A roundoff (also called Arab(ian) Spring move) is a move in gymnastics similar to a cartwheel, except the gymnast lands with two feet placed together on the ground instead of one foot at a time, facing the direction of arrival. [1] It is a gymnastic technique that turns horizontal speed into vertical speed and can be used to turn forward impulse from a run into backwards impulse. Roundoffs are used by most acrobatic sports, including gymnastics, dancing, and cheerleading.
The roundoff is a gymnastic technique that turns horizontal speed into vertical speed (to jump higher); it is also used effectively to turn forward momentum from a run into backwards momentum, giving speed and power to backwards moves such as flips and somersaults. [2]
The roundoff is similar to a cartwheel, except the gymnast lands with two feet placed together on the ground instead of one foot at a time, facing the direction they arrived from. This is achieved by twisting the hands and shoulders as the hands are placed on the ground. The two hands are generally placed down one after the other, so that the first hand is twisted by 90 degrees and the second hand by almost 180 degrees from the direction of travel. This creates a handstand position facing the opposite direction the gymnast started in, which they then snap their hips down quickly to create backwards momentum. [3]
Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, artistry and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, shoulders, back, chest, and abdominal muscle groups. Gymnastics evolved from exercises used by the ancient Greeks that included skills for mounting and dismounting a horse, and from circus performance skills.
The horizontal bar, also known as the high bar, is an apparatus used by male gymnasts in artistic gymnastics. It traditionally consists of a cylindrical metal bar that is rigidly held above and parallel to the floor by a system of cables and stiff vertical supports. Gymnasts typically wear suede leather grips while performing on the bar. The current elite-level competition uses a stainless steel core rail. The gymnastics elements performed on the horizontal bar are regulated by a Code of Points. A bar routine, which is a sequence of several bar skills, usually includes giants with various grips, in-bar work, turns, release and regrasp skills, and a dismount. The horizontal bar is often considered one of the most exciting gymnastics events due to the power exhibited by gymnasts during giant swings and spectacular aerial releases and dismounts that frequently include multiple flips or twists and, in some cases, airborne travel over the bar.
A somersault is an acrobatic exercise in which a person's body rotates 360° around a horizontal axis with the feet passing over the head. A somersault can be performed forwards, backwards or sideways and can be executed in the air or on the ground. When performed on the ground, it is typically called a roll.
Aerial techniques, also known as "high-flying moves" are performance techniques used in professional wrestling for simulated assault on opponents. The techniques involve jumping from the ring's posts and ropes, demonstrating the speed and agility of smaller, nimble and acrobatically inclined wrestlers, with many preferring this style instead of throwing or locking the opponent.
Courtney Lynn McCool-Griffeth is an American former artistic gymnast who competed in the 2004 Summer Olympics. She was coached by Al and Armine Fong of Great American Gymnastic Express.
A cartwheel is a sideways rotary movement of the body. It is performed by bringing the hands to the floor one at a time while the body inverts. The legs travel over the body trunk while one or both hands are on the floor, and then the feet return to the floor one at a time, ending with the athlete standing upright. It is called a cartwheel because the performer's arms and legs move in a fashion similar to the spokes of a turning (cart) wheel.
A handspring is an acrobatic move in which a person executes a complete revolution of the body by lunging headfirst from an upright position into an inverted vertical position and then pushing off from the floor with the hands so as to leap back to an upright position. The direction of body rotation in a handspring may be either forward or backward, and either kind may be performed from a stationary standing position or while in motion.
Finning techniques are the skills and methods used by swimmers and underwater divers to propel themselves through the water and to maneuver when wearing swimfins. There are several styles used for propulsion, some of which are more suited to particular swimfin configurations. There are also techniques for positional maneuvering, such as rotation on the spot, which may not involve significant locational change. Use of the most appropriate finning style for the circumstances can increase propulsive efficiency, reduce fatigue, improve precision of maneuvering and control of the diver's position in the water, and thereby increase the task effectiveness of the diver and reduce the impact on the environment. Propulsion through water requires much more work than through air due to higher density and viscosity. Diving equipment which is bulky usually increases drag, and reduction of drag can significantly reduce the effort of finning. This can be done to some extent by streamlining diving equipment, and by swimming along the axis of least drag, which requires correct diver trim. Efficient production of thrust also reduces the effort required, but there are also situations where efficiency must be traded off against practical necessity related to the environment or task in hand, such as the ability to maneuver effectively and resistance to damage of the equipment.
Mitsuo Tsukahara is a Japanese artistic gymnast. He was five times an Olympic Gold Medalist. He remained active in the sport after his retirement from competition. He served as vice president of the Japan Gymnastic Association.
Yurchenko, also known as round-off entry vaults, are a family of vaults performed in artistic gymnastics in which the gymnast does a round-off onto the springboard and a back handspring onto the horse or vaulting table. The gymnast then performs a salto, which may range in difficulty from a simple single tuck to a triple twist layout. Different variations in the difficulty of the salto lead to higher D-scores. This family of vaults is the most common type of vault in gymnastics and is named after Natalia Yurchenko, who first performed it in 1982.
A freestyle skateboarding trick is a trick performed with a skateboard while freestyle skateboarding. Some of these tricks are done in a stationary position, unlike many other skateboarding tricks. The keys to a good freestyle contest run are variety, difficulty, fluidity, and creativity. This is an incomplete list, which includes most notable tricks.
In various urban activities, a vault is any type of movement that involves overcoming an obstacle by some combination of jumping, climbing or diving. Although parkour does not involve the idea of set movements, practitioners use similar ways of moving to pass quickly and efficiently over obstacles.
This is a general glossary of the terms used in the sport of gymnastics.
An acrobatic flip is a sequence of body movements in which a person leaps into the air and rotates one or more times while airborne. Acrobatic flips are commonly performed in acro dance, free running, gymnastics, cheerleading, high jumping, tricking, goal celebrations, and various other activities. This contrasts with freestyle BMX flips, where a person rotates in the air along with a bicycle.
In dance and gymnastics, a turn is a rotation of the body about the vertical axis. It is usually a complete rotation of the body, although quarter (90°) and half (180°) turns are possible for some types of turns. Multiple, consecutive turns are typically named according to the number of 360° rotations.
A roll is the most basic and fundamental skill in gymnastics class. There are many variations in the skill. Rolls are similar to flips in the fact that they are a complete rotation of the body, but the rotation of the roll is usually made on the ground while a flip is made in the air with the hips passing over the head and without any hands touching the ground. Rolls also help recover from a fall safely.
A giant is an artistic gymnastics skill in which a gymnast rotates 360 degrees around an axis while in a fully extended position. It is performed on the uneven bars in women's artistic gymnastics and on the parallel bars, horizontal bar, and rings in men's artistic gymnastics.