Paul Hunt (gymnast)
Encyclopedia
Paul Hunt is a gymnastics
coach and gymnastics clown
. An Illinois native, he is from Murray
, Utah
. He runs Hunt's Gymnastics Academy (a.k.a. Hunt's Gym) in Salt Lake City. Hunt has performed comedic performances of women's gymnastics routines, including the uneven bars, floor exercises, and the balance beam since 1980. He has performed on US and international television, including Wide World of Sports
and America's Funniest Videos.
Hunt was a competitive men's gymnast at the University of Illinois in the early 1970s. He won the Big Ten Conference
individual championship in the floor exercise in 1971, and had another win in the floor exercise in 1973. He was the 1972 US National Floor Exercise champion.
Hunt has been coaching gymnastics in Utah since 1974. While demonstrating a backflip for a female student, he realized the comic value of a man performing women's gymnastics. He performs his routines during gymnastics competitions for comic relief
, wearing a skirted leotard and often calling himself Paulina Huntesque, Pauletta Huntenova or some similar variation. Often he would sport his thick mustache.
Gymnastics
Gymnastics is a sport involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, and balance. Internationally, all of the gymnastic sports are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique with each country having its own national governing body...
coach and gymnastics clown
Clown
Clowns are comic performers stereotypically characterized by the grotesque image of the circus clown's colored wigs, stylistic makeup, outlandish costumes, unusually large footwear, and red nose, which evolved to project their actions to large audiences. Other less grotesque styles have also...
. An Illinois native, he is from Murray
Murray, Utah
Murray is a city situated on the Wasatch Front in the core of Salt Lake Valley in the U.S. state of Utah. Named for territorial governor Eli Murray, it is the state's fourteenth largest city. According to the 2010 census, Murray has approximately 46,746 residents.Murray is close to Salt Lake City,...
, Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
. He runs Hunt's Gymnastics Academy (a.k.a. Hunt's Gym) in Salt Lake City. Hunt has performed comedic performances of women's gymnastics routines, including the uneven bars, floor exercises, and the balance beam since 1980. He has performed on US and international television, including Wide World of Sports
Wide World of Sports
Wide World of Sports can refer to:*Wide World of Sports , screened on the Nine Network*Wide World of Sports , screened on the American Broadcasting Company...
and America's Funniest Videos.
Hunt was a competitive men's gymnast at the University of Illinois in the early 1970s. He won the Big Ten Conference
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
individual championship in the floor exercise in 1971, and had another win in the floor exercise in 1973. He was the 1972 US National Floor Exercise champion.
Hunt has been coaching gymnastics in Utah since 1974. While demonstrating a backflip for a female student, he realized the comic value of a man performing women's gymnastics. He performs his routines during gymnastics competitions for comic relief
Comic relief
Comic relief is the inclusion of a humorous character, scene or witty dialogue in an otherwise serious work, often to relieve tension.-Definition:...
, wearing a skirted leotard and often calling himself Paulina Huntesque, Pauletta Huntenova or some similar variation. Often he would sport his thick mustache.