# Parallel bars

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Apparatus used in artistic gymnastics

Not to be confused with [Uneven bars](/source/Uneven_bars).

A gymnast performs on the parallel bars

A handstand

**Parallel bars** are floor apparatus consisting of two wooden bars approximately 350 centimetres (11 feet 6 inches) long and positioned at 200 cm (6 ft 7 in) above the floor. Parallel bars are used in [artistic gymnastics](/source/Artistic_gymnastics) and also for [physical therapy](/source/Physical_therapy) and [home exercise](/source/Exercise).[1] Gymnasts may optionally wear [grips](/source/Grip_(gymnastics)) when performing a routine on the parallel bars, although this is uncommon.

## Apparatus

The apparatus consists of two [parallel](/source/Parallel_(geometry)) bars that are held parallel to, and elevated above, the floor by a [metal](/source/Metal) supporting framework. The bars must be elastic and stable, and the surface of the bars must be made of wood or a similar material.[2] Modern bars are typically made of two [ash](/source/Ash_wood) rails reinforced inside with [fiberglass](/source/Fiberglass).[3] The vertical members of the supporting framework are adjustable so the height of the bars above the floor and distance between the bars can be set optimally for each gymnast.[2]

### Dimensions

The bars must have the following dimensions:[2]

- Bar length: 350 centimetres (11.5 ft) ± 1 centimetre (0.39 in)

- Bar rounded profile: 5 cm (1+31⁄32 in) ± 1 millimetre (0.039 in) vertical by 4 centimetres (1.6 in) ± 1 millimetre (0.039 in) horizontal

- Height of bar from floor: 200 centimetres (6.6 ft) ± 1 centimetre (0.39 in)

- Distance between bars: 42 to 52 centimetres (17 to 20 in) (adjustable)

## History

[Johann Christoph Friedrich GutsMuths](/source/Johann_Christoph_Friedrich_GutsMuths) created an apparatus with bars and beams, though the first edition of his book, *Gymnastics for the Youth* ([German](/source/German_language): *Gymnastik für die Jugend*), published in 1793, did not include drawings of parallel bars. A later edition published in 1847 did.[3] Another early German gymnast named [Friedrich Ludwig Jahn](/source/Friedrich_Ludwig_Jahn) is considered to be the inventor of the parallel bars.[4] He created the first known set of parallel bars, based on the [vaulting horse](/source/Pommel_horse) with extended handles and no body between them, and installed them in his open-air gymnastics exercise ground, which opened in [Berlin](/source/Berlin) in 1811. At the time, they were meant to strengthen the arms for exercises on the vaulting horse, then a substitute for exercises on a real horse.[3]

Jahn later came into conflict with [Hugo Rothstein](/source/Hugo_Rothstein), a proponent of [Swedish gymnastics](/source/Swedish_gymnastics), over the use of the bars. Rothstein, director of the Central Gymnastics Institute founded in 1851, removed both the parallel bar and the [horizontal bar](/source/Horizontal_bar) from German gymnastics curricula. [Emil Heinrich du Bois-Reymond](/source/Emil_Heinrich_du_Bois-Reymond), a German professor of physiology, recommended returning the parallel bars to German gymnastics. They were reinstated into curricula in 1862 or 1863.[3][5]

The first parallel bars could not be adjusted and were bolted into the ground. They sometimes had three bars, particularly in schools focused on health care.[3] In 1819 the first transportable parallel bars were created by a Swiss educator, Phokion Heinrich Clias.[4] However, they were not very popular. Later, Hermann Otto Kluge, a pharmacists, created adjustable bars that used tubes, which he used in his own gym, built in 1856. Others developed new models that emphasized ease of adjustment as well as safety.[3]

In the 1920s, the bars were shorter than modern bars, with their height adjustable from 120 centimetres (3.9 ft) to 170 centimetres (5.6 ft), and up to 3 metres (9.8 ft) long. Various types of bars were available, and exercises easily performed on one set of bars might be impossible on another. Bars made out of wood frequently became damaged and cracked; at the [1952 Summer Olympics](/source/1952_Summer_Olympics), the bars cracked four times. Richard Reuther proposed a new design in 1953 that included elasticity, and he introduced his new type of bars two years later. They could also be adjusted slightly taller and were longer at 3.5 metres (11 ft) long. In 1963, Reuther incorporated [fiberglass](/source/Fiberglass) into the bars, which significantly improved both the flexibility and the durability in the bars; only minor changes have been made in their construction since.[3]

## Routines

Routines involve swinging both backward and forward, static holds, turns in handstand positions, and [somersaults](/source/Somersault) performed while between the bars.[3] Each routine ends with a dismount from either the end or the side of the bars.

### International level routines

The gymnast must mount the bars by jumping from both feet; a [springboard](/source/Springboard_(gymnastics)) may be used. A routine should contain at least one element from all element groups:[6]

- I. Elements in support or through support on both bars

- II. Elements starting in the upper arm position

- III. Long swings in hang, on 1 or 2 bars, and underswings

- IV. Dismounts

### Scoring and rules

Deductions are taken for lack of form and precision of elements performed. There are specific deductions for adjusting the hand position in the handstand and not controlling swing elements; many swing type elements should momentarily show handstand.[6]

## See also

- [Parallettes](/source/Parallettes)

## External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to [Parallel bars](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Parallel_bars).

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** Potts, Jennifer (March 21, 2011). ["Parallel Bar Exercises For Physical Therapy"](http://www.mademan.com/mm/parallel-bar-exercises-physical-therapy.html). *Mademan*.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:0_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:0_2-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-:0_2-2) ["Apparatus Norms"](https://www.gymnastics.sport/publicdir/rules/files/en_Apparatus%20Norms.pdf) (PDF). [FIG](/source/F%C3%A9d%C3%A9ration_Internationale_de_Gymnastique). 2023. p. 40-41. Retrieved 2009-10-20.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:1_3-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:1_3-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-:1_3-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-:1_3-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-:1_3-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-:1_3-5) [***g***](#cite_ref-:1_3-6) [***h***](#cite_ref-:1_3-7) Babela, Michal; Seman, František (2025-06-30). ["The History and Technological Development of Parallel Bars"](https://journals.uni-lj.si/sgj/article/view/22129). *Science of Gymnastics Journal*. **17** (2): 199–220. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.52165/sgj.17.2.199-220](https://doi.org/10.52165%2Fsgj.17.2.199-220). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [1855-7171](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/1855-7171).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:2_4-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:2_4-1) ["History of Parallel Bars, Artistic Gymnastics"](https://www.gymmedia.com/ghent2001/appa/bars/history_ba.htm). *www.gymmedia.com*. Retrieved 2025-09-02.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** Finkelstein, Gabriel (2013). *Emil du Bois-Reymond: Neuroscience, Self, and Society in Nineteenth-Century Germany*. Cambridge; London: The MIT Press. pp. 180–182. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0262019507](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0262019507).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-groups_6-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-groups_6-1) ["MAG Code of Points 2025-2028"](https://www.gymnastics.sport/publicdir/rules/files/en_1.1%20-%20MAG%20CoP%202025-2028.pdf) (PDF). [FIG](/source/F%C3%A9d%C3%A9ration_Internationale_de_Gymnastique). pp. 92–95. Retrieved 2025-09-01.

v t e Artistic gymnastics apparatus and equipment Women's apparatus Vault Uneven bars Balance beam Floor Men's apparatus Floor Pommel horse Still rings Vault Parallel bars Horizontal bar Equipment and uniforms Braces Grips Mats Uniforms

v t e Olympic Champions in Artistic Gymnastics – Men's Parallel Bars Summary 1896: Alfred Flatow (GER) 1904: George Eyser (USA) 1924: August Güttinger (SUI) 1928: Ladislav Vácha (TCH) 1932: Romeo Neri (ITA) 1936: Konrad Frey (GER) 1948: Michael Reusch (SUI) 1952: Hans Eugster (SUI) 1956: Viktor Chukarin (URS) 1960: Boris Shakhlin (URS) 1964: Yukio Endō (JPN) 1968: Akinori Nakayama (JPN) 1972: Sawao Katō (JPN) 1976: Sawao Katō (JPN) 1980: Aleksandr Tkachyov (URS) 1984: Bart Conner (USA) 1988: Vladimir Artemov (URS) 1992: Vitaly Scherbo (EUN) 1996: Rustam Sharipov (UKR) 2000: Li Xiaopeng (CHN) 2004: Valeriy Honcharov (UKR) 2008: Li Xiaopeng (CHN) 2012: Feng Zhe (CHN) 2016: Oleg Verniaiev (UKR) 2020: Zou Jingyuan (CHN) 2024: Zou Jingyuan (CHN)

v t e World Artistic Gymnastics Championships – Men's parallel bars 1903: François Hentges (LUX) 1903 Joseph Martinez (FRA) 1905: Marcel Lalu (FRA) 1903 Joseph Martinez (FRA) 1907: Joseph Lux (FRA) 1909: Joseph Martinez (FRA) 1911: Giorgio Zampori (ITA) 1913: Guido Boni (ITA) 1913 Giorgio Zampori (ITA) 1922: Leon Štukelj (YUG) 1926: Ladislav Vácha (TCH) 1930: Josip Primožič (YUG) 1931: István Pelle (HUN) 1934: Eugen Mack (SUI) 1938: Michael Reusch (SUI) 1950: Hans Eugster (SUI) 1954: Viktor Chukarin (URS) 1958: Boris Shakhlin (URS) 1962: Miroslav Cerar (YUG) 1966: Sergey Diomidov (URS) 1970: Akinori Nakayama (JPN) 1974: Eizo Kenmotsu (JPN) 1978: Eizo Kenmotsu (JPN) 1979: Bart Conner (USA) 1981: Alexander Dityatin (URS) 1981 Kōji Gushiken (JPN) 1983: Vladimir Artemov (URS) 1983 Lou Yun (CHN) 1985: Sylvio Kroll (GDR) 1985 Valentin Mogilny (URS) 1987: Vladimir Artemov (URS) 1989: Vladimir Artemov (URS) 1989 Li Jing (CHN) 1991: Li Jing (CHN) 1992: Li Jing (CHN) 1992 Aleksey Voropayev (CIS) 1993: Vitaly Scherbo (BLR) 1994: Huang Liping (CHN) 1995: Vitaly Scherbo (BLR) 1996: Rustam Sharipov (UKR) 1997: Zhang Jinjing (CHN) 1999: Lee Joo-hyung (KOR) 2001: Sean Townsend (USA) 2002: Li Xiaopeng (CHN) 2003: Li Xiaopeng (CHN) 2005: Mitja Petkovšek (SLO) 2006: Yang Wei (CHN) 2007: Kim Dae-eun (KOR) 2007 Mitja Petkovšek (SLO) 2009: Wang Guanyin (CHN) 2010: Feng Zhe (CHN) 2011: Danell Leyva (USA) 2013: Kōhei Uchimura (JPN) 2013 Lin Chaopan (CHN) 2014: Oleg Verniaiev (UKR) 2015: You Hao (CHN) 2017: Zou Jingyuan (CHN) 2018: Zou Jingyuan (CHN) 2019: Joe Fraser (GBR) 2021: Hu Xuwei (CHN) 2022: Zou Jingyuan (CHN) 2023: Lukas Dauser (GER) 2025: Zou Jingyuan (CHN)

Authority control databases International GND National United States Israel

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Parallel bars](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parallel_bars) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parallel_bars?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.