommel Horse
A typical pommel horse exercise
involves both single leg and
double leg work. Single legskills
are generally found in the form of
scissors, an element often done
on the pommels.Double leg work
however, is the main staple of
this event. The gymnast swings
both
legsin a circular motion (clockwis
e or counterclockwise depending 
on preference) and performs
such skills on all parts of the
apparatus. To make the exercise
more challenging,gymnasts will
often include variations on a
typical circling skill by turning
(moores andspindles) or by
straddling their legs (Flares).
Routines end when the gymnast
performs adismount, either by
swinging his body over the
horse, or landing after a
handstand.
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Still Rings
Still Rings
is arguably the most physically
demanding event. The rings are
suspended onwire cable from a
point 5.75 meters off the floor,
and adjusted in height so the
gymnasthas room to hang freely
and swing. He must perform a
routine demonstrating
balance,strength, power, and dyn
amic moti
on while preventing the rings the
mselves fromswinging. At least
one static strength move is
required, but some gymnasts
may includetwo or three. A
routine should have a dismount
equal in difficulty to the difficulty
of theroutine as a whole.
Vault

Gymnasts sprint down a runway,

which is a maximum of 25
meters in length,
beforehurdling onto a spring boar
d. The body position is maintaine
d while "punching"(blocking
using only a shoulder movement)
the vaulting platform. The
gymnast thenrotates to a
standing position. In advanced
gymnastics, multiple twists and
somersaultsmay be added
before landing. Successful vaults
depend on the speed of the run,
thelength of the hurdle, the
power the gymnast generates
from the legs and shoulder
girdle,the kinesthetic awareness
in the air, and the speed of
rotation in the case of more
difficultand complex vaults.
Parallel Bars
 
Men perform on two bars slightly
further than a shoulder's width
apart and usually 1.75mhigh
while executing a series of
swings, balances, and releases
that require great strengthand
coordination.
High Bar
A 2.4cm thick steel bar raised
2.5m above the landing area is
all the gymnast has to holdonto
as he performs
 giants
(revolutions around the bar),
release skills, twists, and
changesof direction. By using
all of the momentum from giants
and then releasing at
the proper  point, enough height
can be achieved for spectacular
dismounts, such as a triple-
back salto.
Leather grips are usually used to
help maintain a grip on the
bar.As with the women, male
gymnasts are also judged on all
of their events, for their
execution,degree of difficulty,
and overall presentation skills.
Rhythmic gymnastics
The discipline of rhythmic
gymnastics is competed only by
women (although there is a
newversion of this discipline for
men being pioneered in Japan,
see Men's rhythmic gymnastics),
andinvolves the performance of
five separate routines with the
use of five apparatus — ball,
ribbon,hoop, clubs, rope — on a
floor area, with a much greater
emphasis on the aesthetic rather
than
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the acrobatic. Rhythmic routines
are
scored out of a possible 20
points, and the music used bythe
gymnast can contain vocals, but
may not contain words.

Trampolining and Tumbling
Trampolining and tumbling
consists of four events,
individual, synchronized, double
mini and power tumbling. Since
2000 individual trampoline has
been included in the Olympic
Games.Individual routines in
trampolining involve a build-up
phase during which the gymnast
jumpsrepeatedly to achieve
height, followed by a sequence
of ten leaps without pauses
during whichthe gymnast
performs a sequence of aerial
skills. Routines are marked out
of a maximum scoreof 10 points.
Additional points (with no
maximum at the highest levels of
competition) can beearned
depending on the difficulty of the
moves. In high level
competitions, there are
two preliminary routines, one
which has only two moves
scored for difficulty and one
where theathlete is free to
perform any routine. This is
followed by a final routine which
is optional. Somecompetitions
restart the score from zero for
the finals, other add the final
score to the preliminaryresults.
Synchronized trampoline is
similar except that both
competitors must perform the
routinetogether and marks are
awarded for synchronicity as well
as the form and difficulty of
themoves. Double mini
trampoline involves a smaller
trampoline with a run-up, two
moves are performed for
preliminaries and two more for
finals. Moves cannot be repeated
and the scoresare marked in a
similar manner to individual
trampoline. In power tumbling,
athletes perform
anexplosive series
of flips and twists
down a sprung tumbling track. Sc
oring is similar totrampolining.
Display gymnastics
General gymnastics enables
people of all ages and abilities to
participate in performance
groupsof 6 to more than 150
athletes. They perform
synchronized, choreographed
routines. Troupesmay be all one
gender or mixed. There are no
age divisions in general
gymnastics. The
largestgeneral gymnastics
exhibition is the quadrennialWorl
d Gymnaestradawhich was first
held in1939.

Aerobic gymnastics
Aerobic gymnastics (formally Sp
ort Aerobics) involves the perfor
mance of routines byindividuals, 
pairs, trios or groups up to
6 people, emphasizing
strength, flexibility,
and aerobicfitness rather than
acrobatic or balance skills.
Routines are performed on
a small floor area andgenerally
last 60-90 seconds.
Acrobatic Gymnastics
Acrobatic gymnastics (formerly
Sports Acrobatics), often referred
to as acrobatics, "acro" sportsor
simply sports acro, is a group
gymnastic discipline for both men
and women. Acrobats ingroups
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.Performers must
compete in preparatory grades A
and B, then move on to grades 1,
2, 3, 4 and 5; by 3, 4 and 5 two
routines are required, one for
balances and another for
tempos.
TeamGym
TeamGym originates from
Scandinavia and this particular
type of Gymnastics has been a
major event for over 20 years. A
team in this sport can have from
6 to 12 members, either all male,
allfemale or a mixed squad. The
team shows three disciplines,
Trampette, Tumbling and Floor.In
every run of Tumbling and
Trampette only six gymnasts
compete. They stream their
abilities(meaning that one
gymnast goes after one another
very quickly) The best move is
the one performed last. Both are
performed to music.
Floor
All members of the Team take
part here. It is a mixture of
Dance, flexibility and skill.The
routine has to be skillfully
choreographed and the judges
look out for changes inshape.
There need to be at least two
body waves involved, one spin,
two balances andsome actual
gymnastic acrobatics. The Floor
is performed to music.
Trampette 
Here a trampette is used. There
are two components of this; Vault
and the Trampette onits own.
There has to be three runs in
total. At least one of these runs
has to be a vaultrun. Another run
has to include all the gymnasts
doing the same move. This is
generallythe first run. This is also
performed to music.
Tumbling
Again, here there are three runs
(rounds) involved. One of which
has to include all
sixgymnasts doing a forwards se
ries. Another run also has to incl
ude the gymnastscompleting the
same move. Each series must
have at least three different
acrobaticelements.