| What is the difference between Rhythmic and Artistic gymnastics?
Both Rhythmic and Artistic gymnastics are international sports, governed by FIG (Federation International of Gymnastics). Even though the two forms of gymnastics share many similar attributes, they are also very distinct from one another based on events, rules and style. Both sports participate in a standardized level system that ranges from Level 1 to Level 10.
Artistic Gymnastics allows both male and female gymnasts to participate and compete. Men perform in various events that include vault, pommel horse, still rings, parallel bars, high bar and floor. While women compete in vault, balance beam, uneven bars, and floor exercise. Artistic gymnastics focuses mainly on strength, balance, and agility.
Rhythmic Gymnastics routines, on the other hand, are all performed on the floor while using various types of apparatuses. All routines are performed to music contrasting to Artistic women’s gymnastics that includes music only on the floor exercise. Rhythmic individual and group events include the following apparatuses: floor, ball, hoop, rope, clubs and ribbon. Gymnasts perform in four of the six events each year; events are rotated every two years (higher levels normally do not compete in the floor event). Rhythmic gymnastics focuses primarily on grace, dance, flexibility, and eye-hand coordination.
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