Gymnastics has existed as a sport for more than 2,000 years. However, it didn't start to grow competitively until the past century. Although many athletic clubs and organizations held gymnastic exhibitions, it wasn't until the U.S. hosted its first national championship competition in 1881 that the sport began to flourish.
Governing Body
The Amateur Athletic Association was the first governing body for gymnastics in the U.S., and they were largely responsible for expanding the popularity of the sport internationally. The sport made its Olympic debut in 1896, and as HickokSports.com explains, the first US national championship was held in 1897. A women's division was later added in 1932. USA Gymnastics became the country's governing body for the sport in 1970, and according to USAGymnastics.org, they are responsible for selecting and training Olympic athletes while promoting the sport nationwide.
Competitions
During the first Olympic world competition, athletes from five countries, including the U.S., participated in the horizontal bar, parallel bars, pommel horse, rings and vault. The men's team competition was added to the program during the 1904 Olympics in St. Louis, where the U.S. team won all three team medals. During the 1930 Olympics, the pole vault, broad jump, shot put, rope climb and 100-meter sprint were also added. The first women's competition took place during the 1936 Olympics in Berlin.
Athletes
According to USA-Gymnastics.org, more than 90,000 U.S. athletes are registered to perform competitively. However, throughout history, there have been a handful of USA athletes that especially stand out. Mary Lou Retton is known for earning a 10.0 on the vault during the 1984 Olympics; Kerri Strug is remembered for landing the vault with an injured ankle during the 1996 Olympics; in 2004 Paul Hamm came from behind to win the gold and Shannon Miller has won unprecedented seven Olympic medals and nine World Championship all-around titles.
Trampoline
Although USA-Gymnastics.com explains that trampoline techniques can be traced back to ancient civilizations in China, Egypt and Persia, it didn't become a part of the Olympic Games until 2000. After George Nissen created a portable version of the trampoline in 1936, it started to make its way into competitions shortly thereafter. The first Trampoline World Championship occurred in 1964; the activity was recognized as a US sport in 1967 and it became a part of USA Gymnastics in 1999.
Member Comments