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History of Gymnastics

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The term gymnastics, dates back to ancient Greece about 2500 years ago, meaning “to exercise naked,” since the youths trained in the nude, performing floor exercises, lifting weights, and racing one another. It was a term used for  all exercises practiced in the gymnasium. Athens was home to many gymnastics tournaments, tumbling, rope climbing, and similar activities. In Sparta, the Romans used gymnastics and gyms as a way to train and prepare soldiers for combat. A lot of these exercises were later included in the Olympic Games.

 

The sport of Gymnastics appeared in the 18th century in Europe and came across the ocean to the US from Europe at the end of the 19 century, brought over by immigrants.

 

Who Invented Gymnastics? 

 

Modern gymnastics is credited with a lot of different opinions about its origins. But the most commonly accepted theory mentions the “father of modern gymnastics” -  Prussian soldier Friedrich Ludwig Jahn. After the Franco-Prussian war, Jahn saw the Germans’ defeat as a national humiliation. He turned to physical fitness to unite young people and boost their morale. Jahn created a gymnastics system called Turnen and invented new equipment for his students, including the parallel and high bars, the balance beam, and the horse.  
 

International Gymnastics Federation

 

The Fédération International de Gymnastique or FIG is the world’s governing organization of competitive gymnastics. It was founded on July 23, 1881, in Liege, Belgium, making it the world's oldest existing international sports organization. 

 

The federation sets the rules, known as the Code of Points, that regulate how gymnasts' performances are evaluated. 

 

Seven gymnastics disciplines are governed by the FIG: 

  • artistic gymnastics, further classified as men's artistic gymnastics (MAG) and women's artistic gymnastics (WAG); 

  • rhythmic gymnastics (RG); 

  • aerobic gymnastics (AER); 

  • acrobatic gymnastics (ACRO); 

  • trampolining (TRA); 

  • double mini-trampoline (DMT), tumbling (TUM) and parkour. 

 

Gymnastics is an ancient sport with a lot of tradition. Today it has become one of the most popular sports activities in the world - it is a popular sport and afterschool activity for children at  gymnastics clubs and facilities all over the world. Children as young as 3 can learn the foundations of gymnastics recreationally, and can go on to join a competitive team later. At Paramount AcroGymnastics you can choose a different programs of gymnastics classes for you and your children.

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The History of Acrobatic Gymnastics

Acrobatic gymnastics is both a sport and a show; it is a combination of strength, statics elements such balances and holds, flexibility, dynamism and grace.  Accompanied by a musical score, it combines choreography, individual gymnastics elements, tumbling, throws, and pyramids using the same floor as in artistic gymnastics.

It is the only gymnastics discipline carried out by team: women’s pair, men’s pair, mixed pair, women’s trio, men’s four.

This discipline developed in Europe during the fifties.

Since 1993, Acro has been included in the World Games, a worldwide gathering of non-Olympic disciplines and, since 2015, in that event's Continental equivalent, the European Games.

Acro was first presented at the Youth World Olympics in Buenos Aires in 2018.  It has since been promoted by the famous "Cirque du Soleil", its main showcase and partner in the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG).

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Acrobatic Gymnastics at the 2022 the World Game Birminham, USA

 

The World Games 2022 ware held in Birmingham, Alabama from July 7-17, 2022. The World Games is an extraordinary, international sports event held every four years, in the year following each Summer Olympic Games. Staged over 11 days, The Games represents the pinnacle of competition for 3,600 of the world’s best athletes in 30+ unique, multi-disciplinary sports. The World Games generates worldwide exposure for participating sports and provides a highly visible stage on which athletes from more than 100 countries compete for gold.

More than 600 medals were awarded to the competing athletes, including 200 gold medals for the ultimate champions in each discipline. Marking The World Games’ 40th anniversary, this was the first edition of the event to be hosted in the United States since the inaugural World Games in Santa Clara, California, in 1981.

 

Acrobatic Gymnastics has become more and more popular among young people, giving countries more chances to compete and win in international competitions. 

 

Here is a list of countries that have the most gold medals: 

 

  • United States of America 

  • China 

  • Bulgaria

  • Ukraine 

  • Poland

  • Great Britain

  • Belgum

  • Germany

  • Portugal

  • France 

  • Kazakhstan

  • Israel

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Train Like An Champions at Paramount Gymnastics 

At Paramount Gymnastics in San Jose, we are proud to train like world class athletes. Even at the beginner level, gymnastics classes develop the discipline and technical skills it takes to become champions. Our gymnastics classes are taught with a structured curriculum. Whether you are interested in getting started with recreational gymnastics classes, or ready to try out for our competitive team, we offer gymnastics training for everyone at Paramount. Contact us today if you have any questions.

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