Competitors perform short routines (ranging from approximately 10 to 90 seconds) on different apparatus. They are then graded on a score from 0 to 10 based on whether the performance contained certain required movements, the difficulty of the movements performed, and how well their performance compared to the desired performance of that movement.
In elite competition, each competitor will compete once on each apparatus their scores recorded, and points are tallied up. Medals are then awarded based on the highest team or individual score. The next day, the best performers on each apparatus compete for medals on the apparatus on which they qualify.
Gymnastics is not a particularly popular participant sport, as performing at even a basic level requires very high levels of fitness and skill which take more training than many people are prepared to commit. However, it is one of the most popular spectator sports at the Summer Olympic Games.
The apparatus used by male and female gymnasts varies, with the unique male apparatus particularly emphasising strength requirements and the women's apparatus emphasising balance and agility.
In the past, female gymnastics was dominated by girls in their early teenage years, as their small size and light weight made landings softer and many movements easier. Minimum age requirements, caused by concerns about competitor welfare and audience skepticism of the relevance of a contest dominated by pre-pubertal girls, have changed this somewhat, but elite female gymnasts are generally in their middle to late teenage years and of below-average height and weight. Male gymnasts, because of the different emphases of their apparatus, reach their peak in their early twenties.
The world's best gymnasts traditionally come from Eastern Europe, Russia, and China.
A related sport, [rhythmic gymnastics]?, involves the use of props such as a ball, ribbon, and the like to perform floor routines with a much greater emphasis on the aesthetic rather than the aerobatic. Rhythmic routines are scored out of a possible 30 points.
Women's gymnastic apparatus include:
Men's apparatus include:
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