AA

en-noun

AA (countable and uncountable, plural AAs)

(gymnastics) Abbreviation of all-around.


balance beam

(gymnastics) A gymnastics apparatus, a narrow wooden rail used in artistic (athletic) gymnastics.

(gymnastics) A gymnastics event using the balance beam apparatus.


floor exercise

(gymnastics) A performance on a mat-covered floor using no apparatus.


apparatus

apparatus (plural apparatuses or apparatusses or apparatus or (both rare) apparatûs or apparatūs or (hypercorrect) apparati)

apparatuses (plural)
apparatusses (plural)
apparatus (plural)
apparatûs (plural rare)
apparatūs (plural rare)
apparati (hypercorrect plural rare)

/æp.əˈɹɑː.təs/

Borrowed from Latin apparātus. Doublet of apparat.

(gymnastics) Any of the equipment on which the gymnasts perform their movements.


scissors

scissors pl (plural only, attributive scissor)

From Middle English sisours (attested since 1350–1400), from Old French cisoirs, from Late Latin cīsōria, plural of cīsōrium (“cutting tool”); from Latin word root -cīsus (compare excise) or caesus, past participle of caedō (“to cut”). Partially displaced native Old English sċēara (“scissors, shears”), whence shears. Doublet of chisel.
The current spelling, from the 16th century, is due to association with Medieval Latin scissor (“tailor”), from Latin carrying the meaning “carver, cutter”, from scindō (“to split”).

(countable, gymnastics) An exercise in which the legs are switched back and forth, suggesting the motion of scissors.


chalk

chalk (countable and uncountable, plural chalks)

→ Hindi: चाक (cāk)

→ Japanese: チャコ (chako), チョーク (chōku)

→ Nepali: चक (cak)

→ Swahili: chaki

→ Swazi: íshóki

→ Thai: ชอล์ก (chɔ́k)

→ Tsonga: choko

→ Tulu: ಚಾಕ್ (cākŭ)

→ Yoruba: ṣọ́ọ̀kì

From Middle English chalk, chalke, from Old English ċealc, from Proto-West Germanic *kalk, borrowed from Latin calx (“limestone”), again borrowed from Ancient Greek χάλιξ (khálix, “pebble”). Doublet of calx and cauk.

when working out your next move, it's a good idea to get some more chalk from the bag

(uncountable, climbing, gymnastics) A white powdery substance used to prevent hands slipping from holds when climbing, or losing grip in weight-lifting or gymnastics, sometimes but not always limestone-chalk, often magnesium carbonate (MgCO₃).


bridge

From Middle English brigge, from Old English brycġ (“bridge”), from Proto-Germanic *brugjō, *brugjǭ (“bridge”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰerw-, *bʰrēw- (“wooden flooring, decking, bridge”).
Cognate with Scots brig, brigg, breeg (“bridge”), Saterland Frisian Brääch (“bridge”), West Frisian brêge (“bridge”), Dutch brug (“bridge”), German Brücke (“bridge”), Danish brygge (“wharf”), Icelandic brygga (“pier”), Gaulish briua (“bridge”).
The verb is from Middle English briggen, from Old English brycġian (“to bridge, make a causeway, pave”), derived from the noun. Cognate with Dutch bruggen (“to bridge”), Middle Low German bruggen (“to bridge”), Old High German bruccōn (“to bridge”) (whence Modern German brücken).
The musical connection sense is a semantic loan from German Steg, from Old High German steg.

ацҳа

construction or natural feature that spans a divide

if someone told you to jump off a bridge, would you do it

(gymnastics) A similar position in gymnastics.

An arch or superstructure.
A similar position in gymnastics.


split

→ Irish: spliota

Attested since about 1567, from Middle Dutch splitten (“to split”) and/or Middle Low German splitten (“to split”), both ultimately from Proto-West Germanic *splittjan, an intensive form of Proto-West Germanic *splītan (“to split”), from Proto-Germanic *splītaną (whence Danish splitte, Low German splieten, German spleißen), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)pley- (“to split, splice”).
Compare Middle English ysplett (“split”, past participle of splatten (“to split”)), Old English speld (“splinter”), Old High German spaltan (“to split”), Old Irish sliss (“splinter”), Lithuanian spaliai (“flax sheaves”), Czech půl (“half”), Old Church Slavonic рас-плитати (ras-plitati, “to cleave, split”).

cog

past participle of <i class="Latn mention" lang="enm">splatten</i> (“to split”)

let the door hit you where the good Lord split you

(gymnastics, cheerleading, dance, usually in the phrase "to do the splits") A maneuver of spreading or sliding the feet apart until the legs are flat on the floor 180 degrees apart, either sideways to the body or with one leg in front and one behind, thus lowering the body completely to the floor in an upright position.


stick

en-verb

stick (third-person singular simple present sticks, present participle sticking, simple past and past participle stuck or (archaic) sticked)

sticks (present singular third-person)
sticking (participle present)
stuck (participle past)
stuck (past)
sticked (archaic participle past)
sticked (archaic past)

From Middle English stiken (“to stick, pierce, stab, remain embedded, be fastened”), from Old English stician (“to pierce, stab, remain embedded, be fastened”), from Proto-Germanic *stikōną (“to pierce, prick, be sharp”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)tig-, *(s)teyg- (“to pierce, prick, be sharp”).
See also the related Proto-Germanic *stikaną, whence West Frisian stekke, Low German steken, Dutch steken, German stechen; compare also Danish stikke, Swedish sticka.
Cognate with the first etymology (same PIE root, different paths through Germanic and Old English), to stitch, and to etiquette, via French étiquette – see there for further discussion.

inh

throw enough mud at the wall and some of it will stick

throw things at the wall and see what sticks

would lose one's head if it wasn't stuck on

Once again, the world champion sticks the dismount.

stick the landing

en:perform (a landing or shot) perfectly

(transitive, gymnastics, aviation, sports) To perform (a landing or a shot) perfectly.


full

From Middle English fulle, fylle, fille, from Old English fyllu, fyllo (“fullness, fill, plenty”), from Proto-Germanic *fullį̄, *fulnō (“fullness, filling, overflow”), from Proto-Indo-European *plūno-, *plno- (“full”), from *pelh₁-, *pleh₁- (“to fill; full”). Cognate with German Fülle (“fullness, fill”), Icelandic fylli (“fulness, fill”). More at fill.

fool (accents with FOOT-GOOSE merger or full-fool merger)

(gymnastics) A flip involving a complete turn in midair.


floor

non-rhotic, without the horse–hoarse merger

non-rhotic, dough–door merger, African-American Vernacular

From Middle English flor, flore, from Old English flōr (“floor, pavement, ground, bottom”), from Proto-West Germanic *flōr, from Proto-Germanic *flōraz (“flat surface, floor, plain”), from Proto-Indo-European *pleh₂ros (“floor”), from Proto-Indo-European *pleh₂- (“flat”).
Cognate with Scots flair, Scots flure, fluir (“floor”), Saterland Frisian Floor (“floor”), West Frisian flier (“floor”), Dutch vloer (“floor”), German Low German Floor (“entry hall”), German Flur (“field, floor, entrance hall”), Swedish flor (“floor of a cow stall”), Irish urlár (“floor”), Scottish Gaelic làr (“floor, ground, earth”), Welsh llawr (“floor, ground”), Latin plānus (“level, flat”).

cog

(gymnastics) An event performed on a floor-like carpeted surface; floor exercise

(gymnastics) A floor-like carpeted surface for performing gymnastic movements.


needle

From Middle English nedle, from Old English nǣdl, from Proto-West Germanic *nāþlu, from Proto-Germanic *nēþlō, from pre-Germanic *neh₁-tleh₂, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)neh₁- (“to spin, twist”).
Cognates
Cognate with Dutch naald (“needle”), German Nadel (“needle, pin, crochet hook”), German nähen (“sew”), Danish nål (“needle”), Norwegian nål (“needle”), Finnish neula (“needle”). Further related with Welsh nyddu, Latin nēre, Sanskrit स्नायति (snāyati, “wraps up, winds”). Related to snood.

cog

it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God

(gymnastics) A move in which the performer begins with two hands and one leg on the floor, then kicks the other leg into a full split.


kip

(gymnastics) A basic skill or maneuver in artistic gymnastics on the uneven bars, parallel bars, high bar and still rings used, for example, as a way of mounting the bar in a front support position, or achieving a handstand from a hanging position. In its basic form, the legs are swung forward and upward by bending the hips, then suddenly down again, which gives the upward impulse to the body.

kippi

gymnastics: move or maneuver from below the equipment to above it


kip

en-verb

kip (third-person singular simple present kips, present participle kipping, simple past and past participle kipped)

kips (present singular third-person)
kipping (participle present)
kipped (participle past)
kipped (past)

(gymnastics, intransitive) To perform the kip maneuver.


spot

→ Catalan: espot

From Middle English spot, spotte, partially from Middle Dutch spotte (“spot, speck”), and partially merging with Middle English splot, from Old English splott (“spot, plot of land”), from Proto-West Germanic *splott, from Proto-Germanic *spluttaz (“segment”), from Proto-Indo-European *splt-no- (“an off-split, segment”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)pel- (“to split”). Cognate with North Frisian spot (“speck, piece of ground”), Low German spot (“speck”), Old Norse spotti (“small piece”). See also splot, splotch.

cog

(gymnastics, dance, weightlifting) One who spots (supports or assists a maneuver, or is prepared to assist if safety dictates); a spotter.


spot

en-verb

spot (third-person singular simple present spots, present participle spotting, simple past and past participle spotted)

spots (present singular third-person)
spotting (participle present)
spotted (participle past)
spotted (past)

I can’t do a back handspring unless somebody spots me.

There had not been time to build handrails, so lines of women spotted the sides of the ramp.

1989 April 15, Angela Bowen, “Towards a National Lesbian Conference”, in Gay Community News, page 2:

(transitive, gymnastics, dance, weightlifting, climbing) To support or assist a maneuver, or to be prepared to assist if safety dictates.


candlestick

Sranan Tongo: kandratiki

From Middle English candelstik, candelstikke, from Old English candelsticca (“candlestick”), equivalent to candle + stick. Cognate with Scots candilsteke, candilstik (“candlestick”). Compare Old Norse kertastika, kertistika (“candlestick”).

inh

(gymnastics) A gymnastics move in which the legs are pointed vertically upward.


crucifix

From Middle English crucifix, from Old French crocefis (French crucifix), from Latin crucifixus.

(gymnastics) The iron cross, a position on the rings where the gymnast holds the rings straight out on either side of the body.


dismount

From dis- + mount, probably a calque of Old French desmonter.

It was a stylish routine, let down by a sloppy dismount.

(gymnastics) The part of a routine in which the gymnast detaches from an apparatus.


giant

/ˈd͡ʒʌɪ.ənt/

[ˈd͡ʒəɪ̯(ə)nt]

From Middle English geaunt, geant, from Old French geant, gaiant (Modern French géant) from Vulgar Latin *gagās, gagant-, from Latin gigās, gigant-, from Ancient Greek γίγας (gígas, “giant”) Cognate to giga- (“1,000,000,000”). Displaced native Old English ent. Compare Modern English ent (“giant tree-man”).

(gymnastics) A maneuver involving a full rotation around an axis while fully extended.


hollow

en-adj

hollow (comparative hollower, superlative hollowest)

hollower (comparative)
hollowest (superlative)

From Middle English holowe, holwe, holuȝ, holgh, from the noun (see above).

hollow body position
hollow body position

(gymnastics) Pertaining to hollow body position


puck

The puck position is allowed during competitions when performing multi-twisting multiple somersaults.

2013, The Sports Book: The Sports, the Rules, the Tactics, the Techniques:

(trampoline, gymnastics) A body position between the pike and tuck positions, with knees slightly bent and folded in; open tuck.


support

en-noun

support (countable and uncountable, plural supports)

From Middle English support, from Anglo-Norman and Middle French support. Displaced Old English wraþu.

Dip down as far as you are able, aiming to descend to the bottom of your sternum. Press back up to a support.

2008, Christopher Sommer, Building the Gymnastic Body, the Science of Gymnastic Strength Training, page 88:

support position
support position#English

(gymnastics) Clipping of support position.


baton

(gymnastics, juggling) A rod twirled in a marching band's performance, in a gymnastic sport, or in juggling.


beam

From Middle English beem, from Old English bēam (“tree, cross, gallows, column, pillar, wood, beam, splint, post, stock, rafter, piece of wood”), from Proto-West Germanic *baum, from Proto-Germanic *baumaz (“tree, beam, balk”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰew- (“to grow, swell”). Cognate with West Frisian beam (“tree”), Saterland Frisian Boom (“tree”), Dutch boom (“tree”), German Low German Boom (“tree”), German Baum (“tree”), Luxembourgish Bam (“tree”), Albanian bimë (“a plant”). Doublet of boom.
The original English meaning of beam ("tree") is preserved in some compound words such as quickbeam.
The verb is from Middle English bemen, from Old English bēamian (“to shine, to cast forth rays or beams of light”), from the noun.


dislocation

en-noun

dislocation (countable and uncountable, plural dislocations)

From Middle English, from Old French, a borrowing from Medieval Latin dislocātiō, delocatio.

The practice of contortion can be divided into three categories: backbending, frontbending and dislocation.

2016, Louis Patrick Leroux, Charles R. Batson, Cirque Global: Quebec's Expanding Circus Boundaries, McGill-Queen's Press, →ISBN, page 297:

(gymnastics, dance) In men's gymnastics, a rotating of the shoulders when performing a backwards turn on the still rings. Many skills in acrobatics appear to involve dislocating a joint, when they actually do not.


mount

From Middle English mounten, from Anglo-Norman munter, from Vulgar Latin *montāre (“climb”), from Latin montem (“mountain”). Compare modern French monter.

(gymnastics) The act of getting onto the apparatus.


beamer

(gymnastics, slang) A gymnast proficient with or specializing in the balance beam.


vault

Borrowed from Middle French volter (“to turn or spin around; to frolic”), borrowed from Italian voltare, itself from a Vulgar Latin frequentative form of Latin volvere; later assimilated to Etymology 1, above.

bor

(gymnastics) A piece of apparatus used for performing jumps.

(gymnastics) A gymnastic movement performed on this apparatus.

(gymnastics) An event or performance involving a vaulting horse.


Maltese cross

(gymnastics) A position on the rings where the gymnast's body is horizontal and straight, with arms to the side; a horizontal planche.


roly-poly

en-noun

roly-poly (countable and uncountable, plural roly-polys or roly-polies)

roly-polys (plural)
roly-polies (plural)

/ˌɹəʊlɪˈpəʊli/

The noun is apparently derived from roll (“to turn over and over”) + -y (suffix forming adjectives with the sense ‘having the quality of’), reduplicated with a change of the initial consonant. Compare rolly (“having the ability to roll, rolling”, adjective), which is attested since the 19th century.
Sense 1.7 (“mischievous or worthless person”) is possibly influenced by poll (“head; (archaic) scalp; (by extension) person”).
The adjective and adverb are attested later than the noun, and so are probably derived from it.

rolly-pooly

game in which balls are rolled or bowled into holes

When you are finished with circle time, dismiss your children by helping each one do a roly-poly roll (a somersault) and roll away to their next activity.

1994, Patty Claycomb, “Roly-poly”, in Gayle Bittinger, editor, Bear Hugs for Circle Time: Positive Activities that Encourage Children to Pay Attention, Everett, Wash.: Warren Publishing House, →ISBN, page 14:

Children of this age can rarely complete a forward roll or somersault properly. […] A ‘roly poly’ roll or a tucked sideways roll will give the children just as much pleasure and also enough exercise and knowlege of turning and rolling at this stage of their development.

1997, Pauline Wetton, “Nursery Class Activities for the Primary School Hall”, in Physical Education in the Early Years (Teaching and Learning in the First Three Years at School), London, New York, N.Y.: Routledge, →ISBN, page 57:

(gymnastics) A forward roll or sideways roll.


walkover

(gymnastics) A backbend combined with a handstand.

souplesse

gymnastics: backbend combined with a handstand


pullover

→ Bulgarian: пуловер (pulover)

→ Catalan: pul·lòver

→ Danish: pullover

→ Esperanto: pulovero

→ French: pull-over

→ Gulf Arabic: بلوڤر (blōvar)

→ German: Pullover

→ Hungarian: pulóver

→ Greek: πουλόβερ (poulóver)

→ Italian: pullover

→ Japanese: プルオーバー (puruōbā)

→ Georgian: პულოვერი (ṗuloveri)

→ Korean: 풀오버 (purobeo)

→ Polish: pulower

→ Portuguese: pulôver

→ Russian: пуло́вер (pulóver)

→ Sicilian: pullover

→ Spanish: pulóver

→ Swedish: pullover

(gymnastics, horizontal bar) An exercise in which the gymnast pulls up from a hang lifting the legs up and over the bar thus rolling into a support position.


tuck

en-noun

tuck (countable and uncountable, plural tucks)

From Middle English tuken, touken (“to torment, to stretch (cloth)”), from Old English tūcian (“to torment, vex”) and Middle Dutch tucken (“to tuck”), both from Proto-Germanic *teuh-, *teug- (“to draw, pull”) (compare also *tukkōną), from Proto-Indo-European *dewk- (“to pull”). Akin to Old High German zucchen (“to snatch, tug”), zuchôn (“to jerk”), German Low German tuken (“to tug, pluck, grab and pull towards”), Old English tēon (“to draw, pull, train”). Doublet of touch.

cog

(diving, gymnastics) A curled position, with the shins held towards the body.


vaulting horse

(gymnastics) An apparatus with an upholstered body but no pommels; since about 2000 replaced with vault, also called vaulting table.


pike

From Middle English pyke, pyk, pik, pike (“pike; sharp point, iron tip of a staff or spear, pointed toe of an item of footwear; sharp tool; mountain, peak”), from Old English pīc (“pointed object, pick axe”), and Middle French pique (“long thrusting weapon”), from Old French pic (“sharp point, spike”); both ultimately from Proto-West Germanic *pīk, from Proto-Germanic *pīkaz, *pīkō (“sharp point, pike, peak”), related to pick with a narrower meaning.
The word is cognate with Middle Dutch pecke, peke, picke (modern Dutch piek), German Pike, Norwegian pik, Danish pig, and possibly Old Irish pīk. It is a doublet of pique.
The diving or gymnastics position is probably from tapered appearance of the body when the position is executed.
The carnivorous freshwater fish is probably derived from the “sharp point, spike” senses, due to the fish’s pointed jaws.
The verb sense “to quit or back out of a promise” may be from the sense of taking up pilgrim's staff or pike and leaving on a pilgrimage; and compare Middle English pī̆ken (“to go, remove oneself”) and Old Danish pikke af (“to go away”).

cog

She sprang into the air and jack-knifed into a clumsy pike before following her hands into the water.

2000, J[ames] G[raham] Ballard, Super-Cannes, London: Flamingo, →ISBN; republished London: Fourth Estate, 2011, →ISBN, page 167:

Guo and Wu took a big lead after the second dive, a back dive in pike position, which the judges awarded three perfect tens for synchronization.

2008 August 10, “China Wins First Diving Medal at Beijing Olympics”, in The Sports Network, archived from the original on 2013-07-28:

(diving, gymnastics) A position with the knees straight and a tight bend at the hips with the torso folded over the legs, usually part of a jack-knife.


pike

en-verb

pike (third-person singular simple present pikes, present participle piking, simple past and past participle piked)

pikes (present singular third-person)
piking (participle present)
piked (participle past)
piked (past)

In the early stages he can do this by bending at the elbows (no more than 90) as he pikes the legs and straightens the arms in co-ordination with the upward swing of the cast, so that the whole body is extended as he reaches handstand.

1979, Peter Tatlow, editor, Gymnastics: All the Beauty and Skills of This Thrilling Sport, Auckland: McGraw-Hill, →ISBN:

At the front of her swing she pikes to wrap her legs under the low bar.

1980, Karen Folger Jacobs, The Story of a Young Gymnast: Tracee Talavera, New York, N.Y.: Bantam Books, →ISBN, page 98:

She stood on the block bending slowly; her hands now on the front of the blocks, she dove straight out. Piking, she came up doing the stroke she was famous for—the butterfly.

2012, Charles Fierro, “Tom”, in Dinkletown Road, [Bloomington, Ind.]: Xlibris, →ISBN, page 50:

A diver jumps off the 3 m platform. She is in a stretched-out position (a layout) and barely rotating at first. Then she flexes at the hips and folds herself in half (she pikes), and her rotation speeds up as if by magic.

2013, Peter M[erton] McGinnis, Biomechanics of Sport and Exercise, 3rd edition, Champaign, Ill.: Human Kinetics, →ISBN, page 196:

(transitive, intransitive, diving, gymnastics) To assume a pike position.


EGR

(gymnastics) Initialism of element group requirements.


rings

(gymnastics) A gymnastics apparatus and discipline consisting of two rings suspended from a bar.

(post-mid century) Ellipsis of still rings.


amplitude

en-noun

amplitude (countable and uncountable, plural amplitudes)

Borrowed from Middle French amplitude, from Latin amplitūdō, from amplus (“large”). By surface analysis, ample + -itude.

(gymnastics) The range of motion of the gymnast's body while performing a skill.


BB

BB (countable and uncountable, plural BBs)

(gymnastics) Abbreviation of balance beam.


coffee grinder

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-coffee grinder.wav

(dance, gymnastics) A circular sweep of the leg around the body while supporting oneself on one's hands.


spotter

contrasted with the Übungsleiter m meaning “trainer”

Due to a spotter's lack of action in holding the weight when a lifter lost her balance, the lifter badly pulled some muscles.

1981 December 12, Melissa Wills, “Moving Metal”, in Gay Community News, volume 9, number 21, page 10:

(weightlifting, gymnastics, climbing) One who supervises a person performing an activity, in order to help them should they be unable to complete it.


bars

(sports) An apparatus on which certain gymnastics are performed, especially parallel bars.


salto

Borrowed from Italian salto (“jump, leap”), from Latin saltus (“jump, leap”). Compare German Salto, French salto, Dutch salto, Hungarian szaltó.

bor+

I originally thought I'd impress Bela with my fullout dismount (two saltos in a tucked position with a 360-degree twist on the second salto), but I hadn't perfected it on a hard landing surface yet.

2012, Dominique Moceanu, Off Balance: A Memoir, New York, NY: Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, page unknown:


splits

(dance, cheerleading, gymnastics) A maneuver in which the legs are extended straight out and perpendicular to the body, either to the sides or in front and behind.


planche

Borrowed from French planche (“board”). Doublet of phalange, phalanx, planch, plancha, and plank.

doublet

(gymnastics) A position where the gymnast is horizontal and face-down, using only the hands as support.


gainer

From gain + -er. Compare German Gegner (“opponent, adversary”).

I tried a full gainer with a twist, the way he did it, but succeeded only in smacking the water with my thighs.

1961, Stanisław Lem, chapter 4, in Return from the Stars:

(diving, gymnastics, slang) A diving or gymnastics maneuver, from a high diving board or platform, involving a simultaneous inversion and rotation.


UB

en-noun

UB (countable and uncountable, plural UBs)

(gymnastics) Abbreviation of uneven bars.


backflip

The gymnast performed a backflip on a trampoline.

(gymnastics) An act of rotating one's body 360 degrees in the backward direction.


flyaway

(gymnastics) A kind of dismount from bars that incorporates one or more flips or twists.


SV

SV (countable and uncountable, plural SVs)

(gymnastics) Initialism of start value. (before score deductions)


twirling

(gymnastics, uncountable) Ellipsis of baton twirling.


Catherine wheel

Catherine wheel (plural Catherine wheels)

Saint Catherine of Alexandria was said to have been sentenced to execution on such a wheel, which shattered at her touch.

[…] she went on, making turns and twists, flourishing her skirts, kicking higher and higher, and finally, among a volley of shouts, fell on her hands and turned head over heels in a magnificent catherine-wheel; then scrambling to her feet again, she tumbled into the arms of a young man standing in the front of the ring.

1897, W. Somerset Maugham, chapter 1, in Liza of Lambeth:

We did a Catharine-wheel together down the passage. Somehow we gathered up a chair upon our way, and bounded on with it towards the street.

1912, Arthur Conan Doyle, The Lost World […], London; New York, N.Y.: Hodder and Stoughton, →OCLC:


HB

(gymnastics) Initialism of horizontal bar.


horizontal bar

Near-synonym: pull-up bar

(gymnastics) A horizontally-aligned bar used in gymnastics, upon which acts of swinging are performed.

висилка

(gymnastics) A gymnastics event using the horizontal bar.


iron cross

(gymnastics) A position on the rings where the gymnast holds the rings straight out on either side of the body.


forward roll

(gymnastics) A movement in which one's body is rolled forward, by putting the head on the ground and swinging the legs over the head.


rhythmic gymnastics

(gymnastics) A discipline of gymnastics where the gymnast manipulates one of five apparatuses (ribbon, ball, rope, clubs, hoop) in a rhythmic manner.


frontflip

(gymnastics) A floor movement, consisting of rotating one's body in the air 360 degrees in the forward direction.


oversplit

(gymnastics, acrobatics) Any split in which the angle formed by the legs measures greater than 180 degrees. Can be done to the front with either or both legs elevated, or in a straddle split with one or both legs elevated, or with a standing leg lift

ylispagaatti

split in which the angle formed by the legs exceeds 180 degrees


oversplit

en-verb

oversplit (third-person singular simple present oversplits, present participle oversplitting, simple past and past participle oversplit)

oversplits (present singular third-person)
oversplitting (participle present)
oversplit (participle past)
oversplit (past)


backbend

The gal's backbends, the father's hoofology, the boy's fast steps and the mother's taps all won solid mitting.

(gymnastics, dance) A move in which the performer bends backwards until the hands touch the floor or catches him/herself with the hands.


headspring

The technique in continuous headsprings is rather different from that employed in performing a single headspring in that the head and hands are closer together, thus reducing resistance to forward rotation and enabling fast acceleration to take place.

1965, Walter G. Dunn, Gymnastics for Schools: Vaulting & Agilities, page 112:

The headspring is a unique vault because it calls for a bent arm support and the touching of the horse with one's head.

1972, Carolyn O. Bowers, Judging and Coaching Women's Gymnastics, page 170:

The evidence established that he was negligent in spotting the headspring Steven was attempting to perform.

1980, Minnesota reporter - Issues 288-291, page 120:

(gymnastics) A move in which the gymnast places both hands on the mat with the top of the head about 6 inches in front, pushes off with the hands while flipping the legs overhead, and lands on the feet.


headspring

headspring (third-person singular simple present headsprings, present participle headspringing, simple past headsprang, past participle headsprung)

headsprings (present singular third-person)
headspringing (participle present)
headsprang (past)
headsprung (participle past)

Cartwheel with quarter-turn (Arabian Spring) ; roll back with closed feet into momentary handstand (back extension) ; front standing balance and with a leap, change the position of the feet; place hands on floor and do a momentary handstand; lie down on the front and rock backwards and forward, and do a cross-scissors with the legs on the forward movement; sit up with half-turn, bend forward twice, then roll back into sitting kneeling split position; change this position and lie on the front with hands under the shoulders and push up into front leaning rest position; raise body up steadily into headstand position without bending the legs; from this position lean forward with hips bent; then headspring into knee bending position; stand up, and with a few running steps do a handspring into knee bent position.

1966, Laszlo Szabo, Illustrated Physical Education Through Gymnastics, page 31:

From there I would walk on my head to the far end of the box and then headspring to the floor, landing on my feet.

2016, Simon Barnes, Losing It: A lifetime in pursuit of sporting excellence, →ISBN, page 49:


twisties

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(gymnastics, slang) The loss of perceptual awareness of body positioning during a spin, twist, turn, flip, etc. maneuver. The loss of air sense.


backwards roll

(gymnastics) A movement in which one's body is rolled backwards, by crouching on the ground and lifting one's legs complete over one's head and lifting the head at the end.


forwards roll

(gymnastics) Alternative form of forward roll


roundoff

(gymnastics) A move similar to a cartwheel but ending with the legs together and the gymnast facing in the opposite direction.


underhold

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(gymnastics) An underhand grip, especially while hanging from a bar.


overgrip

(weightlifting, gymnastics) pronated grip


vaulting box

(gymnastics) A layered wooden box that is padded with leather, used in gymnastics.


tumbling mat

(gymnastics) A padded mat used in gymnastics.


lord of the rings

en-noun

lord of the rings (plural lords of the rings)

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/lɔːd əv ðə ɹɪŋz/

/lɔɹd əv ðə ɹɪŋz/

/loːd əv ðə ɹəŋz/

From the "rings" event in gymnastics, and "lord" meaning a person with mastery; in humorous reference to J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy novel The Lord of the Rings.

(gymnastics, slang) The Olympic champion on the rings (“still rings”) men's gymnastics apparatus.


undergrip

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(weightlifting, gymnastics) supinated grip


neutral grip

(weightlifting, gymnastics) A grip that is neither supinated nor pronated, but with palms facing each other.


mixed grip

(weightlifting, gymnastics) grip with one hand pronated and the other supinated


false grip

(weightlifting, gymnastics) type of grip using flexion of the wrist rather than the fingers to hold on


hollow body position

hollow body position (plural hollow body positions)

(gymnastics) A position with a posterior pelvic tilt, i.e. with the lower back held flat


Produnova

From Yelena Produnova (Елена Серге́евна Продунова) who in 1999 was the first to successfully perform this maneuver in competition.

gloss

Елена Серге́евна Продунова

(Елена Серге́евна Продунова)

(gymnastics) a vault on the vaulting horse or vaulting table that starts with a front handspring off the gymnastics horse leading to two-and-a-half somersaults in the air, and then landing on their feet. (a three-point landing with the butt and feet is considered a fall)

vault of death

so called due to the dangerousness of the vault, and likelihood of ending up landing on one's neck


Shewfelt

Named after Kyle Shewfelt, who in 2000 first successfully performed the maneuver in men's competition.

(gymnastics) A back handspring off the vaulting horse or vaulting table with a layout and two-and-a-half twists.

Amanar

the equivalent vault for female gymnasts


Amanar

Named after Simona Amânar, who in 2000 first successfully performed the maneuver in women's competition.


crucifix position

en-noun

crucifix position (plural crucifix positions)

He shines in the gym, floors his opponents in Greco-Roman wrestling and effortlessly holds a crucifix position on the rings.

2007, Philippe Grimbert, Secret, page 26:

(gymnastics, wrestling) A posture of the body wherein the legs are kept straight together and the arms are extended horizontally.


support position

support position (plural support positions)

(gymnastics) a position in which a gymnast is holding their body above the rings (or high bar, parallel bars...) usually with straight arms.


vaulting table

(gymnastics) An apparatus featuring a flat, large, and cushioned surface almost parallel to the floor sloping downward at the end closest to the springboard.


neckspring

Continue without pause into a neckspring and, from the landing face-roll to hand-stand - pike again - and neckspring to stand.

1965, Walter G. Dunn, Gymnastics for Schools: Vaulting & Agilities, page 134:

The candlestick and bridge are prerequisite to the nexspring.

1968, James A. Baley, An illustrated guide to tumbling, page 72:

Before attempting the neckspring vault from the side horse, the performer should first master the neckspring and headspring from the floor or a rolled mat.

1968, Frank F. Musker, Donald Rex Casady, Leslie William Irwin, A guide to gymnastics, page 160:

For example, a gymnast could tuck toward the end of a neckspring and thereby increase angular velocity.

1999, H.C. Dubey, Dph Sports Series-Gymnastics, →ISBN, page 3:

(gymnastics) A move in which the gymnast starts by lying on his or her back, moves as if into a backwards roll, but then whips the legs upward and forward while pushing off to land on the feet.


neckspring

en-verb

neckspring (third-person singular simple present necksprings, present participle neckspringing, simple past and past participle neckspringed)

necksprings (present singular third-person)
neckspringing (participle present)
neckspringed (participle past)
neckspringed (past)

Reach quickly forward to touch toes with finger-tips and then perform an immediate backward-roll on to shoulders and hands bringing the straight legs overhead to a pike-position. A slight pause - then neckspring.

1965, Walter G. Dunn, Gymnastics for Schools: Vaulting & Agilities, page 133:


Quast

(gymnastics move): Named after East German gymnast Ralf Quast.

(gymnastics) A flying giant swing backwards with a full twist over horizontal bar.


half-pike

(diving, gymnastics) A position with the knees straight and the body bent at the waist so that the torso is perpendicular to the legs.


Korbut flip

Named for Olga Korbut, who introduced the move at the Munich games in 1972.

Muchina was a new gymnast and her work was new (whereas Comaneci was near perfect but could almost be called 'old hat") but does a Korbut flip with full twist, a long upstart full twist and a hecht back somi...

1977, International Gymnast - Volume 19, page 46:

One of the exceptional ten is fourteen-year-old Leslie Pyfer, whose most difficult trick at Springfield was a back flip on the beam with her legs held straight (which is quite a bit harder to do than the original Korbut flip).

1978, Hal Straus, Gymnastics guide, page 10:

In that routine, she showed off the first backward release move ever attempted on the uneven bars— a move so unusual and impressive that it became known as the Korbut Flip.

2007, Adam B. Hofstetter, Olympic Gymnastics, →ISBN, page 14:

Get on the sofa, cross yourself, then pitch it with all your worth backwards, in the tucked position. If you land with both feet on the strip, then Gunga Din to you . . . you've just done a version of the Korbut Flip . . . if you can't, you'll never be a gymnast.

2012, John Philips, Who cares who’s 3rd?: (or 2nd for that matter), →ISBN, page 25:

(gymnastics) A backwards handspring from a standing position on the balance beam or the higher bar of the uneven bars, catching the bar on the way down.


punch front

From punch + front. From being a front flip from a hard punch into the ground with the feet to effect the jump.

(gymnastics) A frontal flip by jumping to a landing with both feet and then pushing hard to bounce and flip forward.


wolf jump

(gymnastics) A kind of jump where the knees remain together but one leg is bent while the other is stretched out.


skin the cat

skin the cat (third-person singular simple present skins the cat, present participle skinning the cat, simple past and past participle skinned the cat)

skins the cat (present singular third-person)
skinning the cat (participle present)
skinned the cat (participle past)
skinned the cat (past)

(gymnastics) To perform a certain turning exercise while hanging from a bar or rings.


safety spot

A safety spot in gymnastics is designed to prevent falling. To execute a safety spot, the instructor or spotter must first determine where the fall might occur and place himself in that position.

1986, Jay Sanford Shivers, Recreational Safety: The Standard of Care, page 219:

Explain the reasons for spotting and demonstrate the kinds of spotting that should be used in different situations, for example, a safety spot for a difficult skill or a control spot to aid in good technique.

1987, YMCA of the USA, Progressive Gymnastics, page 26:

Safety spot for skilled knee hang swing dismounts: One to two children secure the landing at stomach and back.

2009, Ilona E. Gerling, Teaching Children's Gymnastics: Spotting and Securing, page 200:

(gymnastics) The action of a spotter who is focused on preventing a fall or injury, as opposed to a control spot, which is focused on helping the gymnast acquire a skill.


Chusovitina

From Russian Чусовитина (Čusovitina).
The gymnastics skills are named after Oksana Chusovitina, an athletic artistic gymnast for the Soviet Union, CIS/Unified Team, Germany, and Uzbekistan.

(gymnastics) Any of several gymnastic skills created by Oksana Chusovitina and named after her.

Synonym of Miller; (An uneven bars skill)

full-out dismount
full-out dismount#English

Synonym of full-out dismount; (An uneven bars skill)

A full-twisting double-layout, in floor routines


air sense

(gymnastics) Aerial awareness, the perception of the location and orientation of one's body in the air and in relation to the gymnastics apparatus and the floor and ground mats.


nip-up

(gymnastics) an acrobatic spring from a supine position to a standing position.


sidesplit

For example, it takes a young girl gymnast, as a rule, about a month to learn how to do the sidesplit.

(gymnastics) A split in which the legs are extending to the left and right of the torso.


front lever

Coordinate term: back lever

(gymnastics, calisthenics) A static hold normally performed on a horizontal bar, consisting in hanging horizontally and straight with the front of the body facing upwards.


back lever

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Coordinate term: front lever

(gymnastics, calisthenics) A static hold normally performed on a horizontal bar, consisting in hanging horizontally and straight with the front of the body facing downwards.


human flag

(gymnastics, calisthenics) A feat of strength where the body is parallel to the ground supported by a vertical bar.


frogstand

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If children begin to experiment with frogstands and headstands as inverted balances, it is then time to teach them the proper mechanics for assuming and maintaining these positions .

2001, Shirley Ann Holt-Hale, On the Move: Lesson Plans to Accompany Children Moving, page 216:

How long can you hold a headstand, frogstand or handstand?

2004, Michelle Nemec, Darryl Buchanan, Andrew Watt, Jump Into PDHPE, page 19:

Of course, it will be much easier if you can master the frogstand itself before you start learning how to do the frogstand to handstand.

2020 September 1, Michael & Yannick, “How to do the Frogstand to Handstand”, in Calisthenics Family:

In vert, you do all kinds of fun, carzy shit. Like shifties and frogstands, ollies and gazelle flips, up and down ten-foot ramps.

2021, James Patterson, Till Murder Do Us Part:

A frogstand, sometimes referred to as the "crow pose", is a calisthenics exercise that builds finger and wrist strength while placing a notable demand on the shoulders and triceps.

2024, “Frogstand Calisthenics Skill Tree”, in We Do Calisthenics:

(gymnastics, exercise, skateboarding) A position that involves balancing on one's hands with the knees tucked towards the chest, resembling the posture of a frog.


neutral deduction

en-noun

neutral deduction (plural neutral deductions)

(gymnastics) A score penalty that is not related to the gymnast's or team's performance, such as a penalty for wearing the incorrect attire.


Diamidov

(gymnastics) A move on the parallel bars, consisting of a swing down from handstand, through support, then releasing one hand and twisting the body a full turn before regrasping in handstand.


Onodi

Named after Henrietta Ónodi (born 1974), Hungarian gymnast.

(gymnastics) A back handspring with a half turn in mid air, finished with a front walkover.


frontbend

Finish in kneel on right, left leg pointed front; sit back on right heel, frontbend—arms downward to low rear.

1965, Gymnastics Guide (Sports library for girls and women), Division for Girls and Women's Sports, American Association for Health, Physical Education and Recreation., page 92:

(gymnastics, dance) Any pose with an unusual degree of backward bending at the waist and/or any portion of spine while standing, kneeling, resting on the floor, or while suspended.