Gymnasts move in many ways.
They jump and flip high. They use bars and beams. It takes much strength. It is fun to watch. Do you like to jump?
Gymnasts perform short routines.
They use special tools.
Men use a pommel horse. It is a tool for swinging legs. They also use rings.
These rings hang from wires.
Women use a balance beam. It is a long, padded bar. They also use two bars. One bar is higher than the other.
Both use a vault. They run fast and jump. They land on their feet.
Many people watch them. It is a popular sport.
Artistic gymnastics is a sport of skill and power. Athletes perform short routines on special tools called apparatus.
They are judged on how hard the moves are. They are also judged on how well they do them.
Men and women use different tools. Men use the pommel horse. This tool is for swinging the legs. They also use still rings. These hang from wires. Gymnasts must stay strong so the rings do not swing. Men also use parallel bars and a high steel bar.
Women use uneven bars. These are two bars at different heights. They also use a balance beam. This is a long, padded bar. For the floor exercise, women dance to music. Men do floor routines without music.
Both men and women use the vault. A gymnast runs fast. They jump onto a springboard. Then they leap over the vaulting table. They may twist or flip in the air. Finally, they land on their feet.
Artistic gymnastics is a sport filled with skill and strength. Athletes perform short routines on special equipment called apparatus.
Judges look at how hard the moves are. They also watch how well the gymnast performs them. The sport is run by a group called World Gymnastics. This group uses a set of rules called the Code of Points to score every routine. It is a very popular sport to watch at the Summer Olympic Games.
Gymnasts use different tools depending on if they are men or women. Men compete on six events. These include the floor exercise and the pommel horse. They also use the still rings, which hang from wires. Men use the vault, the parallel bars, and the horizontal bar.
Women compete on four events. These are the vault, the uneven bars, the balance beam, and the floor exercise.
Learning how to use these tools takes a lot of practice. For the vault, a gymnast sprints down a long runway. They jump onto a springboard to get energy. Then they leap toward a wide vaulting table. They might twist or flip in the air before landing on their feet.
On the floor exercise, the surface has foam and springs. This helps gymnasts jump higher and land more softly. Women perform their floor routines to instrumental music.
This sport has a very long history. Ancient writers like Aristotle and Plato wrote about gymnastics. It was once used for military training. In the 1800s, gymnastics grew in places like Germany and Bohemia. A man named Friedrich Ludwig Jahn is called the father of gymnastics. He invented the horizontal bar and the parallel bars. The main group for the sport, the FIG, was founded in 1881.
Rules for the sport have changed many times. Women first competed in the Olympics in 1928. In the past, many gymnasts were very young teenagers. To keep athletes safe, the FIG raised the minimum age to 16 in 1997. Now, it is common to see gymnasts winning medals in their 20s. For example, at the 2024 Olympics, the average age for the Brazilian women's team was 25.2 years old.
Artistic gymnastics is a disciplined sport where athletes perform short routines on specific pieces of equipment called apparatus. This sport is governed globally by World Gymnastics, also known as the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG). The FIG manages elite international competition and assigns the Code of Points, which is the official set of rules used to score every performance. Within individual countries, national federations like USA Gymnastics or British Gymnastics regulate the sport. Artistic gymnastics is a highly popular spectator sport, especially during the Summer Olympic Games.
Athletes are judged on three main criteria: execution, the degree of difficulty, and their overall presentation. To ensure fairness, many high-level competitions follow the "Olympic order," which is a specific sequence of events. In Men's Artistic Gymnastics (MAG), the order is floor exercise, pommel horse, still rings, vault, parallel bars, and horizontal bar. In Women's Artistic Gymnastics (WAG), the sequence consists of the vault, uneven bars, balance beam, and floor exercise. These two branches differ significantly in both the techniques used and the apparatuses provided for the athletes.
The vault is a shared event for both men and women. A gymnast begins by sprinting down a long runway and leaping onto a springboard. This springboard helps the athlete harness energy to direct their body toward the vaulting platform. The gymnast must "pop" or block using their shoulders against the platform to gain height. They then rotate their body to land standing on the far side. In 2004, the traditional vaulting horse was replaced by a wider, longer, and more stable apparatus known as a vaulting table. This new design provides a larger surface for blocking, making it safer for gymnasts to attempt complex twists and somersaults.
Floor exercise routines vary between the two branches. The floor is a specialized surface made of rigid foam over plywood, supported by springs or foam blocks. This construction allows the floor to respond with force, helping gymnasts jump higher and land more softly. Men perform routines lasting 60 to 70 seconds without music, focusing on tumbling, strength, and non-acrobatic skills like circles or press handstands. They must also touch each corner of the floor at least once. Women perform 90-second choreographed routines to instrumental music. These routines combine tumbling passes, jumps, dance elements, and turns.
Men's specific apparatuses include the pommel horse, still rings, parallel bars, and the horizontal bar. On the pommel horse, gymnasts perform single-leg "scissors" or double-leg circular motions called flaring or spindles. The still rings are suspended by wire cables, and gymnasts must demonstrate strength while preventing the rings from swinging. Parallel bars require high levels of coordination for swings and releases. Finally, the horizontal bar, or high bar, is a thick steel bar where gymnasts perform 360-degree revolutions called "giants." To maintain a steady grip on the bars, many gymnasts use leather grips and chalk.
Women's specific apparatuses include the uneven bars and the balance beam. The uneven bars consist of two horizontal bars set at different heights. Gymnasts perform pirouettes and transitions between the bars, often using water and chalk to keep their leather grips from slipping. The balance beam is a long, padded spring beam that requires immense balance and flexibility. The history of the beam shows it was once a "low beam" near the ground, but it was raised much higher by the 1920s due to Swedish influence. These events require a combination of acrobatic skills and delicate dance elements.
The history of gymnastics traces back to ancient authors like Homer, Aristotle, and Plato. In early times, gymnastics included many activities like wrestling, boxing, and horse riding, often used for military training. The modern version evolved in Bohemia and Germany during the early 19th century. Friedrich Ludwig Jahn, known as the father of gymnastics, invented the horizontal and parallel bars. The FIG was founded in 1881, starting with only three countries. While gymnastics was in the 1896 Olympics, women were not allowed to compete in the Olympics until 1928.
Rules regarding athlete age have changed significantly over time. In the 1970s, the average age of gymnasts began to decrease as the sport became more difficult. By the 1992 Olympics, many elite gymnasts were very young teenagers, which led to concerns about athlete welfare. To address this, the FIG raised the minimum age for international elite competition to 16 in 1997. This change helped bring older gymnasts back to the sport. Today, it is common to see athletes winning medals in their 20s. For example, at the 2024 Olympics, the average age for the Brazilian women's medal-winning team was 25.2 years.
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