gymnast

A gymnast is an athlete who performs in the sport of gymnastics, which emphasizes strength, flexibility, balance, and body control. Gymnastics includes several disciplines, the best known being artistic gymnastics, where men compete on floor, pommel horse, rings, vault, parallel bars, and horizontal bar, and women on vault, uneven bars, balance beam, and floor. Rhythmic gymnastics, mainly for women at Olympic level, combines dance, apparatus manipulation (rope, hoop, ball, clubs, ribbon) and music. Trampoline and tumbling, as well as acrobatic gymnastics, are governed separately but share core skills of aerial technique and spatial awareness.

Training typically begins in childhood and takes place in a gym or club under coaches who guide skill progression, conditioning, and routines. Elite gymnasts train many hours per week, with emphasis on technique, apparatus-specific skills, and injury prevention. Routines are evaluated on difficulty and execution; scoring is governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG) and the Code of Points. International competitions include the World Championships and the Olympic Games, where athletes compete for individual and team medals.

Qualities associated with gymnasts include strength, flexibility, coordination, balance, discipline, and resilience. The sport has produced prominent figures who have influenced technique and training methods, and it continues to evolve through changes in apparatus, rules, and training approaches.