Artistic gymnastics
In 1881, the FIG was founded, and it remains the governing body of international gymnastics. It initially included only three countries and was called the European Gymnastics Federation until 1921, when the first non-European countries joined the federation and it was reorganized into its present form. Gymnastics was included in the program of the 1896 Summer Olympics, but women have been allowed to participate in the Olympics only since 1928. The World Championships, held since 1903, were open only to men until 1934. Since that time, two branches of artistic gymnastics have developed: women's artistic gymnastics (WAG) and men's artistic gymnastics (MAG). Unlike men's and women's branches of many other sports, WAG and MAG differ significantly in apparatus used at major competitions and in techniques.
World Artistic Gymnastics Championships
The Artistic Gymnastics World Championships are the world championships for artistic gymnastics governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG). The first edition of the championship was held in 1903, exclusively for male gymnasts. Since the tenth edition of the tournament, in 1934, women's events are held together with men's events. As of 2017, over sixty different editions of the championships have been staged, and over forty different countries have earned medals in both men's and women's artistic gymnastics events. The most successful nation, both in gold medal results and total number of medals, is Soviet Union. China is the second most successful country in total medals earned, and Japan is the third most successful nation at the championships. Russia, Romania, and the United States are also usually among the most dominant nations, especially in women's artistic gymnastics events. Currently, the championship is held annually on non-Olympic years.