Gymnastics Explained
Release
A skill in which the gymnast lets go of the bar mid-swing and catches it, or another bar, again. The Codes call them flight elements.
Releases are the most spectacular skills on the bars: for a moment, the gymnast has no contact with the apparatus at all. The Codes of Points call them flight elements.
On uneven bars, flight elements include flights from the high bar to the low bar or the reverse, counter flights over the bar, hechts and saltos, followed by a re-grasp of either bar; a hop grip change doesn’t count. Two of the four bar composition requirements are flights — one from the high bar to the low bar, one on the same bar.
On horizontal bar, flight elements are one of the four element groups, and linking two releases directly earns connection value.
Named releases include the Tkachev and Jaeger (both apparatus), the Pak salto and Shaposhnikova (bars), and the Kovacs and Cassina (horizontal bar). Releases are judged on height and a clean catch; missing the bar is a fall.
Sources
- Women's Artistic Gymnastics — 2025-2028 Code of Points — International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) (accessed 31 August 2026)
- Men's Artistic Gymnastics — 2025-2028 Code of Points — International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) (accessed 31 August 2026)