As one who studies and loves gymnastics, you might be striving to know so many terminologies relating to it. Reading this article, you will get to know what all around gymnastics is. What is All Around Gymnastics?
What is All Around Gymnastics?
The term “all-around” simply means several apparatus are used in gymnastics. All-around results would be the total of all four events in women’s gymnastics and rhythmic gymnastics or all six events in men’s gymnastics.
An all-arounder is a gymnast who competes on every apparatus. In team finals of the Olympics, for example, not all gymnasts compete in every event. However, those who do are the all-rounders. There are various elements of all-around gymnastics including artistic, rhythmic, trampolining and tumbling, acrobatic, and aerobic.
Artistic Gymnastics
Modern gymnastics which includes artistic activities evolved at the end of the 19th century. The philosophy is backed by the ancient Greeks who thought the sport was about the perfect symmetry between the mind and the body. Precisely, they believed a special connection happened when physical and intellectual activity was combined.
Artistic gymnastics may include the following exercises:
• Vault
• Floor exercise
• Pommel horse
• Still ringers
• Parallel bars
• High bar
• Uneven bars
• Balance beam
Rhythmic Gymnastics
Rhythmic gymnasts participate in routines either individually or in groups of five or more. The sport combines various activities that include ballet, gymnastics, dance, and apparatus manipulation. Manipulating an apparatus could include rope, hoop, ball, clubs, ribbon, or freehand.
This type of sport became a part of the Olympics in 1984. While men do not compete in rhythmic gymnastics, women focus on different types of floor exercises, including tumbling. The biggest events for this type of event may include:
• Olympic Games
• World Championships
• European Championships
• World Cup
• Grand-Prix Series
What is Trampolining and Tumbling?
This Olympic competitive sport will have gymnasts performing acrobatics while they bounce off a trampoline, from the simple jumps, tucks, and straddles to the complex somersaults and twists. Another type of gymnastics performed is tumbling. Without the use of an apparatus or equipment, tumbling consists of a combination of flips, handstands, handsprings, and many other moves common in trampolining.
Historically, these sports traced back to the archaeological drawings of ancient China, Egypt, and Persia. Today, trampolining is included in the Olympics since the year 2000 in Australia.
Acrobatic Gymnastics
Acrobatic gymnastics shall include a combination of dance and gymnastics. The routines are executed by various pairs of athletes such as men, women, or in mixed categories.
The exercises shall combine choreography and synchronization to display body control, showcasing different moves with grace, strength, and flexibility. Due to no apparatus involved in this category, individual gymnasts must work together with dedication and trust when it comes to their partner(s).
Aerobic Gymnastics
The following is the aerobic term that describes a competitive sport where complex and high-intensity movement patterns to music are created. Such types of continuous movement patterns’ ability initially originated from the traditional classes. However, aerobic gymnastics routines, have been combined with top-notch coordination, flexibility, and strength.
Where professional levels are concerned such as in the Olympics and other shows the goal would be to make movements perfect with highly difficult performance levels of lifts among others that may depend on the category.
