2000 BC
Egyptians artefacts first depicted gymnastics

800 BC
Greece, China, Persia and India used gymnastics for military training.

18th Century
Germany popularised gymnastics for physical fitness

18th Century
Gustmuths wrote first gymnastics book

1881
Federation International de Gymnastique (FIG) founded

19th Century
Curative 'medical gymnastics' develops in Sweden

1952
Gymnastic events debut in the Olympics

1960
Japan's Masao Takemoto won Olympic gold at age 40

1962
First World Gymnastics Championships

1972
The USSR's Olga Korbut takes three golds at the Munich Olympics

1976
Gymnastics legends Nadia Comaneci and Nelli Kim became the first perfect 10s in history at Montreal Olympics

1978
Gymnastics debuts at the XI Commonwealth Games in Edmonton, Canada

1980s
The Soviet Union took men's gymnastics by storm

1992
Bela Karolyi retired. He flamboyantly created champions like Nadia Comaneci

1995
The FIG recorded 124 affiliations worldwide

1996
World Championships first held in Japan, Asia