THE PRACTICE OF ARTISTIC GYMNASTICS: PROFILE, INFLUENCES AND PREFERENCES

Abstract

The performance of Artistic Gymnastics (AG) provides its practitioners with a general consciousness of the body’s existence, of movement within a space where distance, dimension, direction and perspective are assessed and controlled. This sporting activity involves a wide variety of movements, and is highly motivating because of the challenge it provides, while addressing the child’s need for action, providing pleasure during its execution and at the same time stimulating the attention and reflexes. It is intended to assess the profile, preferences and influences of AG practitioners, based on the experience of participants of the university extension project “Artistic Gymnastics: Practice of Psychomotor Activities”, established at the Bauru campus of UNESP. We used questionnaires and semi-structured interviews as data collection techniques for profiling, in order to obtain information including age, gender, and the factors influencing children in their choice of AG as an activity. The study population comprised AG students of both sexes, between the ages of 6 and 10 years. A total of 42 children participated in the research. Our initial observations are that the participants came from different neighborhoods of the city of Bauru (São Paulo State), that 92% had never previously practiced gymnastics, and that 72% did not practice any other sport. Where other sports were practiced, the most popular was swimming (43%), followed by handball (29%), formal gymnastics and volleyball (14% each). We found that the average age of the participants was 9 years, with greater participation in the age range between 9 and 10 years. A majority (77%) of participants were female. All participants were students, predominantly at intermediate level schooling. 23% of the AG population were relatives (mainly siblings). 65% of participants did not have relatives either currently practicing AG, or who had previously practiced it. Parents often provided the initial stimulus for interest in the sport. The children’s preferences were for balance beam skills (46%), followed by floor exercises (20%) and parallel bars (16%). We found that 54% of participants opted for the sport after viewing it on television, 31% due to parental desires, and 15% because they saw friends practicing it. The role of parents appeared to be decisive, since a large majority of interviewees reported that the former provided the incentive for practice. Images, whether live or on television, are important factors motivating practice of this sport.