Tokyo 2020: The Olympic lingo you need to know from Salto to Gallop
Some of the language used during the Olympic Games can be confusing - but we are here to help
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Your support makes all the difference.If you’re planning on watching the Olympic Games over the next couple of weeks, the chances are that at some point you’re going to find yourself watching a sport you know very little about.
It’s not just the rules that can be confusing if you’re a complete newcomer, it’s also the language - and how can you understand one without the other?
You may have already been baffled by a commentator casually referencing a ‘Gam-jeom’ during the taekwondo, or a ‘salto’ during the artistic gymnastics.
With that in mind, we are here to help. Here are a few pieces of jargon defined and broken down to help you get to grips with what the commentators are saying.
Olympic lingo explained
All-around: A category of gymnastics in which the athletes rotate around the apparatus. The winner is determined by adding up the scores from all events combined.
Amanar: Another gymnastics term used in the vault - in which the athlete does two and a half twists in a backwards rotation.
Dismount: When a gymnast leaves the apparatus at the end of a routine. Usually done with a twist or a salto.
Dressage: A type of equestrian event in which riders, either individually or as part of a team, perform a series of rehearsed moves with the horse, usually to music.
Gallop: An asymmetrical swim stoke that allows the swimmer to breathe to one side, rather than a combination of both.
Gam-jeom: The term used for committing an offence in taekwondo - such as throwing your opponent or stepping out of bounds - which leads to a point being deducted.
Keirin: The cycling race that starts off with riders following a electric bike (called a derny) around the track. The derny slowly brings up the speed before releasing the cyclists to sprint for the line over the final two and a half laps.
Pirouette: Used in gymnastics, when the athlete changes position when in a handstand.
Salto: A flip, or somersault, in which the gymnast rotates around the axis of their waist.
‘Stuck’ landing: The term used in gymnastics when the athlete executes a landing with no movement of the feet.
Twist: The opposite of the salto, so to speak, in which the gymnasts rotates around their vertical axis.
Velodrome: The arena where the track cycling takes place. The track is a round oval featuring steep banks.
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