Straight line

The wheel is moving on both rims. The gymnast is inside the wheel and directs its motion by shifting his body weight. One distinguishes between central and de-central elements. During a central element, the gymnast’s centre of mass is located in the middle of the wheel, while it is located closer to the rims during de-central elements. The different moves are rated A-, B, C-, and D- elements according to their difficulty, with D-elements being the most challenging. The gymnast has to perform a series of different elements within a given number of turns. Judges evaluate the execution, difficulty, and composition, similar to artistic gymnastics. Kids and juniors perform this discipline without music, while the adult class (L10) requires the performance to music, which includes an additional evaluation of musicality, interpretation and creativity. Regulations for posture of arms, legs and body for straight line routines with music are eased in order to allow the interpretation of the music.
The space for a straight line routine is limited to 3 m x 23 m (plus safety zone).
 

Spiral

In spiral the wheel is set in motion on one rim. The wheel traces an approximately circular path on the floor, similar to a spinning coin. The gymnast controls the motion by shifting of his body weight and directed pulling or pushing for acceleration of the wheel. Like in straight line, the moves are rated A-, B, C-, and D- elements according to their difficulty. A spiral routine must contain a “big spiral” during which the wheel must have an inclination of more than 60°, and a “small spiral” with an inclination of less than 30°. The space for a spiral routine is limited to 13 m x 13 m (plus safety zone).

Vault

For the vault, the gymnast is positioned outside of the wheel and sets the wheel in fast motion by pushing it. The gymnast then sprints after the wheel, catches it and jumps on top of it, using various techniques that combine body positioning, momentum, strength and the inertia of the moving wheel. Being in an either standing position or in a roll-over position on top of the wheel, the gymnast then performs a dismount, which can be for example a front or back tuck, and/or a twist. Every gymnast has two attempts for performing the vault; the best grade counts for the all around competition.

* Description of the disciplines by Brigitte Faber, delegate for judging in the Technical Committee for Wheel Gymnastics (translation: Julia Pohling)