A Series: The Four Senior Level Apparatus: Clubs

Clubs are the only apparatus that require gymnasts to handle two objects at a time, instead of one. In this way, they are one of the harder apparatus. The clubs are actually two separate objects being launched at varying trajectories from both hands, but the gymnast is expected be able to handle them as one apparatus, in unison.

Aleksandra SOLDATOVA (RUS) clubs - 2015 Stuttgart worlds Qualifiers

Therefore, timing is an essential skill in clubs exercises especially because, often, gymnasts have to throw the clubs one right after the other so that they can then trap both of them at virtually the same time. However, gymnasts don’t always throw both of the clubs in the air at the same time. Often, they will throw one at a time and use the second club to trap the one that has just been thrown.

Although the clubs are two separate objects, they are usually built so that they can be fitted together if need be. Gymnasts will sometimes do this at the very end of their routines, for their finishing pose.

In competition, clubs must be between 40-50 cm in length and each one must weigh at least 150 grams. The clubs must be of substantial weight so that they can be tossed in the air for significant periods of time. At minimum, each club must rotate at least once in the air, but gymnasts will often toss them higher so that they can rotate two or three times in the air. While the clubs are in the air, gymnasts will often perform skills like chanee (360) turns or tumbling passes. Club routines often feature jumps, too. Gymnasts can either toss and catch one or both clubs mid-jump or they can keep them stationary in their hands.

The main element the judges look for in club routines is balance. For this reason and also because clubs are the most static, inflexible element, gymnasts will often perform many stationary balances in clubs exercises.

However, the rule that the apparatus must constantly remain in motion still applies to clubs. So, while holding balances, gymnasts will often engage in rhythmic tapping on the floor with their clubs. Most often, the tapping is done in time with the music, so the gymnast can also earn points for artistry toward their execution score. The most common way of incorporating tapping is when gymnasts are in a ponche turn/balance (180-degree split, standing on one leg) because their upper body and arms are close enough to the ground for the clubs to reach the floor.

In order to keep the clubs constantly in motion, gymnasts will also swing and swivel the clubs as they perform various dance steps. For this reason, if a gymnast and their coach want to choreograph a less traditional routine, they will often choose to do it with clubs. The whirling motions of the clubs lend themselves well to movements that make use of the hips, torso, and shoulders to inject more sass and fun into the performance.

Historically, rhythmic gymnastics was developed with balletic ideals in mind. For this reason, most choreography in rhythmic gymnastics features pointed feet, and straight lines. In fact, in competition, gymnasts are penalized for lack of fixed or well-defined shape. So, in a balance (the element judges look for the most with clubs), where a gymnast’s form is visible for an extended period of time, having clean lines and stability is all the more important.

In club routines, coaches make sure that the gymnast still has a correctly defined shape in technical balances and jumping maneuvers, but they will often take more liberties when it comes to the style of the dance steps in the routine. Choreographers might add in a flexed foot or bent knee in places, but many times, those positions serve as mechanisms to hold the clubs in non-traditional ways anyway.

Choreographers can also define the flavor of a routine by the music they choose. So, many club routines are performed to rock and roll or pop music while ribbon and ball routines are more likely to be performed to classical music.