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The best gymnasts are short people; the best swimmers are not. There are always exceptions (Janet Evans). Short people have certain advantages in gymnastics due

The best gymnasts are short people; the best swimmers are not. There are always exceptions (Janet Evans). Short people have certain advantages in gymnastics due to the physics of motion. Years ago tall men and women did compete in Olympic gymnastics but do so rarely today. In today's increasingly competitive world, we find only short gymnasts in the top tier. Competitors will go so far as to change birthdates to get younger (ergo smaller) gymnasts into competition. "to paraphrase pg: Take some swimmers and gymnasts and tell them they have to learn each others discipline or be executed. Who's the most worried?" I don't think the gymnasts swim times would be nearly as good as the swimmers. Nor do I think the swimmers would perform as well as the gymnasts at gymnastics. Each sport has evolved to the point where body type must be taken into account. But consider a more realistic hypothetical: Put a swimmer and a gymnast in a room and tell them only one of them can come out. My money's on the swimmer!8-)) Finally, as Randy Newman once sang: http://www.sing365.com/music/lyric.nsf/Short-People-lyrics-Randy-Newman/3244F1D30051F75E48256A370048B6FA http://www.sing365.com/music/lyric.nsf/Short-People-lyrics-R... "Short people got no reason to live. They got little hands Little eyes They walk around Tellin' great big lies They got little noses And tiny little teeth They wear platform shoes On their nasty little feet"

nostrademons 17y ago
"In today's increasingly competitive world, we find only short gymnasts in the top tier." That is less true now than it was 10 years ago. Nastia Liukin and Svetlana Khorkina are both of above-average height (5'4" and 5'5", respectively), as is Sandra Izbasa (5'5"), the reigning Olympic gold medalist on floor. You still see some very short gymnasts (eg. Shawn Johnson or the Chinese), but tall women can actually be competitive now.
trapper 17y ago
You still seem to be confusing the issue. This isn't about fitness which is trainable. This is about coordination. I'm also talking about the general case, not a specific case. People who do gymnastics tend to be much more gifted with coordination than swimmers. Also, your money would be on the swimmer in a fight? Are you serious? Perhaps you are thinking of rythmic gymnastics? http://www.verticaljumping.com/images/male_gymnast.jpg http://www.verticaljumping.com/images/male_gymnast.jpg http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Dhs0-1T9VXw/SC-0HhRMdEI/AAAAAAAAB90/tyxx6Tny5kk/s400/olympian-beijing-bound.jpg http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Dhs0-1T9VXw/SC-0HhRMdEI/AAAAAAAAB9...
- giardini 17y ago
  No, I wasn't talking about fitness. And is "coordination" indeed not trainable? Perhaps people who do gymnastics are, as you say, more "coordinated" because they "coordinate" more (i.e., train more)? Swimmers are, on average taller/bigger than gymnasts. In a fight, the bigger guy/gal usually wins. That's a lesson you should have learned in the first grade. Schools these days!
  - trapper 17y ago
    Coordination is trainable absolutely, but people also tend to self select sports which they excel at naturally. What does that tell you? Who would your money be on to learn baseball, weightlifting and cross country skiing: a swimmer or a gymnast? You also may be interested in: http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/wire?section=swimming&id=3135624 http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/wire?section=swimming&id=... Key quote: "I don't remember what it was, but I have scars all over my body just literally from falling all over the place" The assertion about size in fights only holds when all else is equal, which is rarely the case. Gymnasts are extremely strong due to spending most of their training holding up their entire body in strange positions. Swimmers on the other hand are extremely weak (look in the literature if you don't believe me) due to the amount of time spent training supported by the water. Plus there are huge speed and explosiveness differences as well. I know where my money would be.
    - giardini 17y ago
      In baseball, maybe the gymnast, but the extended reach of the swimmer and his/her ability to bat harder might win out. In weightlifting, definitely the swimmer. In cross country skiing, the gymnast, for the following reason. Weight is proportional to the cube of body size (length) while muscular strength is proportional to body size. The strength/weight ratio is inversely proportional to the square of body size. As size increases strength increases proportionately but the power/weight ratio goes down rapidly. Fleas are an extreme example: they can broad-jump like no person. Shorter people, like fleas, have an advantage in some sports (e.g., gymnastics) because of their higher power/weight ratio. This also makes a difference in endurance events where shorter people can sometimes perform exceptionally well because they expend less energy per mile. Don't waste your money on old myths. Serious swimmers today do weight training. Big people are stronger than small people generally. If you don't believe me, pick a fight with a mean guy who's taller than you. Or better yet, pick a fight with a mean, tall competitive swimmer.

nostrademons 17y ago

"In today's increasingly competitive world, we find only short gymnasts in the top tier." That is less true now than it was 10 years ago. Nastia Liukin and Svetlana Khorkina are both of above-average height (5'4" and 5'5", respectively), as is Sandra Izbasa (5'5"), the reigning Olympic gold medalist on floor. You still see some very short gymnasts (eg. Shawn Johnson or the Chinese), but tall women can actually be competitive now.

trapper 17y ago

You still seem to be confusing the issue. This isn't about fitness which is trainable. This is about coordination. I'm also talking about the general case, not a specific case. People who do gymnastics tend to be much more gifted with coordination than swimmers. Also, your money would be on the swimmer in a fight? Are you serious? Perhaps you are thinking of rythmic gymnastics? http://www.verticaljumping.com/images/male_gymnast.jpg http://www.verticaljumping.com/images/male_gymnast.jpg http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Dhs0-1T9VXw/SC-0HhRMdEI/AAAAAAAAB90/tyxx6Tny5kk/s400/olympian-beijing-bound.jpg http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Dhs0-1T9VXw/SC-0HhRMdEI/AAAAAAAAB9...

giardini 17y ago
No, I wasn't talking about fitness. And is "coordination" indeed not trainable? Perhaps people who do gymnastics are, as you say, more "coordinated" because they "coordinate" more (i.e., train more)? Swimmers are, on average taller/bigger than gymnasts. In a fight, the bigger guy/gal usually wins. That's a lesson you should have learned in the first grade. Schools these days!
- trapper 17y ago
  Coordination is trainable absolutely, but people also tend to self select sports which they excel at naturally. What does that tell you? Who would your money be on to learn baseball, weightlifting and cross country skiing: a swimmer or a gymnast? You also may be interested in: http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/wire?section=swimming&id=3135624 http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/wire?section=swimming&id=... Key quote: "I don't remember what it was, but I have scars all over my body just literally from falling all over the place" The assertion about size in fights only holds when all else is equal, which is rarely the case. Gymnasts are extremely strong due to spending most of their training holding up their entire body in strange positions. Swimmers on the other hand are extremely weak (look in the literature if you don't believe me) due to the amount of time spent training supported by the water. Plus there are huge speed and explosiveness differences as well. I know where my money would be.
  - giardini 17y ago
    In baseball, maybe the gymnast, but the extended reach of the swimmer and his/her ability to bat harder might win out. In weightlifting, definitely the swimmer. In cross country skiing, the gymnast, for the following reason. Weight is proportional to the cube of body size (length) while muscular strength is proportional to body size. The strength/weight ratio is inversely proportional to the square of body size. As size increases strength increases proportionately but the power/weight ratio goes down rapidly. Fleas are an extreme example: they can broad-jump like no person. Shorter people, like fleas, have an advantage in some sports (e.g., gymnastics) because of their higher power/weight ratio. This also makes a difference in endurance events where shorter people can sometimes perform exceptionally well because they expend less energy per mile. Don't waste your money on old myths. Serious swimmers today do weight training. Big people are stronger than small people generally. If you don't believe me, pick a fight with a mean guy who's taller than you. Or better yet, pick a fight with a mean, tall competitive swimmer.