PARIS: Japanese gymnasts at the Paris Olympic Games are set to face the challenge of working with equipment made by a manufacturer different from what they are used to.

Japanese tournaments often use equipment made by domestic maker Senoh Corp., while the Paris Games is set to use equipment made by France’s Gymnova. While both types meet the International Gymnastics Federation’s standards, they use different materials and structures, so Japanese athletes need to adjust to the Gymnova equipment when they perform at the Paris Games.

There are marked differences in the structures for fixing the bars, in particular, between horizontal and uneven bars made by the two companies. While the Senoh bars are fixed in a way that makes them bend easily in all directions, the structure adopted by Gymnova limits the bars’ forward and backward bends.

Senoh spokesperson Nonoko Hiyoshi said that the company’s equipment is designed to fit the physique of ordinary Japanese athletes, and that “it is possible to perform a giant swing beautifully as the equipment easily creates momentum even if athletes are not heavy.”

Takaaki Sugino, who is adept at the horizontal bar, said that he struggled with the timing of release-regrasp skills on bars made by Gymnova. But Sugino said he gradually got used to the French maker’s equipment. “I became better and better as I practiced.”

Floors made by Gymnova are said to be bouncier than Senoh products. Daiki Hashimoto, who won gold in the men’s individual all-around and the horizontal bar at the Tokyo Olympic Games in 2021, which used Senoh equipment, made some errors at a training camp held in France recently in the run-up to the Paris Games, due to the floor bounce.

“The landing is what makes or breaks it, so I need to suppress (the bounce),” Hashimoto said.

Gymnastics equipment has improved over time to reflect the increased difficulty of techniques. Vaults used to be performed with equipment similar to a pommel horse, and springs were added to floors in the 2000s.

“Our goal is to improve equipment and thereby help athletes show better performances,” Senoh’s Hiyoshi said.

JIJI Press