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Jump rope

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Games

   An 1800 depiction of jumping rope
   An 1800 depiction of jumping rope

   A jump rope, rope skipping, skipping rope or skip rope is the primary
   tool used in the game of skipping played by children and many young
   adults, where one or more participants jump over a spinning rope so
   that it passes under their feet and over their heads. This may consist
   of one participant twirling and jumping the rope, or a minimum of three
   participants taking turns, two of which twirl the rope while one or
   more jumps. Sometimes the latter is played with two twirling ropes;
   this form of the activity is called Double Dutch and is significantly
   more difficult.

   Children often chant jump-rope rhymes while jumping rope. These can
   range from pure nonsense to comments on current events. Participants
   may simply jump until they tire or make a mistake, they may improvise
   tricks, or they may have to carry out a predetermined set of tricks.
   People also practice solo jump-roping for exercise. There are hundreds
   of different tricks/techniques of skipping rope.

History

   English folklore suggests that skipping had it's origins in the rope
   with which Judas Iscariot hanged himself after his betrayal of Christ.
   Skipping was popular in Spring and particularly at Easter time.
   Skipping took place in Cambridge and in several Sussex villages and
   indeed still takes place every Good Friday in the East Sussex village
   of Alciston.

Competition

   Jump rope is practiced on a competitive level world-wide. Athletes
   compete in individual and team events. In freestyle routines, jumpers
   have a set time limit to demonstrate a combination of skills; in many
   competitions these are choreographed to music. During the speed events,
   athletes must complete a determined amount of successful jumps within a
   particular amount of time. For example, the world record for 30 second
   speed is 188 jumps. In July 2004, Brisbane, Australia hosted the World
   Jump Rope Championships. Belgium, Canada, Germany, Great Britain,
   Hungary, Japan, and the United States of America each medalled. The
   2006 World Jump Rope Championships was held in Toronto, Canada in
   mid-July. The 4th Asian Rope Skipping Championship is to be held on 9
   February 2007 at the Talkatora Indoor Stadium, New Delhi, India. Jump
   rope exhibitions are also frequently staged at events such as
   festivals, charity functions, and sporting half-time shows.

   Though many believe jump rope is a simple, fun activity, others
   consider it a sport. Serious jump rope athletes train rigorously
   year-round. Jumping rope takes immense strength, endurance, focus, and
   patience, and can be much more than a simple game of chanting rhymes.

   In the United States, the main organized jump rope organization is USA
   Jump Rope. USAJR is composed of hundreds of jump roping teams
   throughout the country. These teams perform at high school and sporting
   events, take part in competitions, and attend workshop training camps
   throughout the year. USA Jump Rope has a national all-star team which
   travels across the country and the world sharing information and
   promoting the sport.

   Two competing jump rope organizations once functioned in the US: the
   Internation Rope Skipping Organization, and the World Rope Skipping
   Federation. IRSO focused more on stunt-oriented and gymnastic/athletic
   type jump rope moves, while the WRSF focused more on the aesthetics and
   form of jump roping. These two organizations have now merged into the
   USAJRF, which was recently renamed USA Jump Rope to fit the trend of
   other Olympic and Olympic-hopeful sports. USA Jump Rope holds various
   regional competitions and a national competition at Walt Disney World
   in Orlando, Florida. Competing teams consist of children aged five to
   seventeen and older.

World records

     * On October 12 2006 50,000 skippers (most of them children and
       teachers in primary schools) skipped for 30 seconds in 335 schools
       in The Netherlands. Videos, pictures and on-line-articles can be
       found here.
     * On March 24 2006 a mass participation record was set in the United
       Kingdom and Ireland. 7,632 children skipped continuously for three
       minutes in 85 different locations across the country. This was part
       of a joint effort to re-introduce skipping into schools by the The
       British Rope Skipping Association and Skipping Workshops. This
       record has been accepted by Guinness World Records.

Jumping rope as exercise

   Jumping rope is an activity not only suited for competition or
   recreation, but also for a cardiovascular workout, similar to jogging
   or bicycle riding. This aerobic exercise can achieve a "burn rate" of
   up to 1300 calories per hour of vigorous activity, with about 0.1
   calories consumed per jump. Ten minutes of jumping rope is roughly the
   equivalent of running an eight-minute mile. Jumping rope can avoid the
   knee damage which may occur during running, since the impact of each
   jump or step is absorbed by both legs. Jumping rope also helps
   strengthen the arms and shoulders. This combination of an aerobic
   workout and coordination-building footwork have made jumping rope a
   popular form of exercise for athletes, especially boxers and wrestlers.
   Individuals or groups can participate in the exercise, and learning
   proper jump rope technique is relatively simple compared to many other
   athletic activities. The exercise is also appropriate for a wide range
   of ages and fitness levels.

Jumping rope techniques

   Some of the techniques that can be used when jumping rope are:

   Basic jump
          This is where both feet are slightly apart and jump at the same
          time over the rope. Beginners should master this technique first
          before moving onto more advanced techniques.

   Alternate foot jump
          This style consists of using alternate feet to jump off the
          ground. This technique can be used to effectively double the
          number of skips per minute as compared to the above technique.

   Criss-cross
          This method is similar to the basic jump with the only
          difference being that while jumping, the left hand goes to the
          right part of the body and vice versa for the right hand.

   Double under
          To perform a double under, the participant needs to jump up a
          bit higher than usual while swinging the rope twice under his
          feet. It is possible to have the rope swing three times under
          the feet (triple under). In fact, in competitive jump rope,
          triples, quadruples ("quads"), and quintuples ("quins") are not
          uncommon. To be competitive in the United States, a male above
          the age of 15 would need to be able to do more than 200 triples
          in a row.

   Combination jumps
          There are many more difficult jump roping tricks that combine
          two or more of these techniques to make a single trick. These
          combinations can also be used in Chinese Wheel, Double Dutch,
          and Long Rope.

   Leg under x
          The leg under x is a complicated trick where the jumper puts the
          left hand under the right leg and the right hand over the left
          leg.

   Other
          Many other variations are possible, including: "skier", a
          side-to-side jump keeping the feet together; "bell", a
          front-and-back jump keeping the feet together; "scissors", a
          jump putting one foot forward and the other back, then switching
          back-and-forth; "jumping jack", a jump putting the feet apart
          and then together; and "can-can" a jump with one leg up and
          bent, followed by a jump with both feet on ground, followed by a
          jump kicking the foot out.

   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jump_rope"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
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