The History And Practice Of Gymnastics

By Joshua Nelson


Gymnastic exercises are performed with a high level of flexibility, control, balance, and strength. An international organization, FIG, is responsible regulating and standardizing performance of the sport on a global scale. Even with the existence of FIG, individual states have their own regulatory organizations within them which are affiliated to FIG. International regulation is necessary because of international games held annually. Gymnastics is one of the best sports in Olympics.

The Greek language is the source of the term gymnastic. The corresponding Greek word means naked when translated into English. The word could also mean dancing naked in Greek. Ancient gymnasts practiced naked, hence the origin of the name. The term first appeared and started to be used in the 1570s. It has grown in use and prevalence worldwide since its coining.

Gymnastic originated from Ancient Greece. It was originally meant for training in the military. Soldiers got involved in these exercises as part of getting ready for war. The incorporation of gymnastic into military training was thought to equip soldiers with strength and skills necessary for fighting. Inclusion into military training was later stopped, but some aspects of it may still be found in certain militaries.

Modern gymnastic was born in Germany by three pioneer educators. These pioneers were responsible for the creation of exercises for young men and boys on apparatus they designed. It is these exercises that resulted in the birth of the modern variety of gymnastic. In France, educative gymnastic was introduced by someone named Don Franscisco Ondeano. On the other hand, the use of rings, high bars, and parallel bars in international competitions was promoted by Jahn, one of the three German pioneers of modern gymnastic.

The FIG got established in 1881 in Liege. By 1896, the high level of popularity of men gymnastic made to be included in Olympic Games. There was a lot of changing in male events from when they were first included in Olympic games until the 1950s on both national and international levels.

What seemed normal back in the day would be very strange to the audiences of today. Some among the exercises participants took part in include high jumping, horizontal ladder, running, rope climbing, and floor calisthenics. Women started to take part in gymnastic events in the 1920s. The first Olympic competitions in which women participated were very primitive. The only events included were track and field and synchronized calisthenics. This Olympic Games occurred in Amsterdam in 1928.

Standardization of both women and men Olympic events and apparatus had already been done by 1954. There was global consensus on grading structures and formats. The Soviet surprised the world by high caliber of performance and set a precedent that persists even today. The modern age of this field was initiated and publicized by the newly invented television.

Today, both male and female gymnastic events have attained the peak of perfection and quality. It is a sport that the whole world finds interest in with several excellent gymnasts originating from all continents. Since 2006, the traditional scoring system was changed to adopt a new system.




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