List of Gymnastics Facts

Gymnastics has been around for thousands of years as a sport and a form of exercise. It started in Greece before being recreated in Germany. The sport has many rules and a rich history. Read on to learn some key facts about gymnastics below.

History Facts

• Ancient Greeks used gymnastics as a way to prepare for war.
• The first modern Olympic gymnastics competition was in 1896. Women's gymnastics was not competed until 1928.
• Gymnasts have to be at least 16 to compete in the Olympic Games.
• Until the 1950’s, Olympic gymnastics consisted of events such as rope climbing, high jumping, running, and horizontal ladder. 
• There are several different kinds of gymnastics. These include: artistic, rhythmic, acrobatic, trampoline, tumbling, and aerobic gymnastics.
• Rhythmic gymnastics became an official sport at the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984.
• Trampoline was competed for the first time as a separate event in the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
• Parkour is considered to be a part of gymnastics, with the first World Championship taking place in 2018.

Scoring Facts

• In 2006, the International Gymnastics Federation changed the way routines were scored. Instead of being out of 10, there are now two different scores; execution and difficulty.
• The execution and difficulty scores add together to form final scores in the teens. This did away with the famous “perfect 10” in elite gymnastics.
• Women’s college gymnastics still uses the “perfect 10” model, while college men’s gymnastics uses the same scoring model as international gymnastics.
• In difficulty scores, gymnasts are scored on how difficult the skills are that they are competing, and if they manage to connect those skills to one another.
• For execution scores, gymnasts are scored on how well they execute their skills. They lose points for mistakes in artistry and technique.

Facts About Gymnasts

• The first ever perfect ten score in elite gymnastics was achieved by Nadia Comaneci during the 1976 Montreal Olympics.
• Mary Lou Retton was the first United States gymnast to get two perfect scores. She gained them during the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.
• The most decorated Olympic and World Championship gymnast is American Simone Biles, with a combined 32 World Championship and Olympic medals as of 2023.
• Gabby Douglas was the first African American gymnast to win the Olympic all-around event.
• The Soviet Union won a total 182 medals in gymnastics starting in 1952. The second ranked nation is the United States with 119 medals as of 2023.
• The first American gymnast to become a world champion was Kurt Thomas when he won the floor exercise in 1978.

Fun Facts

• In ancient gymnastics, they used to vault over bulls instead of a vaulting table.
• In Ancient Greece, gymnastics events were done in the nude.
• Most professional gymnasts started their careers between the ages of two and five and have been practicing ever since.
• In 2012, the average age of male gymnasts in the Olympics was 21.5, while the average age of female gymnasts was 17.
• Professional gymnasts spend up to 20-30 hours a week practicing in the gym.

Facts For Kids

• Gymnastics was one of the first Olympic sports.
• Gymnastics is now a part of the Summer Olympics, which are held every four years.
• There are eight different events in artistic gymnastics: Vault, Uneven Bars, Parallel Bars, Horizontal Bar, Rings, Pommel Horse, Floor Exercise, and Balance Beam.
• Gymnasts use chalk to protect their hands and help them perform on certain events, which is why they always have powder all over their hands, feet, and legs.
• During team competitions, teammates will wear matching leotards to represent their nation.

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