Rhythmic gymnastics is the most graceful sport. Girls perform gymnastic elements to musical accompaniment with and without objects (balls, clubs, jump ropes, ribbons). The art program can be either a solo or group performance. The main difference between rhythmic gymnastics and sports gymnastics is the performance of expressive movements that combine acrobatics and choreography with musical accompaniment. This sport appeared relatively recently, but has gained great popularity among spectators and is an Olympic discipline. We will tell you how rhythmic gymnastics was born and what contribution our country made to its development.
Russia is considered the birthplace of rhythmic gymnastics as a sport. In 1934, the Leningrad Institute of Physical Culture opened the first Higher School of the Art Movement. However, the pedigree of this movement stretches back to the 19th century, since rhythmic gymnastics began to emerge from dance.
François Delsarte, Georges Demenit, Emile Jacques-Dalcroze and Isadora Duncan made great contributions to the development of the artistic discipline in the 19th and 20th centuries. The creativity of these people became the basis for the emergence of rhythmic gymnastics. The artistic discipline was preceded by other directions:
According https://usghof.org/ the founder of the aesthetic movement is Francois Delsarte. He opened an expressive gymnastics studio, the essence of which was to impart emotion, expressiveness, and elegance to dances with the help of gestures, facial expressions, and body “language.” Delsarte believed that dance, consisting of successive movements of the arms, legs, and head, can convey the emotions, experiences, and mood of the dancer. Francois created a table of movements by analyzing people's behavior, emotions and gestures. He described in detail emotional states, movements and established that each emotion is characterized by certain facial expressions and body position.
The founder of the dance direction is Georges Demini. He developed a system of dynamic exercises aimed at stretching and relaxing muscles. Georges Demini, during the physical education of female gymnasts, added dance steps and objects (clubs, wreaths, sticks) to the sports program. The goal of this program was to develop flexibility, plasticity, and acquire beautiful posture. A few Demini principles:
In modern gymnastics, girls use objects modified at that time: balls, hoops, ribbons, clubs.
The founder of rhythmic gymnastics is Emile Jacques-Dalcroze. In 1905 he opened rhythmic courses. The main principle of its direction is that all movements must be performed exactly at the tempo of the music. Jacques taught his students to feel the rhythm, to perform movements smoothly and abruptly, slowly and quickly. Thus, Jacques-Dalcroze combined dance, music and gymnastics. Prince Sergei Mikhailovich Volkonsky was inspired by his idea and in 1915 rhythmic gymnastics became available to St. Petersburg women.
Rhythmic gymnastics was significantly influenced by the free dance of the American Isadora Duncan. The basis of her creativity was the self-expression of personality. With the help of free dance, she tried to convey the depth of feelings, grace, aesthetics, freedom, and beauty of the female body. Isadora performed all over the world, including in Russia, where she found her audience and followers. 1921 - the year of foundation of the Duncan School of Art Movement in Moscow.
In 1980, the International Olympic Committee included rhythmic gymnastics in the list of Olympic sports. 4 years later, the Olympic Games are held in Los Angeles, in which rhythmic gymnastics made its debut for the first time. Laurie Fung (Canada) won the first Olympic gold. In 1988, the Olympic Games were held in Seoul, where Soviet gymnasts won, winning gold and bronze. Until 1996, competitive performances were held only in individual all-around events. In 1996, the first group all-around competition was held at the Olympic Games in Atlanta.
In 1914, on the basis of the Institute of Physical Culture named after P.F. Lesgraft in Leningrad opened the Higher School of Art Movement (HSHD), and its teachers were Rosa Varshavskaya, Elena Gorlova, Anastasia Nevinskaya, Alexandra Semenova-Naypak. All teachers had experience in teaching aesthetic, dance, rhythmic gymnastics and “free dance” Duncan. Combining the knowledge and experience gained, a new sports direction appeared in the USSR - rhythmic gymnastics. In addition to sports, students of the Higher School of Art and Culture studied solfeggio, singing, fencing, athletics, fine arts and other subjects. Staff and teachers of the Higher School of Art and Art developed:
Rules for the competition and a system for conducting them were proposed. 1936 - the year the school was transformed into a departmentat the pedagogical faculty of the Institute of Physical Culture named after P.F. Lesgafta. Students take a general course in physical education and at the same time receive a specialization in rhythmic gymnastics. The Department of Gymnastics conducts research and methodological work, develops an educational and competition plan, classifies exercises, and establishes terminology. The head of the department of gymnastics, Lev Pavlovich Orlov, and the teacher of the department of theory and methods of physical education, Karl Christianovich Grantyn, took an active part in the development. After the emergence of artistic discipline in physical education practice, sections began to appear in educational institutions and enterprises in the USSR, and children's groups were also organized.
In 1939, the first rhythmic gymnastics competitions were held. Students and teachers of the institute took part in the competition. In 1941, the first championship of Leningrad was held. The competition program consisted of a compulsory exercise and a free one. At the championship, sports categories from III-I were assigned. The first winner was Yulia Shishkareva.
During the Great Patriotic War, the institute's teachers helped wounded soldiers restore their health through physical therapy. Other employees presented programs in military units and hospitals. In 1945, the work of sports schools and universities resumed. In 1946, our country held a post-war championship dedicated to International Women's Day. 80 athletes took part in the competition. In 1948, the first championship of the RSFSR was held in Leningrad. The winner of the championship in the individual all-around was Lyudmila Zotova. In 1949, Lyubov Denisova became the champion of the USSR.
The development of rhythmic gymnastics continued, championships began to be held annually, and since 1954, the first titles of masters of sports began to be awarded at competitions.
On December 6, 1963, the first International competition - the European Cup - took place in Budapest. Then Lyudmila Savinkova won, becoming the first world champion (the FIG committee decided to consider these competitions the first world championship). 28 gymnasts from 10 countries took part in the sports competition.
