Rhythmic gymnastics why is it a sport

One team member may or can manipulate two apparatuses throughout the whole routine. Share: Facebook Twitter. Well not every sport, as there is a list of unusual sports , extinct sports and newly created sports. How to get on these lists? See What is a sport? Any comments, suggestions or corrections? Please let us know. For us it is a sport expressed in an artistic way. Among the gymnasts you can see the wafting and willowy influence of Duncan, widely regarded as the founder of modern dance, whose passion for flowing scarves killed her.

Duncan was a passenger in an open-top car when her silk scarf got caught in the wheel axle and broke her neck. The Bulgarian team went for a Beethoven piano sonata. Germany opted for "Fast Five Cheeky Bits. Lyrics are banned, the gymnasts can use only the tune as accompaniment. Sounds "such as engines, police sirens and objects breaking are not allowed," the rules state.

Perpetual motion. Poetry in motion. If they can combine the two, the gymnasts are up there with top marks but some real disasters must be avoided. Never ever let your hoop flutter in the air. Woe betide the gymnast whose ribbon gets knotted. Always balance your ball impeccably like a performing seal. Here's Ukraine's Ganna Rizatdinova, who placed 11th in qualifications. If you're not used to watching it, it's easy to miss some of the more impressive things they do.

Russia's Evgeniya Kanaeva throws the hoop and recatches it while she's turning on one leg and spinning the hoop. Kanaeva was the favorite, but she made some mistakes in prelims. She missed catching the hoop with her foot here. It doesn't look hard until they mess up:. They have to show incredible balance during all this spinning and twirling. Here's Bulgaria's Liubou Charkashyna, who qualified third.

I don't know how Korea's Son Yeon Jae does that with her back. How does she hold herself up that high, with her back arched so much, without using her hands? They also have to have incredible timing.

A major part of their routines is throwing the equipment high in the air and then doing a bunch of stuff underneath, then catching it again at just the right dramatic moment. It's hard to see on TV, because you can't pick out the hoops in the rafters.