Author: Gymnastics History

1930: The Death of Anton Malej at the World Championships in Luxembourg

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Post date August 8, 2022
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During the first day of the 1930 International Tournament, Anton Malej fell from the rings and later died in the hospital. His injury happened on a rather simple skill: an inverted hang. Here’s how Pierre Hentgès, Sr., recalled the injury:

On the rings, during a simple part — an inverted pike hang — the young Yugoslavian gymnast Anton Malej fell so badly that he had to be taken to the hospital immediately for professional treatment with a cervical vertebrae injury.
Olympische Turnkunst, December 1967.

An den Ringen, in einfachem Übungsteil aus dem Sturzhang, fiel der junge jugoslawische Turner Anton Malej so unglücklich, daß er sofort mit einer Halswirbelverletzung zu fachgerechter Behandlung ins Spital überführt werden mußte.

What follows is a translation of Malej’s obituary from Sokolski Glasnik (July 15, 1930).

To read more about the 1930 World Championships, head over to this post.

1926 MAG World Championships

1926: The Men’s Competition at the World Championships in Lyon

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Post date August 4, 2022
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Coming into the 1926 International Tournament in Lyon, France, the Czechoslovak team had won three consecutive team titles at the International Tournament (1911, 1913, and 1922). Plus, they had won the team title at the 1924 Olympic Games in Paris. So, the 1926 World Championships (called the International Tournament at the time) were an opportunity to further demonstrate their superiority.

Here’s a quick summary of what happened on May 22 and 23, 1926, in Lyon, France.

Peter Šumi, from: Štukelj, Mojih sedem svetovnih tekmovanj

1922 MAG World Championships

1922: The First World All-Around Champion in Men’s Gymnastics

Post author By Gymnastics History
Post date August 2, 2022
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Prior to 1922, the World Championships (originally called the International Tournament) were team-only events. But in Ljubljana, an individual all-around champion was finally named. Actually, there were co-champions: Šumi of Yugoslavia and Pecháček of Czechoslovakia.

Another major storyline: France almost missed the competition, arriving on the second day of the International Tournament.

Let’s dive into what happened…

Peter Šumi on parallel bars, Muzej novejše zgodovine Slovenije

Apparatus Norms Evolution WAG

The Evolution of the Apparatus Dimensions in Women’s Artistic Gymnastics

Post author By Gymnastics History
Post date July 21, 2022
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Has the balance beam always been 10 cm wide? When did balance beams start having padding? When did the uneven bars start having tension cables? How far apart were the bars in 1989? Have the landing mats always been 20 cm thick?

The cheat sheet below gives you the basic contours of the ever-changing apparatus norms.

The first dimensions for bars with tension cables at FIG events.

Apparatus Norms Evolution MAG

The Evolution of the Apparatus Dimensions in Men’s Artistic Gymnastics

Post author By Gymnastics History
Post date July 20, 2022
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Has the floor exercise area always been 12 m x 12 m? Has the horizontal bar always been 2.80 m high? Have the landing mats always been 20 cm thick?

This cheat sheet gives you the basic contours of the ever-changing apparatus norms.

Dimensions for vaulting boards, 1989 Apparatus Norms

1949 Code of Points MAG

1949: The History behind the First Men’s Code of Points

Post author By Gymnastics History
Post date July 18, 2022
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The first Code of Points was published in 1949. Though, the seed for the project was planted much earlier, in the 1930s.

Here’s how Pierre Hentgès, Sr., recounts the history of the first CoP.

2004 Floor Music Olympics WAG

2004: The Floor Music of the Athens Olympics

Post author By Gymnastics History
Post date July 13, 2022
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Bond, Bond, and More Bond: There was a lot of music from the group Bond during the Athens Olympics. The band’s albums Born and Shine came out in 2000 and 2002, respectively. Their music straddled the worlds of contemporary music and classical orchestral music.

The title of a 2004 article gives you an idea of how the musical group was perceived at the time: “Unbreakable Bond; They’re young. They’re sexy. And they’re turning the classical music industry on its head.” (Sarasota Herald Tribune, Nov. 26, 2004).

Movie Soundtracks: As was the case in 2000, movie soundtracks were big in 2004. Examples included Braveheart, Pirates of the Caribbean, Moulin Rouge, and Matrix Revolutions.

ATHENS – AUGUST 23: Catalina Ponor of Romania receives the gold medal for the women’s artistic gymnastics floor exercise event on August 23, 2004 during the Athens 2004 Summer Olympic Games at the Olympic Sports Complex Indoor Hall in Athens, Greece. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

2000 Floor Music Olympics WAG

2000: The Floor Music of the Sydney Olympics

Post author By Gymnastics History
Post date July 11, 2022
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A big trend in 2000: Movie soundtracks.

In Sydney, the floor music included songs from The Rock, Addams Family Values, The Mummy, and The Truman Show, among others.

A small surprise: In 1984, 1992, and 1996, several floor routines featured music associated with the host country. In 2000, that trend was not as pervasive. Of course, there were exceptions — like McIntosh’s use of “Waltzing Matilda” or Slater’s use of “I Still Call Australia Home,” which was contentious, by the way. (More on that below.)

25 Sep 2000: Elena Zamolodtchikova of Russia (centre) wins Gold, Svetlana Khorkina of Russia (right) wins Silver and Simona Amanar of Romania (left) wins Bronze in the Womens Floor Exercise Final at the Sydney Superdome on Day Ten of the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia. Mandatory Credit: Shaun Botterill /Allsport

1988 Floor Music Olympics WAG

1988: The Floor Music of the Seoul Olympics

Post author By Gymnastics History
Post date July 6, 2022
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Major Theme: Very, very, very 1980s.

Here are a few examples:

“Sixty-Second Sonata” (1980)
Montage of music from Cats, which debuted in 1981
“Axel F” from Beverly Hills Cop (1984)
“Bullish” (1984)
“Electric Kingdom” (1984)
“One Night in Bangkok” (1984)
Montage of music from Rocky IV (1985)
“True Faith” by New Order (1987)
“Macho Mozart” (1987)

19 Sep 1988: Phoebe Mills does her floor exercise during the Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea. Mandatory Credit: Billy Strickland /Allsport

1984 Floor Music Olympics WAG

1984: The Floor Music of the Los Angeles Olympics

Post author By Gymnastics History
Post date July 2, 2022
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A big theme in 1984: American movies

Given that Los Angeles is the heart of American cinema, it makes sense. There were songs from movies like Night Shift, Indiana Jones, Rocky, and James Bond.

Another theme: Americana.

In addition to the emphasis on American TV and films, there were plenty of other American moments — from Szabo’s routine to “Hooked on America” to Wu’s “Stars and Stripes Forever” to Bileck’s “Rodeo” montage. (Rodeo is a ballet composed by American composer Aaron Copland.)