Pole dance

Pole dance combines dance and acrobatics centered on a vertical pole. The origins of pole dancing can be traced back to the ancient Indian sport of Mallakhamb. This performance art form takes place not only in gentleman's clubs as erotic dance, but also as a mainstream form of fitness, practiced in gyms and dedicated dance studios. Pole dancing enthusiasts are of all ages; although many who perform this dance and acrobatic form are adults, that does not stop younger children from learning and performing in competitions. Amateur and professional pole dancing competitions are held in countries around the world. Pole dance requires significant muscular endurance, coordination, strength, flexibility, upper body and core stability, as well as sensuality. As such, proper instruction and rigorous training are necessary to attain proficiency. Today, pole performances by exotic dancers range from basic spins and striptease in more intimate clubs to athletic moves such as climbs and body inversions in the "stage heavy" clubs of Las Vegas and Miami. Dancer Remy Redd at the King of Diamonds, for example, is famous for flipping herself upside down into a split and hanging from the ceiling. Since the mid-2000s, promoters of pole dance fitness competitions have tried to change peoples' perception of pole dance to include pole fitness as a non-sexual form of dance and acrobatics and are trying to move pole into the Olympics as pole sports. Pole dance is regarded as a form of exercise which can be used as both an aerobic and anaerobic workout. Recognized schools and qualifications are now commonplace. The use of a pole for sports and exercise dates back at least 800 years to the traditional Indian sport of mallakhamb, which employs endurance and strength principles with a wooden pole wider in diameter than a modern standard pole. The Chinese pole, dating back to the 12th century, uses two poles on which men would perform "gravity-defying tricks" as they leap from pole to pole, at approximately twenty feet in the air.