The first gymnasts were acrobats who performed in ancient Egypt. In the second millennium BC, men and women of Crete during the age of Minoan culture developed the art of bull leaping. In bull leaping the performer would run toward a charging bull, grab its horns, and, upon being tossed in the air, complete various midair stunts before landing on the bull’s back, then, dismount with a flip. In ancient Greece, gymnastics were much more important. At the first Olympic games in 776 BC, the Greeks stressed the value of exercise systems as a preparation for other events such as wrestling and jumping. They also encouraged physical fitness as being vital to personal development. In the nineteenth century, there was a new interest in gymnastics.

In 1811, a Berlin schoolmaster, Ludwig Jahn (1778-1852), founded an outdoor gymnastics school. He also created apparatus for use in the school and much of today’s equipment has evolved from his designs. His wide contribution to the sport left Jahn remembered as Turnvater Jahn, ‘father of gymnastics’.

At the same time a Swede, Pehr Henrik Ling (1776-1839) introduced a different type of gymnastics. His system aimed at developing perfect rhythm of movement. Ling’s methods were also adopted for military drilling. The two styles- muscular development using apparatus and rhythmic movement- competed for popularity. Soon gymnastics clubs were formed in many countries.

Gradually, these clubs set up national associations to control training and competitions. In 1881 a Belgian, Nicolas Cuperus, founded the Federation of International Gymnastics (F.I.G.) linking the various national bodies. In the 1920’s, F.I.G. brought together the two systems, linking the German method with the Swedish style. Today F.I.G., with its headquarters in Switzerland, groups over seventy-four national organizations. In 1894, a French scholar and an educationist, Baron Pierre de Coubertin, summoned representatives from twelve countries to a conference in Paris on amateur sport. This meeting led to a revival of the Olympic games after a gap of 1500 years. The first modern Olympics were held in 1896 in Athens. The 311 competitors, from thirteen countries, were all men. In the gymnastics section, the German team won nearly all the trophies.

For many years, the thought of women competing in Olympic gymnastics was unacceptable. Finally, in 1928 at the Amsterdam Olympics, women were allowed to take part in the games. The Dutch women won the gold medal at these games. Gradually, women’s teams took a bigger part in gymnastics events. In 1952, the USSR took part in the Olympics. Their participation had an immense impact on the world of sport, especially gymnastics. The performances of the Soviet women gymnasts were outstanding and marked a big turning point in the history of women’s gymnastics.

Before 1972, gymnastics had little television coverage. Then at the 1972 Olympics in Munich, thanks to a Soviet gymnast, Olga Korbut, and a German television director, there was a high demand of interest in gymnastics. The director had a blank half-hour and switched his cameras to the women’s gymnastics event. At that very moment, Olga stepped into the arena. As the minutes passed, they witnessed her charm and then, following a dramatic mistake on the bars, her tearful dejection. The public took the tiny Russian girl to its heart, and overnight, Olga Korbut was a household name. By the end of the games, she had more words written about her than many athletes have in a lifetime. Soon, many youngsters wanted to be like Olga and gym clubs worldwide had waiting lists. Gymnastics as a sport had arrived.

A men's gymnastics meet consists of six events that are held in a set order. These events, in order of performance, are the floor exercise, pommel horse, rings, horse vault, parallel bars, and horizontal bar. Men who compete in all six events are called all-around gymnasts. Those who enter fewer than six events are called specialists.

The floor exercise is performed on a mat that measures about 40 feet square. The gymnast performs a continuous series of movements that require balance, flexibility, and strength. These movements include handsprings, leaps, somersaults in the air, and tumbling. The floor exercise must be completed in no less than 50 seconds and no more than 70 seconds.

The pommel horse, or side horse, is named for the padded piece of equipment on which this event is held. The horse measures about 5 feet 4 inches long and about 14 inches wide. It has two handles on top called pommels, which are about 4 feet 2 inches from the floor. The gymnast uses the pommels to support his weight entirely with his hands. He swings his legs in circles around the sides and top of the horse without stopping. He also performs a movement called the scissors, beginning with one leg on each side of the horse. He switches the positions of his legs as he swings them from side to side. He must frequently support himself with only one hand while raising the other hand to swing his legs past.

The rings are performed on two rings suspended from cables about 8 feet 4 inches above the floor. The gymnast leaps up and grasps the rings and then tries to keep them motionless while performing various movements. These include handstands and complete circular swings. The athlete supports his body in various strength positions, which require exceptional power. In a movement called the cross, for example, he supports himself in an upright position with his arms extended sideways. The event also includes holding positions, which require him to remain motionless for three seconds.

The horse vault is performed on a piece of equipment that resembles the pommel horse but has no pommels. In this event, the gymnast vaults across the length of the horse. He approaches the horse at a run and jumps up and forward from a low springboard. He places one or both hands on the horse for support as he goes over. He may twist around in the air, do a somersault, or perform any one of several movements. In some competitions, the gymnast vaults twice and his final score comes from an average of his two vaults. In other competitions, the gymnast vaults once.

On the parallel bars, the gymnast performs on two long bars about 5 feet 5 inches high and slightly more than shoulder width apart. He supports himself on the bars with his hands while performing handstands, swings, twists, and other acrobatic movements. The gymnast may perform several holding positions on the parallel bars. In each one, he must remain motionless for one or two seconds. In addition, he performs various strength movements that require great arm power and must be done slowly.

The horizontal bar event takes place on a somewhat flexible bar fastened about 8 feet 4 inches above the floor between two supports. The gymnast holds the bar with one or both hands and swings around it repeatedly. He performs several acrobatic movements without coming to a full stop. During this routine, he must reverse his position, which involves a change of grip on the bar. He also must perform maneuvers that require him to release his grip and regain it again while in the air. Gymnasts finish this event with a dismount from the bar. They swing rapidly around the bar, let go, and twist or somersault in the air before landing on their feet.

All-around competition for men consists of all six events. In college and international meets, an all-around competitor must perform a compulsory routine in each event. This routine involves a set sequence of movements. The compulsory routine will be dropped from international competition after the 1996 Olympic Games. The gymnast then performs an optional routine in each of the six events, doing whatever movements he chooses.

A women's gymnastics meet has four events. In order of performance, they are vault, uneven parallel bars, balance beam, and floor exercise. Most women gymnasts enter all of these events.

The vault is performed on the same equipment used in men's vaulting. But women gymnasts vault across the horse's width rather than its length. The gymnast vaults twice. Depending on the rules being used, the score is the average of the two vaults or the higher score.

On the uneven parallel bars, gymnasts compete on two parallel bars. The upper bar is 7 feet 9 inches high and the lower bar's height is 5 feet 2 inches. The athlete swings around one bar at a time, performing maneuvers that require great flexibility and agility. She switches rapidly back and forth from one bar to another, trying to keep in constant motion.

The balance beam involves a long beam 4 inches wide. Competitors perform jumps, leaps, running steps, and turns on it and try to use its full length. The best performers also do back handsprings and somersaults. The routine must last from 70 to 90 seconds.

The floor exercise is performed on a mat that resembles the one used in the men's floor exercise. Women gymnasts perform this event with a musical accompaniment. Each contestant designs her routine to match the tempo and mood of the music she has selected. She must take from 70 to 90 seconds to demonstrate her skill in acrobatics, dancing, and tumbling.

All-around competition for women includes all four events. In national and international meets, every competitor performs a compulsory routine in each event and then an optional routine in each.

At major competitions, four to six judges sit at each piece of equipment. Each judge arrives at a score independently. The high and low scores are dropped. The average of the remaining scores becomes the participant's final score. A judges' conference is called when the scores fail to fall within a range set by the rules. The gymnast's all-around score is compiled by adding each event's score together. The highest total determines the all-around winner of the competition. Women start with a score of 9.40 and men start with 9.00. Judges make deductions for flaws in execution and for any missing requirements in the composition of the exercise. A judge may award a bonus of up to 0.6 for women and 1.0 for men. A perfect score is 10.

Gymnastics skills are divided into five levels of difficulty, ranging from "A" as the easiest to "E" as the most difficult. Each routine must have a minimum number of elements from the levels, depending on the competition.

USA Gymnastics governs gymnastics in the United States. This organization is a member of the International Gymnastics Federation, which governs international gymnastics. In the United States, many states hold a championship competition for high school athletes. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has both men's and women's championships. USA Gymnastics conducts programs for men and women that determine the members of United States teams for international competition. Such competition includes the Olympic Games, the Pan-American Games, the World Games, and the World University Games.

Rhythmic gymnastics is a separate type of gymnastic competition. It first became a part of the Olympic games in 1984. Rhythmic gymnastics involves body movements and dance combined with the handling of small equipment--a rope, a hoop, a ball, clubs, and a long ribbon. The exercise is performed to music on a mat similar to the one used in floor exercise competition. Routines must cover the entire mat and include jumps, leaps, balances, and flexibility movements.

There are two categories of competition, individual and group. The group event involves five gymnasts who perform simultaneously. The group exercise requires a minimum number of formations and exchanges of equipment. Individual routines must last from 60 to 90 seconds. Group routines must last from 2 minutes to 2 minutes 30 seconds.

Other popular forms of gymnastics include modern rhythmic gymnastics and sports acrobatics. Trampolining was once a major part of competitive gymnastics in the United States. The event was dropped in 1964. Space does not permit the coverage of these excellent gymnastics activities, but they are gaining recognition as important divergent forms of gymnastics. Therapeutic or remedial gymnastics is a series of selected exercises that help relieve physical discomfort or restore function to disabled people. Educational gymnastics is a program that challenges students to master tactics involving strength, flexibility, and conditioning.

What does the future have in store for gymnastics? Floor exercises are likely to become more entertaining, while beam work might have musical accompaniment, and closely resemble floor exercises. The work on the bars will probably become more daring and more like those on the men’s high bar. The vaults we see will probably become more daring as well, including more height, twists, and flips. Whatever the direction, it is certain that gymnastics will continue to attract more people- both spectators and participants.