Rhythmic gymnastics has not been around for very long. It separated from other sports at the end of the 19th century in France, and in Russia in the first half of the 20th century. The Olympic history in rhythmic gymnastics begins even later: gymnasts were able to compete at the Games only in 1984.
Let's figure out where rhythmic gymnastics came from from the very beginning: how it appeared, how it developed in Russia and what it looks like now.
It is believed that rhythmic gymnastics went down in history thanks to the Frenchman Georges Demeny. It was he who did the painstaking work and combined several already existing trends into a single whole, dance gymnastics using modified objects: clubs, sticks, wreaths.
Isadora Duncan, who discovered and popularized the style of free dance, contributed to the emergence of rhythmic gymnastics: courses within this direction were opened both in Russia and abroad.
Emile Jacques-Dalcroze, a composer and teacher from Switzerland, combined smooth, natural movements with music, primarily focusing his classes on understanding the rhythm of the melody and the ability to move to its beat.
Francois Delsarte became the founder of such a movement as expressive gymnastics. Having lost his voice, the singer did a lot of work, studying gestures, facial expressions, and postures.
According https://usghof.org/ the gymnastic leotard as we know it today did not appear immediately. The first rhythmic gymnasts were content with ordinary tights: they were “inherited” from artistic gymnasts. But the first swimsuits that appeared in the USSR left much to be desired: they were made from cotton, which did not stretch well, faded and quickly lost its shape.
The rules also changed over time. If at first it was possible to get a lower grade for a multi-colored suit (only single-color options were allowed), later they were still allowed to perform in two-color swimsuits.
Modern brightness in leotards for rhythmic gymnastics appeared closer to the eighties: then the costumes acquired more saturated shades, the design and pattern became more noticeable and larger. Even the items that no top-class performance could do without were now tried to be combined with the costume: the jump rope, hoop, balls and ribbon were matched to the leotard.
In 1993, one-piece swimsuits were allowed: it was assumed that this would popularize rhythmic gymnastics in eastern countries.
The latest changes in the costume occurred after the Olympics in 2000: then a small skirt and fringed elements could be added to the swimsuit if desired. For the first time, Russian gymnast Alina Kabaeva performed in a leotard with a skirt. Such models are still popular today: it is believed that the “skirt” style helps to hide figure flaws.