ACROSPORT

ACROSPORT (AICLE sequence):

PRE-TASK:

Read this text and write down the words you know and the one you can guess from the context. After that, comment with your partner about the meaning of this text.

HISTORY:

The Word Acrobat comes from Greek   Akrobatos that it means walk over the feet´s tip, but commonly we can talk about Acrosport  as the sport where an acrobat realize gymnastic exercises and abilities as jumps, balance, etc.  We also find Acrobat as “the person who do jumps, abilities over a trapeze,   the tightrope or do any other gymnastic exercises in a public performance”.

It is difficult to say exactly when and how this kind of exercises began, but we can say that perform acrobatics were part of humans since a long time ago. If we look back over archaeology, different cultures and text over the history, philosophers and poets, we can place the beginning and development of this kind of acrobatic exercises more than 4.000 years ago. So on at the ancient Egypt these acrobatic exercises occupied a special place in ceremonies and parties.

Archeology excavations in ancient Greeks show us that Greeks known about acrobatic exercises, so popular were play with bulls, doing over them different acrobatic jumps with turns, somersaults, balance, etc.

During IV to XIII centuries the interest in Europe for circus activities increases, where acrobats showed their skills at the streets and fairs of different cities and towns.

At the Renaissance began in Venice the competition named “Living Architecture competition”, based on elaborate acrobatics pyramids where the winner were the ones that obtain a higher distance from the floor. It is also from this period when appears the interest from pedagogue of that time toward Physical Education as a tool of development and education for the growing generation. In relation with this, the first books specially oriented for acrobatic exercises appear.

It will be not till XVIII century that these kinds of activities have a complete development in circus and with it, exercises at elastic bed, trampoline, balance …

On this acrobatic and circus exercises we can make a difference between two functions or abilities:

a)    CARRYER: being this person the one who carry on.

b)    AGILE: being this person the one that realize balance and flexibility or acrobatics jumps on air being thrown by the carriers.

When nationals’ gymnastics systems emerged like: Swedish, French and German in XVIII and XIX centuries, acrobatics take three directions.

1.     As way of life for kids at the street (to look for live).

2.     Towards circus art.

3.     As a tool/means for Sport and Physical Education.

In XX century acrobatics has a fast development, adding trampoline exercises as an important and competitive activity.

DEFINITIONS AND DIFFERENCIES:

Acrosport: Acrobatic and choreographic sport, where you can find three main elements:

1.     Creation of figures or body pyramids.

2.     Acrobatic and strength elements, flexibility and balance as transition from one figure to the other.

3.     Dancing elements, jumps and gymnastic pirouettes as choreographic element, which gives to this sport an artistic grade.

Acrobatics it is each one of the gymnastic exercises or abilities that an acrobat realize: balance, jumps, turns, etc.

-          Acrobatics is an important part of acrosport.

-          Acrobatics can be understood out of acrosport but not acrosport with out acrobatics.

Acrosport from edusport29