Competition Squads
How To Get To The Top
The Olympic Sport of Artistic Gymnastics is possibly the most popular discipline within the sport today, with many British Gymnasts competing in international competitions and championships around the world.
Competing in any gymnastics discipline needs a good level of fitness, co-ordination and body control. There are many opportunities for children and young people to compete within the sport at club, county, regional and national level depending on the level of commitment and physical attributes of the gymnast. Some gymnasts choose not to compete, but merely to perform using opportunities like festivals, displays and freestyle gymnastics events.
The higher the level of competition or performance, the greater the dedication to training strength, flexibility, endurance and mobility. Both Men’s and Women’s artistic gymnastics follow a pathway of specific and demanding requirements in both physical preparation and skills learned during the process. This preparation is necessary not only to assist with reaching the level of achievement, but also to ensure skills are learnt and executed safely.
Gen Gryschenko
2012 Olympic Team Member
Men's Artistic Gymnastics
Men's Artistic Gymnastics is a specific discipline that sees boys and men competing routines on six pieces of apparatus: Floor, vault, pommel horse, parallel bars, high bar and rings. Routines are composed of amazing feats of strength, mobility and of course artistry, to produce the most dynamic performances of the sport of gymnastics.
Boys can begin their training at any time and may attain a level to compete at club, county, regional or national level within their chosen sport. Elite gymnasts usually begin their training at a young age and follow the National Development Programme to a very high level.
Ruslan Panteleymonov
2012 Olympic Team Member
Women's Artistic Gymnastics
Women's Artistic Gymnastics is a very popular discipline for girls, where they train and compete on 4 pieces of apparatus: Floor, vault, bars and beam. Routines are composed of a mixture of difficult skills, grace, flare and dynamics to produce a performance that entertains and amazes the audience.
Girls aiming at a high level of competition often start their training very early in their development, some even as young as 5 years old, but it is possible for girls beginning later to achieve a high level of competition through dedication and hard work. To assist with the development stages for girls there is a National Development Plan of ‘Grades’ and ‘Levels’ .
