Greek teachers of physical fitness were the first to design systems
of physical activity for both athletes and for the general
citizenry. Programs, which included gymnastics, were considered
central to the formal education of children. The Greeks believed
that the unity of mind and body could only be realized through
participation in physical exercises.
Gymnastics was included in early Olympic games around this
time.
Gymnastic systems designed to give strength for military combat were
used extensively by the Romans. Christians of the time considered
gymnastics Satanic because of its focus on the body. After financial
corruption led to the banning of gymnastics in 393 A.D., the sport
did not reappear in the public arena until the 16th century.
"Artistic" gymnastics came to be in the early 1800s, distinguishing
free-flowing styles from the techniques used by the military.
In the early 1800s a form of gymnastics developed in Germany as a
defined set of skills performed both with and without specific kinds
of apparatus. The educator Friedrich Ludwig Jahn, known as the
father of gymnastics, planned exercises using pieces of stationary
apparatus to develop self-discipline and physical strength. The
Swedish system, devised by the gymnast Pehr Henrik Ling, emphasized,
on the other hand, rhythm and coordination through routines
practiced with hoops, clubs, and small balls.
German and Swedish immigrants to the United States in the 19th
century brought their commitment to gymnastics with them. The
Germans set up gymnastics clubs, or turnvereins, where families
could participate together. A compromise between the German and
Swedish system was introduced into school physical education
programs in the U.S. by the end of the century. European gymnastics
did not, however, generally appeal to American children; the mainly
English cultural heritage had created an atmosphere in which games
were preferred to the rote patterns of exercise. In fact, gymnastics
did not achieve popularity in the U.S. until recently.
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