More Gymnastics News

Netflix Director Expresses Real Feelings for Simone Biles vs. Rebeca Andrade Gymnastics Rivalry Amidst ‘Rising’ Documentary Release

Simone Biles "Rising," director Katie Walsh highlights the respect and friendship between Biles and Rebeca Andrade in the recent interview
Simone Biles and Rebeca Andrade

Halloween Fever Has Simone Biles’ New York Fan Shock Gymnastics Community With Unexpected Crossover: “Want Her to See”

A fan in New York City took Halloween celebrations to a new level by paying tribute to Simone Biles by introducing - 'Timon Biles.'
Gymnastics: 2024 U.S. Olymmpic Team Trials – Gymnastics

Following Olivia Dunne’s Example, Suni Lee Takes Rare Step Outside Gymnastics

Suni Lee takes a bold step outside gymnastics, following Olivia Dunne's example and takes a new road to explore her diverse talents
Suni Lee

Forced to Leave College, Suni Lee Opens Up About Incurable Kidney Diagnosis: ‘I Was Away From Family’

Suni Lee played a vital role in Team USA's gold medal win while snagging her own medals but nothing about her journey has been easy!
Suni Lee or Sunisa Lee

Simone Biles’ First Words for Australian Breakdancing Sensation Raygun Revealed

The Paris Olympics brought tons of wild moments and memes, and now Simone Biles is jumping in to share her reactions!
NY: Zeta Live 2024 Simone Biles attending Zeta Live 2024 at Center415 in New York, NY on September 26, 2024. New York Ce

Afraid of Worsening Health, Suni Lee Was Forced to Struggle Alone to Uncover the Cause of Her Pain: ‘I Was Really Scared’

Team USA's gymnastics icon Suni Lee explained how she overcame inhibitions to discover the underlying cause of her health issues.
Gymnastics: 2024 U.S. Olymmpic Team Trials – Gymnastics

Swiss Cup Zurich 2024: When, Where and How to Watch the Gymnastics Mega Event

Swiss Cup Zurich is back and it's going to be more spectacular than last year, the venue is set to welcome gymnastics from all over the world
Leanne Wong

Simone Biles’ GOAT Tour Makes Its Final Stop at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit

November 3 marks the final day of the Simone Biles-led Gold Over America Tour, and The tour was a grand success as it comes to its end
Simone Biles – Gold Over America

Simone Biles & Others End Their Season, While Gymnastics Community Lauds Leanne Wong’s Career Choice: ‘Unfinished Business’

Leanne Wong's participation at an upcoming tournament earns praise from the gymnastics community after Simone Biles ends season.

Ignoring All Constraints, Simone Biles Revels in Joy as Gold Over America Tour Reaches Final Stop: “Gonna Miss You”

Simone Biles reveals her own condition while accepting flowers from the audience in the last days of the Gold Over America Tour.
Simone Biles (USA), AUGUST 5, 2024 – Gymnastics – Artistic : Women s Apparatus Floor Exercise Final during the Paris 202

Confused Over Gymnastics, Suni Lee’s Trivial Act Gains Full Support From Fans: “Valid for This”

Suni Lee turned heads at the Paris Olympics. But as she embarks on a new journey, her recent move has garnered fans' attention.
Artistic Gymnastics – Women’s Qualification – Subdivision 2

Separated by NFL, Simone Biles’ Husband Jonathan Owens Works Toward Heartfelt Act During Gymnast’s Pending Decision

As Thanksgiving nears, Jonathan Owens prepares for his turkey drive while Simone Biles contemplates attending his game on the holiday.
Simone Biles and Jonathan owens

About Gymnastics

Gymnastics is a collection of physical exercises requiring a lot of strength, agility, balance, and flexibility. It is closely related to circus performing skills as athletes put their bodies to the fullest use. Likewise, there are various disciplines for gymnasts to showcase their talents. Thus, it evolved from ancient Greeks that included skills to mounting to dismounting a horse. The competitive form of gymnastics is called artistic gymnastics. It involves various events for women like the floor, vault, uneven bars, and the beam. For men, they have floor, vault, rings, pommel horse, parallel bars, and horizontal bars. Therefore, the sport is famous for its aesthetic values and the Olympics draws major crowds to the gymnastics arena.

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History of Gymnastics

Gymnastics originated from the Greek term, 'to exercise naked,' applied in ancient Greece exercises. These exercises became a mainstay at the Olympics but most of the competition came from ancient roots. There are stone engravings found in Shandong province during the Han Period (206 BCE–220 CE) where they portrayed acrobatics. Like every sport, the person credited for making the sport famous was Friedrich Ludwig Jahn, founder of the Turnverein movement as he helped to spread gymnastics across the world.

Most of the exercises were conducted on the playground. Therefore, various events came into existence. They held the first Gymnastics festival in 1860 in Coburg. The Americans were introduced to Gymnastics in the late 1820s while the Federation Internationale Gymnastique was founded in 1881 to organize the event. The 1896 Olympic Games saw the starting stages of gymnastics being introduced to the world. 

The Sport

There are three divisions of artistic gymnastics- artistic, rhythmic, and trampoline. There are six events for men and the all around event where they combine scores from every discipline. For women, there are four exercises and a similar all around event, both team and individual events. Apart from artistic gymnastics, there is rhythmic gymnastics and is practiced only by women. Trampoline is the other discipline of gymnastics and introduced itself at the 2000 Olympic Games. As years pass by, various gymnasts showcased their athletic skills to the masses in attendance.

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Famous gymnasts in the world

Simone Biles:

In terms of pure dominance, Simone Biles enters the list as arguably the greatest gymnast of all time. She is the most decorated gymnast in the World Championships, winning four gold, one silver, and two bronze medals. The 2016 Rio Olympics saw her winning four gold medals and completely dominated the events. She has 25 World Championships medals to her name and her stance on mental health helps her become an influential person in the society.

Larisa Latynina:

Winning nine gold medals at the Olympics is astonishing and Larisa Latynina ranks on top of the famous gymnast charts. After Michael Phelps, she has the most Olympic medals with 18. She popularized the sport of gymnastics and was the first star in the sport. Her iconic performances will go down to the gymnastics folklore.

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Nadia Comaneci:

Achieving a perfect 10.0 score in gymnastics is amazing. But, doing it at the Olympics, when just turning 14, placed Nadia Comaneci amongst the pantheon of greats. The 1976 Olympics saw her earning seven perfect scores. She won five Olympic gold medals out of the nine she won.

Svetlana Khorkina:

With a total of 47 Olympic, World and European Championships medals, Svetlana Khorkina is a remarkable gymnast. She became the first gymnast to win three all-around titles at the World Championships while winning five gold medals in the uneven bars at World Championships. Her success in the uneven bars earned her the moniker 'The Queen of Bars.'