Talk:Gainer

Etymology
What is the origin of the term "gainer?"

There is some discussion online with citations in StackExchange. There is a source that says that the jump was invented in 1892 by a German but not called a "Gainer" (or "inverse somersault") at that time.

Apparently, there are other names for this dive: reverse somersault (or reverse dive for "half gainer"), Auerbachsprung (German name for this dive), "Isander" ("half gainer" - see this source), "Mollberg's Dive" (same source). There's a source from 1908 that calls the dive the "Overback" (along with Isander and Mollberg), which may have turned into Auerbach in German. Isander and Mollberg were Swedish divers who innovated these dives - it is possible that the dive developed independently in different locations.

Gainer as a term has been adopted in other sports, notably in gymnastics (balance beam, "acrobatics"). though in gymnastics it is done with one leg on the beam or mat during takeoff (the other leg providing the momentum for the reverse somersault), while it is typically done with two legs on the takeoff for diving.

Msft watch (talk) 16:13, 26 February 2023 (UTC)


 * @User:Msft_watch. Your etymology discussion appears to be correct. Please put it into the article. The terms Isander and Mollberg are the most commonly used in diving in Scandinavia. The most common term in diving in English speaking countries is reverse somersault. The most common term in parkour is gainer.
 * Agnerf (talk) 11:20, 2 September 2023 (UTC)