Pole Sport Glossary

Going upside down without pushing off the floor. The unassisted version of the invert and a common threshold between competitive levels.

The division for athletes who do not compete at elite level, with its own routine length and its own element expectations. Not a lower-effort category — a different rulebook.

The component covering presentation, choreography, musicality and stage presence. Independent of how hard the elements were.

An inverted hold with the body horizontal and the legs away from the pole, supported on the arms in a split or twisted grip. One of the sport's signature shapes.

An inverted position with one leg hooked and the body opened away from the pole. The base from which the extended butterfly is built.

The competitive box: discipline, age band, level and, where offered, para classification. It defines both the rules and the field, so it defines what a placing means.

The rulebook: element values, deduction tables, routine lengths and category definitions. It is versioned, and a routine built to last season's edition can be scored against this one.

Two or more elements linked without touching down. Combos are where difficulty and execution meet — the link is judged as much as the shapes.

An element the category requires every athlete to perform. Missing one is not a lower score for artistry; it is a specific, named deduction.

A grip with the hand cupped against the pole and the elbow tucked, driving into the body. The base grip for a large family of hold positions.

Lifting into an inverted position with control and no swing. Scored higher than a swung entry because the absence of momentum is the difficulty.

An element submitted on the athlete's list before the competition, which the difficulty judges then verify on the floor. An element performed but not declared, or declared but not performed, does not count the way athletes expect.

Points removed for a fault — a slip, a bent line, a touch-down, a timing breach. Deductions are itemised, which is what lets a coach argue about one of them rather than about the whole score.

The value of the declared elements the athlete actually delivered. Elements are grouped by value, and new ones can only enter the system through the technical committee.

A category for two athletes on one or two poles, judged on synchronisation and shared elements as well as on individual work.

The top competitive division, with the longest routines and the widest legal element list. The level at which international titles are contested.

The component that starts at its maximum and comes down through deductions. Clean lines, held positions and controlled transitions are what keep it up.

A butterfly with the body opened into a straighter line and the free leg extended. Reads as a harder shape because the lever is longer.

Holding the body horizontally away from the pole, supported only by the arms. A strength hold rather than a transitional shape.

The choreography performed off the pole. Part of the routine and part of the artistic score — not a rest between elements, whatever it looks like from the seats.

How the hands hold the pole. The named grips — cup, split, twisted, elbow — are the vocabulary that makes an element description precise enough to judge.

Entering an inverted position by pressing away from the pole with the arms rather than climbing or hooking. A benchmark strength element.

The official who applies the deductions that belong to the routine as a whole — time, costume, compulsory omissions — rather than to individual elements.

Any position with the hips above the shoulders. The gateway skill of the sport: almost everything above the basic level starts from one.

International Pole Sports Federation — one of the two international bodies, running its own championship structure and its own code of points.

A horizontal hold with the body in an X shape, supported on straight arms. Among the highest-value strength elements in the sport.

A split held sideways with one hand on the pole and one leg hooked, the body horizontal. A flexibility element as much as a strength one.

Leaning back with the body supported by the legs and shoulders against the pole, hands free. Often used as a transition point rather than a held shape.

The routine's permitted length, which varies by category. Running over or under it is a head judge deduction that scales with the size of the breach.

The para divisions, with their own classifications and their own routine lengths. Judged against a code written for them, not against an adapted able-bodied one.

The artistic discipline, where narrative, character and choreography carry the weight and the element list is not the point. A different category, not a softer one.

The athletic discipline, judged against a code of points with declared elements. The version that reads most like gymnastics from the outside.

Pole Sports & Arts World Federation — the other international body, publishing its own code of points on its own revision cycle.

The competed performance on static and spinning pole, within the category's time limit. The unit that receives a score.

Inverting by loading the shoulder against the pole and lifting the hips over it. A strength entry with a distinctive risk profile of its own.

A rotation around the pole, whether the pole itself turns or not. Judged on control and on how the exit is handled.

A pole free to rotate on bearings. It removes the athlete's ability to grip against rotation, which changes which elements are hard.

One hand pushing and one pulling on the pole, hands apart. The grip that makes shapes like the ayesha possible.

A pole locked so it cannot rotate. Most routines require work on both static and spinning, and the same element is a different problem on each.

A horizontal hold face down with the body away from the pole and one leg hooked. Recognisable enough to be a common benchmark element.

The body that classifies new difficulty elements and assigns their value. An element does not have a score until it goes through them — which is why the element list is a living document.

How one element becomes the next. In a code-of-points sport transitions carry both artistic value and execution risk, which is why athletes rehearse them harder than the shapes.

The everyday word for an element. Rulebooks say element because a trick only counts if it matches a defined, valued entry.

A grip with the hand rotated under the forearm, allowing shapes that a straight grip cannot reach. Powerful, and the grip most often associated with shoulder strain.