The History Of Gymnastics
Gymnastics
formally originated in ancient Greece, where it was used by
soldiers to
get ready for war. The skills and strength needed to perform gymnastic moves.
running, jumping, tumbling, mounting and dismounting horses they were all
thought to be great assets to those battling on the war field. As a result
gymnastics became a vital component of Greek education. It was mandatory for all
students to practice the sport and eventually the gymnasiums developed into
schools where gymnastics, music, and mathematics were all taught and perfected.
And as the Roman Empire gained power and ascended to the Greek peninsula, Greek
gymnastics evolved into nothing more than glorified military training. This
tradition continued across centuries and continents. In the early 19th century,
the United States Military began adopting gymnastics for their own training
programs. By the 20th century, the US Army had a mandatory list of drills for
soldiers to practice, a culmination of gymnastic maneuvers targeted to build
muscles and strengthen active young men.
Then came the fall of the Roman Empire. Fortunately though, acrobatics
survived and during the medieval times, the traveling minstrel shows included
songs, stories and a lot of tumbling. Modern gymnastics was brought into picture
by Johann GutsMuths from Germany who developed a complete program consisting of
exercises that were designed to improve balance and suppleness and also the
muscular strength of the body. Johann's follower, Friedrich Ludwig Jahn who was
a gymnast teacher by profession developed three apparatus which are used till
date. The apparatuses developed by Jahn were the high bar, the parallel bar and
the rings.
Gymnastics became popular in Europe primarily as physical
training for the military. Over the years, it was limited to the military
federations. But in the late 1800s, civil federations were formed across Europe.
In 1860 the first gymnastics club, the German Gymnasts club was formed which was
the first of its kind. The European Gymnastics Federation was founded on July
23, 1881 and included representatives from Belgium, France and Netherlands.
About 40 years later, this federation became the International Gymnastics
Federation and had sixteen members.
formally originated in ancient Greece, where it was used by
soldiers to
get ready for war. The skills and strength needed to perform gymnastic moves.
running, jumping, tumbling, mounting and dismounting horses they were all
thought to be great assets to those battling on the war field. As a result
gymnastics became a vital component of Greek education. It was mandatory for all
students to practice the sport and eventually the gymnasiums developed into
schools where gymnastics, music, and mathematics were all taught and perfected.
And as the Roman Empire gained power and ascended to the Greek peninsula, Greek
gymnastics evolved into nothing more than glorified military training. This
tradition continued across centuries and continents. In the early 19th century,
the United States Military began adopting gymnastics for their own training
programs. By the 20th century, the US Army had a mandatory list of drills for
soldiers to practice, a culmination of gymnastic maneuvers targeted to build
muscles and strengthen active young men.
Then came the fall of the Roman Empire. Fortunately though, acrobatics
survived and during the medieval times, the traveling minstrel shows included
songs, stories and a lot of tumbling. Modern gymnastics was brought into picture
by Johann GutsMuths from Germany who developed a complete program consisting of
exercises that were designed to improve balance and suppleness and also the
muscular strength of the body. Johann's follower, Friedrich Ludwig Jahn who was
a gymnast teacher by profession developed three apparatus which are used till
date. The apparatuses developed by Jahn were the high bar, the parallel bar and
the rings.
Gymnastics became popular in Europe primarily as physical
training for the military. Over the years, it was limited to the military
federations. But in the late 1800s, civil federations were formed across Europe.
In 1860 the first gymnastics club, the German Gymnasts club was formed which was
the first of its kind. The European Gymnastics Federation was founded on July
23, 1881 and included representatives from Belgium, France and Netherlands.
About 40 years later, this federation became the International Gymnastics
Federation and had sixteen members.