Rhythmic gymnastics is a sport in which gymnasts perform individually or in groups on a floor with an apparatus: hoop, ball, clubs, ribbon and rope. The sport combines elements of gymnastics, dance and calisthenics; gymnasts must be strong, flexible, agile, dexterous and coordinated. Rhythmic gymnastics is governed by the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG), which first recognized it as a sport in 1963. It became an Olympic sport in 1984 with an individual all-around event. The group all-around competition was added to the Olympics in 1996. At the international level, rhythmic gymnastics is a women-only sport. The most prestigious competitions, besides the Olympic Games, are the World Championships, World Games, European Championships, European Games, the World Cup Series and the Grand Prix Series. Gymnasts are judged on their artistry, execution of skills, and difficulty of skills, for which they gain points. They perform leaps, balances, and rotations along with handling the apparatus.
Elena López Benaches is a Spanish group rhythmic gymnast.
Kotono Tanaka is a Japanese group rhythmic gymnast. She represents her nation at international competitions.
Nicole Muller was a Brazilian group rhythmic gymnast. She represented her nation at international competitions.
Maya Paunovska was a Bulgarian group rhythmic gymnast. She represented her nation at international competitions.
Ioanna Tantcheva is a Bulgarian group rhythmic gymnast. She represents her nation at international competitions.
Tatiana Tongova was a Bulgarian group rhythmic gymnast. She represented her nation at international competitions.
Vafa Huseynova (Bakarova) (also Vəfa Hüseynova (Bəkərova); born 10 November 1988) was an Azerbaijani group rhythmic gymnast. She represented her nation at international competitions.
Valeria Yegay was an Azerbaijani group rhythmic gymnast. She represented her nation at international competitions.
Luisa Harumi Matsuo was a Brazilian group rhythmic gymnast. She also represented her nation at international competitions.
Daniela Aleixo Leite Mazoni Siqueira is a Brazilian group rhythmic gymnast. She represents her nation at international competitions.
Chihana Hara was a Japanese group rhythmic gymnast. She represents her nation at international competitions.
Honami Tsuboi is a Japanese group rhythmic gymnast. She represents her nation at international competitions.
Dimitra Kafalidou was a Greek group rhythmic gymnast. She represented her nation at international competitions.
Paraskevi Plexida was a Greek group rhythmic gymnast. She represents her nation at international competitions.
Nikoleta Tsagari was a Greek group rhythmic gymnast. She represented her nation at international competitions.
Malgorzata Lawrynowicz is a Polish group rhythmic gymnast representing her nation at international competitions.
Ilektra Elli Efthymiou is a Greek group rhythmic gymnast. She represents her nation at international competitions.
Maria Kakiou was a Greek group rhythmic gymnast. She represents her nation at international competitions.
Dayane Camillo da Silva is a retired Brazilian rhythmic gymnast. She competed at two Olympic Games.
Brazil
