|
Trampolining in gymnastics
 From 1947 through 1964, trampolining was included as an event in gymnastics competitions by both the AAU and NCAA. 1964 was a landmark year as it was when the first trampoline World Championships were held. Trampolining was finally recognised as a sport in its own right in the United States in 1967. In the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia, trampoline history took another bounce forward with its debut as an Olympic sport.
On a modern competitive trampoline, a skilled athlete can bounce to a height of up to ten metres, performing multiple somersaults and twists. Trampolines also feature in the competitive sport of Slamball, a variant of basketball, and Bossaball, a variant of volleyball.
A trampoline can be a safe place to develop tricky moves for other sports, and there are a number of other sports that use trampolines to help develop and hone acrobatic skills in training before they are used in the actual sporting venue, including diving, gymnastics, freestyle skiing, water skiing, snowboarding and wrestling
Types of trampoline: competitive and recreational
There are two basic types of trampoline: competitive and recreational. The frame of a competitive trampoline is made of steel and can be made to fold up for transportation to competition venues. The trampoline bed is rectangular 428 cm x 214 cm, fitted into the 520cm x 305cm frame with approximately 110 steel springs (actual number may vary by manufacturer). The bed is made of a strong fabric which is not itself elastic, the elasticity is provided by the springs. The fabric can be woven from webbing which is the most commonly used material. However, in the 2007 World Championships held in Quebec, a Ross (or "Two-String") bed, woven from individual thin strings, was used. This type of bed gives a little extra height to the rebound.
Recreational trampolines are less sturdily constructed than competitive ones and their springs are not as strong. They may be of various shapes, but usually circular, octagonal or rectangular. The fabric is usually a waterproof canvas or woven polypropylene material. Traditionally, steel springs have always been used to provide the rebounding force. However New Zealander Dr. Keith Vivian Alexander of the University of Canterbury has designed a trampoline which replaces these springs with cantilevered fibreglass rods which provide the rebounding force. This spring-free design allows the steel jumping frame to be placed below the jumping plane, making this type of trampoline safer.
Small, usually round, trampolines (less than one metre in diameter), often called trampettes are sometimes used as part of a physical fitness regime. This so-called rebounding allows the user to gain many of the benefits of exercise with a low impact on knees and joints. This type of trampoline is usually kept in an indoor environment. These trampolines don’t rebound as high as larger size recreational or competitive trampolines.
We don’t know what gives us the urge to bounce. But we do know that trampolining has never been more popular as a sport and a recreation. With a little attention to safety — whether you’re being tossed in a Walrus skin in the arctic, or jumping up and down on the latest development in trampoline technology in your back garden — trampolining is something that just about anyone can enjoy.
|
