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how tall are gymnasts?

  • 20-04-2013 8:27pm
    #1
    Lollipop95
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,278 ✭✭✭


    I know they're usually short and the AA gymnast champion at the olympics in 2008 (Nastia Liukin) was 5'3 but she was the tallest on the team I think. How tall are gymnasts usually? I've heard that 5'4 would be considered very tall for a gymnast. Also,does gymnastics actually stunt your growth cos I know there's been a lot of speculation about it? :confused: I've always presumed it's just down to genetics and those that do gymnastics would be quite small in the first place and would stick at it if they didn't get too tall. Also,what's the reason for gymnasts being small as you'd see more gymnasts say 5'3 than you would gymnasts that are 5'5. I've always wondered about this so thanks if anyone answers/can fill me in about all this :)


Comments

  • #2
    Corruptedmorals
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,195 ✭✭✭Corruptedmorals


    Gabby Douglas the reigning Olympic champion is 4'11, Shawn Johnson the 2007 world AA champion, 2008 runner up and beam champion is the same height. I would think the average height for female elite gymnasts is 5'0. Nastia was considered tall, so too is McKayla Maroney the reigning vault world champion. In fact McKayla is one who bucks the trend because her speciality is vault, which is easier for shorter gymnasts. Jana Sikulova is 5'7 and she has the uneven bars raised for her. Aliya Mustafina is 5'4, Sandra Izbasa is 5'5 and both are incredibly successful so it's not a hindrance as such. But it is harder for them.

    5'7 is the tallest I've heard of. Kyla Ross of the USA is heading that way, growing like a weed. The shortest on record is 4'1- Bai Chunyue of China. It used to be more common to have such short gymnasts, but there are still plenty who are not approaching 5 foot. I believe gymnastics does either stunt or delay growth, not just the women but the men are shorter than the average too. A classic example is Dominique Moceanu of the 1996 US Olympic team, she was 4'6 then and has grown a foot since.

    Once a gymnast hits 16 they get taller. Many gymnasts have grown since the Olympics, and the older the taller. Sandra Izbasa and Catalina Ponor who are in their 20's absolutely tower over their 16 year old teammates. I think they catch up in the end really. Short stature is a great asset for a power gymnast, as her centre of gravity is lower and huge skills come easier to her because she can flip and rotate faster. Many struggle to regain their old skills when they grow. Shawn Johnson is a great example of this and the most powerful gymnast I have ever seen, newcomer Simone Biles, is even more so..she has to be less than 4'9.

    Nastia for instance was long and willowy, which was an enormous asset to her on bars and beam. But her vaulting was extremely weak and her floor was nowhere near as difficult as that of her teammates. She had to open her legs (called cowboying) in order to speed up her rotation and land her skills.

    All in all I think it's moreso the hard training that they do that delays growth, as well as genetics. Tall gymnasts can be successful but the shorter girls will always have an easier time. Elite gymnasts train 6-8 hours a day for instance.


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