Nothing could have prepared gymnastics fans for what took place in the Bercy Arena on July 31. The last time Team USA’s men bagged an Olympic medal was during the 2008 Beijing Games. However, since then, they had been on shaky grounds. In comparison, the women’s gymnastics team left the crowds stunned, especially with the likes of Simone Biles, Suni Lee, and more. While fans weren’t sure of what to expect, the men’s Final Five were on a mission in Paris. 

For 16 years, the American men gymnasts watched other nations outperform them on the world’s biggest stage. But in Paris, they emerged victorious by bagging an Olympic bronze medal amid a raucous crowd. While this redefined the sports’ excellence on the global stage, it hasn’t been able to keep it afloat. As gymnastics is on the verge of extinction, a few stars have been doing their best to bring attention to several aspects of the sport. What do we mean?

There’s more to the sport than what meets the eye

While the Paris Olympics gave the sport a much-needed life, a certain someone has been using the powers of social media to bring more attention to gymnastics. Ian Gunther, a former collegiate gymnast from Stanford, first started this journey during the COVID-stricken days four years ago. On December 29th, the 4x NCAA champion shared a cheeky video on Threads, taking his audience through the gym he trained at. But here’s where it gets interesting. 

During some downtime, the Stanford star decided to play The Price is Right—gymnastics edition. If you’ve ever wondered how much the equipment costs, he clears it up for you. As Gunther held on to the rings, he was asked to guess what the apparatus cost. While the gymnast went with $7,000, the actual cost was slightly lower, sitting at $6,965. We then move on to the pommel horse, which is the only apparatus that a few face numerous difficulties with.

Any guesses on what it costs? The pommel horse comes up to $5,300. Who would’ve thought, right? Up next, the bars! Unfortunately, the 25-year-old has a rough history with the apparatus. During a training session, he ended up breaking the bars midair and flying off onto the mat. Given this, the gymnast was asked if he knew what the damages cost him. Gunther went higher than expected and was shocked to find out that it actually cost $4,400.

The parallel bars, on the other hand, come up to roughly $10,760. Finally, the gymnast was asked to guess how much the gymnastics floor would come up to. Again, he came incredibly close to the actual price, missing it by just 2K. The floor costs a whopping $72,000, bringing the overall total to a whopping $99,425, i.e. few bucks short of $100,000. Now we know the price many of these programs have to pay to send out incredible talent at gymnastics meets.

Given how expensive the sport can be, it puts into perspective why many Division I teams have been given the axe in recent years. In fact, during the 1970s, about 150 or more universities had gymnastics programs. However, that number has drastically dropped to a concerning 12 in recent years. The 79.6% decrease has especially been devastating, with Ohio State University being the latest to cut the athletic scholarships for men’s gymnastics. However, another major program was recently added to this list. Which one is it? 

The decline of men’s gymnastics

Women’s gymnastics has been running circles around the men’s division for years. However, numerous gymnastics stars have helped elevate the sport with their stunning performances during the 2024 Paris Olympics. On the other hand, this wasn’t enough to keep the sport afloat. While the collegiate programs in the U.S. are on a downward spiral, Cuba might entirely miss out on gymnastics as a whole. The nation couldn’t even contest in the 1984 Los Angeles and 1988 Seoul Olympics.

What could be the cause of this? Political and financial reasons have played a huge role, and the negligence could eventually wipe out years of progress. Does this mean that the sport is headed for a path of obscurity? We already know that the U.S. has only 12 Division I universities that sponsor men’s teams. While it’s only three in D3, the D2 level, unfortunately, has none. However, Cuba is facing a similar fate lately. What’s been going on?

Cuba used to be pretty dominant in gymnastics. But times have changed, and they’re no longer the powerhouse they used to be. The nation doesn’t even compete, let alone win, in the Central American Games. This was an indication of the dire state of the sport. Even the former Cuban gymnast and current coach Damian Merino reflected on the decline.

“I competed in every Moncada tournament between 1989 and 1996, which were highly competitive due to the participation of top gymnasts from the socialist bloc,” he stated. There used to be a time when numerous elite gymnasts from all over would travel to Cuba to compete. However, that is on a decline as well. Gymnastics is an incredibly expensive sport, and with not much money put into it, the chances of it thriving can be incredibly low. Were you aware of how costly the equipment was?