History of Gymnastics

Gymnastics is a sport with deep roots, stretching back to ancient civilizations such as Ancient Greece, Egypt, and the Indus Valley. Since the earliest times, when people began to live in communities, they performed ceremonies and made offerings to maintain good relations with the gods. The first examples of gymnastics were seen in these religious ceremonies. These were a type of religious dance in which all members of the tribe participated, using agile hand, arm, shoulder, and waist movements while dancing to the rhythm of music. The primitive tribal dances we see as the earliest examples of gymnastics were not only performed for religious rituals but also during the beginning and end of hunts. Even today, we can observe such examples in tribes in South America, Australia, and Africa.

The practice of gymnastics as a physical exercise was first seen in Greek civilization. In Greece, daily life and acquired experiences reinforced the belief that a trained body would feel good, while inactivity and laziness would numb and distort the body. In Greek culture, where clothing was simple to the point of being almost naked, having a body that was ugly and misshapen was highly undesirable. These factors together highlighted the necessity of exercising the body. However, such physical training was reserved only for the children of the noble class. Thus, the healthy physical development of the children from this class was ensured. Later, this practice was adopted in Roman civilization, where gymnastics was of great importance in the schools that trained the children of the ruling nobility (ALP I. 1996). After the Greek and Roman eras, very few people were involved in gymnastics, except for acrobats, professional warriors, and dancers. During the Middle Ages, this sport was almost forgotten. Gymnastics experienced a renaissance in the 18th and 19th centuries. As Europe began to form large professional armies, physical education regained its importance. Two educators who lived during this period had a significant impact on modern gymnastics: the Swedish Pehr Henrik Ling (1776-1839) and the German Friedrich Ludwig Jahn (1778-1852). While Ling focused on physical education, Jahn shaped the gymnastics apparatuses we use today (rings, pommel horse, parallel bars, horizontal bars, etc.).

With the international expansion of gymnastics, the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) was established in 1881, with its headquarters in Switzerland. When modern Olympics began in 1986, gymnastics was one of the seven sports selected. However, only male gymnasts participated in the early competitions. Female gymnasts first competed in the 1928 Olympic Games.

In 1949, the first set of International Competition Rules was implemented, and the first officially recognized World Gymnastics Championships by FIG took place in 1950. In 1960, with the spread of television broadcasts, gymnastics became a popular and widely enjoyed sport globally. In 1983, rhythmic gymnastics was accepted into the Olympic Games.

Gymnastics in Turkey

Gymnastics in Turkey began in 1868 with a Western-style program. The first gymnastics coach in Turkey was Faik Üstünidman, born in 1859, who trained many gymnasts after 1879 and continued his role for 42 years. Faik Üstünidman is also considered Turkey's first gymnast. In 1899, he published a book titled "Jimnastik" (Riyazıyat-ı Bedeniyye). While advocating for the German system of gymnastics, Selim Sırrı Tarcan supported the Swedish system.

Faik Üstünidman passed away on December 2, 1942.

Turkish gymnasts made their first appearance on the international stage at the 1906 Olympics held in Athens. Turkey's first participation in the Olympics was in 1908 in London, where the country was represented by Miltiadi Aleko Mulos from Erdek. The Turkish Gymnastics Federation was established in 1957, and in 1960, Turkey was accepted as a member of FIG (International Gymnastics Federation). Since then, Turkish gymnasts have participated in international competitions.

In 1990, Turkish athletes began winning championships at the Balkan Championships, and in 1992, Suat Çelen and Murat Canbaş won first place in the World School Championships.

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SOURCES

• CİMNASTİK SPORUNUN DOĞUŞU VE TARİHSEL GELİŞİMİ. DOKUZ EYLÜL ÜNİVERSİTESİ

• "Galatasaray Dergisi Eylül 2002 Sayısı". 13 Mayıs 2008 tarihinde kaynağından arşivlendi. Erişim tarihi: 11 Mayıs 2009.

• http://www.galatasaray.org/gsdergi 13 Mayıs 2008 tarihinde Wayback Machine sitesinde arşivlendi. Galatasaray Dergisi Eylül 2011 Sayısı sf 120-121