Acrobatic Gymnastics at Emilia's
Acrobatic Gymnastics is the newest and most exciting,
eye-catching sport to be added to the USA Gymnastics organization. It combines
strength, agility, flexibility, and balance, and competitors perform routines
incorporating partner balances, tosses, catches, dance and tumbling elements,
all choreographed and done to music. These routines are performed on the same 40
by 40 spring floor artistic gymnasts use for their floor exercise. There are
five different events in acrobatic gymnastics. These events are women's pair,
men's pair, mixed pair, women's trio, and men's four. Athletes of all shapes,
sizes, and body types are needed and utilized in these groupings. Competitive
acrobatic gymnastics begins at level 4, and goes all the way up to elite, the
highest level. Elite pair/groups perform three separate routines: a balance, a
dynamic, and a combined, while level 8-10 pair/groups perform two routines:
balance and dynamic, and levels 4-7 perform one combined routine. A balance
routine consists of held balance elements, complex human pyramids, and motions
from one hold to another in which the base partner/partners support the top
partner in various handstand positions. Some of these balance elements require
the top to be supported by the base's foot, head, or torso. A dynamic routine
includes skills where the base partner/partner's toss and throw the top into
various catches and landings to the floor. The top will sometimes perform double
and triple flips and multiple twists before the catch or landing. A combined
routine is the exercise that combines all elements from both balance and dynamic
into one routine.
Meet the coaches - click here.
For more photos, click here.
Emilia's Acro/Gymnastic Club has had a very successful acro gymnastics team here
in Columbia, MD for over 10 years. In 2000, our elite men's four placed 6th at
the World Championships in Poland and in 2001 our men's four placed 5th at the
World Games in Japan (the highest placement by any USA men's four). In 2003, our
elite women's trio was named to the United States National Team and was invited
to represent the US at the International Freedom Cup in Jacksonville, Florida,
where they placed 3rd overall. Just this past summer, our level 10 women's trio
won 1st place at the 2005 Acrobatic Gymnastics National Championships in
Louisville, Kentucky and afterward successfully qualified to the elite level. If
you are interested in joining our team or have any questions, please do not
hesitate to call the gym and talk to the owner and head coach, Daniil
Kostovetskiy.