<P> In the late eighteenth - and early nineteenth - century Germany, two pioneer physical educators--Johann Friedrich GutsMuths (1759--1839) and Friedrich Ludwig Jahn (1778--1852)--created exercises for boys and young men on apparatus they had designed that ultimately led to what is considered modern gymnastics . Don Francisco Amorós y Ondeano, was born on February 19, 1770 in Valencia and died on August 8, 1848 in Paris . He was a Spanish colonel, and the first person to introduce educative gymnastic in France . Jahn promoted the use of parallel bars, rings and high bars in international competition . </P> <P> The Federation of International Gymnastics (FIG) was founded in Liege in 1881 . By the end of the nineteenth century, men's gymnastics competition was popular enough to be included in the first "modern" Olympic Games in 1896 . From then on until the early 1950s, both national and international competitions involved a changing variety of exercises gathered under the rubric, gymnastics, that included for example, synchronized team floor calisthenics, rope climbing, high jumping, running, and horizontal ladder . During the 1920s, women organized and participated in gymnastics events . The first women's Olympic competition was primitive, only involving synchronized calisthenics and track and field . These games were held in 1928, in Amsterdam . </P> <P> By 1954, Olympic Games apparatus and events for both men and women had been standardized in modern format, and uniform grading structures (including a point system from 1 to 15) had been agreed upon . At this time, Soviet gymnasts astounded the world with highly disciplined and difficult performances, setting a precedent that continues . Television has helped publicize and initiate a modern age of gymnastics . Both men's and women's gymnastics now attract considerable international interest, and excellent gymnasts can be found on every continent . </P> <P> In 2006, a new points system for Artistic gymnastics was put into play . With an A Score (or D score) being the difficulty score, which as of 2009 is based on the top 8 high scoring elements in a routine (excluding Vault). The B Score (or E Score), is the score for execution, and is given for how well the skills are performed . </P>

Who introduced gymnastics and gave more emphasis on game and game skills