Men's artistic gymnastics is a sport demanding explosive power and acrobatic agility. It shares only two events with the women's competition, the floor exercise and vault. The horizontal bar offers many of the same challenges as the uneven bars on the women's side, but the pommel horse, rings and parallel bars require tremendous core muscle and upper body strength. While women gymnasts often peak in their upper teens, male gymnasts usually gain their optimal power-to-weight ratio in their 20s.
Floor Exercise
From basic tumbling skills like rolls and cartwheels, gymnasts graduate to spectacular airborne moves formerly restricted to trampolines. They propel themselves into multiple twisting and flipping saltos. They also demonstrate their balance and strength by sustaining various one-arm or one-leg positions during their routines.
Vault
Gymnasts might spend years building their foundation for this event, learning to propel themselves off the springboard and master clean landings on the mat. Then they learn to push off the table and perform aerial moves. USA Gymnastics describes the event as "quick, explosive and dramatic," and notes that that "the height, distance of travel, overall acceleration into the vault and sudden impact of a no-step, 'stuck' landing all create a good impression for the judges."
Pommel Horse
Developing the skills for this apparatus also can take years. Just elevating on the pommel horse is hard enough on their arms and shoulders, but gymnasts also must hurl their body though continuous swings and loops, mostly using one arm. At the lower competitive levels, gymnasts use the mushroom training apparatus while building enough strength to master double-leg circles and false scissors.
Parallel Bars
This event also demands great upper body and core strength. High-level competition features swinging elements from the support, hang and upper arm positions. Gymnasts take flight, often losing sight of the bars in their routines. They execute double backward dismounts and other difficult finishes.
Horizontal Bar
At the lower levels, gymnasts perfect simpler moves like the hip circle, but this is a high-flying event at upper competitive levels. Gymnasts soar around the bar with giant swings and pirouettes. They also learn how to "stick" increasingly spectacular dismounts.
Rings
Suspended in the air and relying on their arms, shoulders and core muscles, gymnasts learn to form and hold difficult positions like the flexed arm and the "L." USA Gymnastics notes: "The rings should be absolutely still and under control at the end of each skill. The body should be straight with no arching, and arms should be sturdy and strong with no shaking."
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