What Is Rhythmic Gymnastics and How Does it Work?

The Paris 2024 rhythmic gymnastics tournament will see 26 individual competitors and fourteen teams vie for gold. The tournament will take place at the Porte de la Chapelle Arena, close to the iconic Montmartre in the north of Paris. So what is Olympic rhythmic gymnastics and what are the rules?

It’s a story that can be traced back to the eighteenth century. Here’s your rhythmic gymnastics Olympics guide.

First off, it’s worth answering the question ‘what is Olympic rhythmic gymnastics?’

Rhythmic gymnastics is a sport that combines elements of ballet, gymnastics, and dance. Competitors perform routines to music using ribbons, hoops, balls and clubs. It is primarily a women’s sport, and is judged on various criteria including the difficulty of the movements, execution, and artistic expression.

The origins of what we know today as rhythmic gymnastics has its roots in the ideas of eighteenth century French ballet dancer Jean-Georges Noverre, nineteenth century French singer François Delsarte, and twentieth century German teacher Rudolf Bode, who all subscribed to the theory that dance was a way to both express yourself and to exercise your body. Bode was the founder of what became known as expressive gymnastics.

Gymnastics classes set to music became popular in the 1830s and by the end of the nineteenth century, Swiss composer and music teacher Emile Jaques-Dalcroze created eurhythmics, a form of physical exercise for musicians and dancers.

The use of apparatus was added in the 1920s or 1930s, and by the 1940s, competitive rhythmic gymnastics events were being held in the Soviet Union. In the early 1960s, the FIG – Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique, or the International Gymnastics Federation – recognised rhythmic gymnastics as a legitimate discipline in itself, and the first world championships were held in Budapest in 1963.

While gymnastics events have been part of the Olympic programme since the first modern Games in 1896, rhythmic gymnastics at the Olympics was introduced at Los Angeles 1984 for individual competitors. The first gold medal was won by Canadian gymnast Lori Fung. A group event was introduced at Atlanta 1996 and the gold went to Spain.

The rules for rhythmic gymnastics at the Olympics are modified after every edition of the Games, so the rules at Paris 2024 will be slightly different to those at Tokyo 2020. For both events – the Individual All-Round and the Group All-Round – the rules determining the equipment are the same. The routines are performed in an area measuring 12 metres by 12 metres and are accompanied by a piece of recorded music. The specification of the apparatus is from the FIG guidelines.

Ribbon: A 50 – 60cm stick is attached to a satin ribbon (or similar non-starched material) between four and six centimetres wide and at least six metres in length.

Hoop: It can be made from wood or plastic, weigh at least 300g and have an interior diameter of between 80 and 90 centimetres.

Clubs: The two clubs must be of equal length (between 48 and 53 centimetres) and be made of wood or a synthetic material. They must weigh 150g.

Ball: The ball should be made of plastic or another synthetic material, be between 18 and 20 centimetres in diameter and weigh a minimum of 400g.

For the individual event, routines have a time limit of between 1m 15s and 1m 30s, and for the group event, the time allowed is between 2m 15s and 2m 30s.

In the qualifying round, each gymnast performs four routines with the four different pieces of apparatus. The top ten go through to the final where they perform again across all four disciplines.

Scoring

The gymnast’s score is judged by three groups of judges – the D-Panel for Difficulty, the A-Panel for Artistry, and the E-Panel for Execution. The final score is the total sum of D, A, and E.

Difficulty

Four judges assess the routine’s technical difficulty, including body movements, apparatus handling, dynamic elements, and dance steps. The highest and lowest scores are dropped, and the middle two are averaged, with a maximum score of 10.0 points.

Artistry

Four judges evaluate the artistic performance – considering the connection between music and movement – expressiveness, use of space, and movement contrast. The highest and lowest scores are dropped, and the middle two are averaged. Deductions are subtracted from 10 to determine the final A-score.

Execution

Four judges assess technical faults, ensuring elements are performed perfectly. The highest and lowest scores are discarded, and the middle two are averaged, with a maximum score of 10.0 points.

Penalties

Penalty points are deducted from the competitors’ final score and may include gymnasts leaving the mat, dropped equipment, imbalances, being outside the 75 – 90 second time limits, incorrect attire, or communication with a coach or other gymnasts mid-routine.

The Winner

The final consists of the best 10 and all scores are reset to zero. The winner is the gymnast with the highest points total.

In the group all-round, each team performs two routines with different apparatus combinations. The top ten teams from the qualifying round advance to the final, where they perform both routines again.

Scoring

The scoring for the group routines is based on the same criteria as the individual routines.

Penalties

Penalty points are deducted from the competitors’ final score and may include gymnasts leaving the mat, collisions, dropped equipment, imbalances, being outside the 135 – 150 second time limits, incorrect attire, or communication with a coach during the routine.

The Winner

The final consists of the best 10 teams and all scores are reset to zero. The winner is the team with the highest points total.

The standardised Olympic rules for rhythmic gymnastics didn’t come into effect until the 1984 Games. Up to and including Tokyo 2020, the participating nations have shared 51 medals, and rhythmic gymnastics at the Olympics has been dominated by Russia, who have 16 medals (10 gold, 4 silver, and 2 bronze). Second in the overall medal table is Bulgaria with 5 medals (1 gold, 2 silver, 2 bronze) and third is Spain with 3, made up of 1 gold and 2 silver.

We hope you enjoyed reading this Olympics rhythmic gymnastics guide and don’t forget, you can catch all the action from Paris 2024 on discovery+!