The early Olympic Games featured(以... ...為特色) some gymnastic disciplines which could scarcely(幾乎沒有；僅僅才) be deemed(認為，認定) "artistic", however. Rope climbing, tumbling and club swinging were among the events that failed to survive the refining process. At the World Championships, first held in Antwerp in 1903, field events such as the pole vault, broad jump and shot-put even featured occasionally until 1954. Swimming appeared once, at the 1922 championships.

The Olympic programme began to settle in 1924, with men competing for individual medals and in team events on each apparatus. Four years later, women began competing in Olympic gymnastics at Amsterdam. By 1952, the Soviet Union had become the leading force in Olympic gymnastics, its profile rising slowly after a group of social reformers - including playwright Anton Chekhov - formed the Russian Gymnastic Federation in 1883.

Gymnastics has been present at every Olympic Games.

體操成為專門的體育比賽活動，特別是成為競技性體操，經歷了一段發展與完善的過程。

以奧運會體操比賽記載為例，1896年第1屆雅典奧運會，設立了鞍馬、吊環、跳馬、雙杠和單杠項目，還有爬繩。但沒有自由體操項目，也只有男子體操比賽。

在以后的奧運會上，體操比賽先后增設了火棒操（后改為輕器械體操）、瑞典式體操、歐洲式體操等體操比賽。1932年洛杉磯第10屆奧運會上，增設了自由體操，使競技體操初具規模。1936年的柏林第11屆奧運會上，體操比賽才真正形成目前的男子6項比賽；輕器械體操、瑞典式、歐洲式等體操比賽則從男子體操比賽中取消。這次奧運會還開設了女子體操比賽項目，但女子比賽項目的完善與定型是在1960年的第17屆羅馬奧運會才完成的。

1984年，第23屆洛杉磯奧運會，藝術體操被列為正式比賽項目。2000年，第27屆悉尼奧運會，蹦床被列為正式比賽項目。
按照教科書的分類，體操包括競技體操、藝術體操、蹦床、健美操、技巧5個競技性項目。多年來，人們仍習慣稱“競技體操”為體操。目前，競技體操、藝術體操、蹦床同屬奧運會體操項目。