Through the Olympic Years:
1896 - 1936
1896
The beginning of the modern Olympic Games. Gymnastics is one of the few sports that has been contested in every modern Olympics!
The USA did not send a gymnastics team.
1900
The USA did not send a gymnastics team.
1904
This was the first year the USA competed in gymnastics at the Olympics, and it was a somewhat unusual year for the Games, with two separate sets of competitions held several months apart! The USA competed 107 male gymnasts in the "Olympics," which doubled as the AAU National Championships. With no international competitors, the USA won every medal. In the other competition, with international athletes, the USA did not win any medals.
1908
The USA did not send a gymnastics team.
1912
The USA did not send a gymnastics team.
1916
canceled - World War I
1920
Four American male gymnasts competed on what is considered by some to be the USA's first "real" team in an Olympics.
1924
American Frank Kris, eventually a three-time Olympian, competed in his second Games, winning the vault competition. Alfred Jochim competed in his first of four Olympics for the USA men's gymnastics team. No other American gymnast has competed in four Olympics.
1928
The USA men brought their own pommel horse all the way to the Amsterdam for the competition. It was common in the early years of gymnastics to supply your own equipment.
Women's gymnastics was added to the Olympics, with medals only in the team competition, but the USA did not yet enter a women's team.
1932
American Frank Cumiskey competed in his first Olympics. He also competed in the '36 and '48 Olympics, setting the record of the longest year span of Olympic competition within American gymnastics: 16 years.
This Olympics was severely affected by the world depression, with only five teams able to afford the journey to Los Angeles. They had to cross the Atlantic by boat and then purchase $110 train tickets to get to California. With the Games held in our own country, the USA changed the rules to allow specialists to compete. The USA men swept the medals for the tumbling, rope climb, and Indian club events (not contested in today's competitions). These events, however, had only four, five, and four competitors respectively.
1936
This year marks the first entry of an American women's gymnastics team into Olympic competition. Helm McKee, one of the top USA women, was not permitted by her coach to try out for the Olympic team due to personal political conflicts between the AAU and her coach. Two of the female Olympians, Irma Haubold and Adelaide Meyer, were married to two members of the men's team: Frank Haubold and Frederick Meyer. Chester Phillips and Marie Kibler, members of the men's and women's teams, also married after the Games.
This was the last Olympic competition to be held outdoors! While World Championships were held outdoors until 1958, the Olympics moved indoors in 1948.
American George Wheeler competed in his only Olympics; he would later go on to win twenty-five national championships from '37 to '41, including the all-around title each year.
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