A Beginner’s Guide to Gymnastics Betting

Gymnastics Basics 

There are many different events that fall under the umbrella of gymnastics. These include men’s and women’s versions of the Vault, Floor, Pommel Horse, Rings, Parallel Bars, Horizontal Bars, Uneven Bars, Rhythmic, Trampolines and more. Some events are individual and others are team based.  

There is not enough space here to delve into all of these; rather we shall focus on artistic gymnastics, which is the field that provides the most betting opportunities. The sport can trace its history back to 1934 and it emerged at a ballet school in Moscow. Today it combines elements of aesthetic gymnastics, rhythmic gymnastics, dance gymnastics and free dance. Eventually, the sport found its way to the Olympics, and today it has a huge following.  

Artistic gymnastics is comprised of a number of events, each of which has its own rules. For example, in the trampoline events the gymnast will walk to the side of the trampoline and must start their routine within one minute of the judges’ signal. They will then perform two sets of ten routines, using single, double and triple somersaults, with or without twists. 

In the individual competition of rhythmic gymnastics, the women will perform for between 75 and 90 seconds using an apparatus of their choice, a ball, rope, hoop, ribbon, or clubs. The group events will consist of five gymnasts performing two 135 to 150 second routines. The first routine uses five ribbons, and the second uses two hoops and three pairs of clubs. Throughout the routine, each gymnast and her apparatus must be in constant motion. The routine is then judged on factors such as execution, difficulty, and height or time of flight.  

There are of course many more rules for the various different events, and if you are to bet on them, it is definitely worth taking the time to study them in detail.  

Of course, gymnastics is not just an Olympic sport, and there are many other tournaments. For example, each year the world Championships take place at the end of August and September. A total of nine sets of medals are awarded for individual exercises, team competitions, and group exercises. There are also the Artistic Gymnastics World Cup/World Challenge Cups, which is a series of events that take place between February and November and attract the world’s top gymnasts. 

This basic overview should give you an idea of how much depth there is to the field of gymnastics. While it may seem that there is a lot to learn, it also means that there are many betting opportunities. As such, it is a truly exciting sport for betting fans, and one that can be extremely rewarding.  

Betting on Gymnastics 

When betting on gymnastics there are potentially many different betting markets available, and it will of course depend a bit on the nature of the event. In addition to betting on specific events, you may also be able to bet on tournaments as a whole. Here we shall explain some of the most popular betting markets found across all forms of gymnastics.  

Winner 

No matter what event you are betting on, whether it is an individual one or a team one, this is the simplest and most popular bet. You simply need to pick a winner and if your chosen gymnast/team wins, then you will win the bet.  

Handicap Betting  

Handicap betting is a technique used by bookmakers to make betting on the underdog more interesting. No matter the event or the type of bet, the idea is that the favourite is given a disadvantage that they must overcome. In the example of a points based even, the favourite would be assigned a negative points value and the underdog a positive points value. If you were to back the favourite, then you would win your bet if they are still the winner after that number of points has been subtracted from their final score. If you were to back the underdog, then you would win the bet if they were to be the winner after the given number of points have been added to their score.  

Handicap betting can appear to be a little confusing at first, but it is a great way to find better odds on the favourite, and once you have understood the principle, you will find that it opens up a huge number of new betting possibilities.  

Place Betting 

This betting market allows you to bet on a particular gymnast finishing in the top x places. For instance, you may see to finish in top 3, top 5, top 7, and so on. It is a way to back a gymnast who you believe will do well but does not quite have what it takes to win. A similar type of bet is an each way bet, which allows you to back a gymnast to win or to come second.  

Match Up Betting 

This type of betting market presents you with theoretical match ups between competing pairs of gymnasts. You are simply betting on which of the two you think will finish in a higher place in the competition. It means that you do not need to worry about who will win or lose the event, you simply need to decide which of the two will perform better.  

Points Totals 

This is a bet on the total number of points you believe a gymnast or a team will score. In a multidiscipline event, you will often be able to place bets for each individual discipline. Normally, these types of bets are presented as over/under bets. This means that if you think there will be more points scored than the value given you would bet over and if you think that there will be less, then you bet under.  

In-Play Betting 

In-play betting, or live betting, is a way to make betting on gymnastics even more exciting. It allows you to bet on an event as it is taking place. You will find many of the same betting markets as explained above, but they will have odds that are updated in real time to reflect the live action. This means that by keeping a careful eye on things, you may be able to spot a number of excellent betting opportunities.  

What to Consider When Betting on Gymnastics  

Before placing any type of bet, you want to do as much research as possible. While it will not guarantee that you win, it will certainly go a long way. However, it is important that you know what your research should focus on, and here we will try to explain this in relation to gymnastics. 

If you are looking to bet on a major tournament, such as the Olympics, you first should look at how the gymnasts have been performing throughout the season. You can find a calendar of events on websites such as the International Gymnastics Federation and the European Gymnastics Union, and this is a great starting point. 

The gymnasts will have many opportunities to display their form at smaller tournaments, so the results from these events give you the chance to analyse their form going into the big tournaments. You will also want to be aware of the latest news regarding the individual gymnasts, and while not everything you find online should be taken at face value, it is a very good place to start. 

You can also try to gather information from news or interviews with the gymnasts, in particular look for information about the performance that they will be bringing to the tournament. Generally, gymnasts will avoid using the same routines from season to season, as it can lead to negative scores from referees and even penalties.  

However, it takes time to plan and implement a new programme, especially in the case of group events. If a gymnast is going into a big tournament with a new routine and they haven’t had the chance to use it at a smaller event beforehand, then you may want to factor this into your betting strategy.  

If possible, you should also consider the composition of the teams of judges. There are usually three of them, the first will look at artistry, the second will evaluate the performance, and the third assess the complexity of the routines. If you can, find information about the judges, what they look for, and how they tend to score things.  

Ultimately, the best thing you can do is to watch as much gymnastics as possible, try to become familiar with the different people involved, and use your understanding of the sport to place well thought-out bets that will hopefully result in plenty of winnings.