In 1930, George Nissen was attending a circus when an idea began bouncing around in his head. Watching the performers fall from high up in the tent and land in the safety net below, he wondered if he could make something that would let them bounce back up. That idea led to his invention of the trampoline.
Nissen was 16 at the time and a gymnast himself. He first tried to make a trampoline with heavy cloth and wooden boards. It failed. But Nissen didn't give up. He spent years playing with different materials and even took apart his bed to try using its frame.
Finally, Nissen teamed up with his gymnastics coach. They tried using steel and inner tubes. It was a success! Nissen got a patent for it in 1945 and later changed the name to "trampoline." It's from trampolín, the Spanish word for "diving board."
Nissen started touring with his trampoline. It was a hit everywhere he went. By the 1950s, "jump centers" were popping up at gas stations in the United States. Kids bounced on trampolines while their parents filled up their cars. In 1960, Nissen had another idea. He took a picture of himself jumping on a trampoline with a kangaroo. The photo spread around the world. That helped the trampoline become even more popular.
But the trampoline wasn't just a fun toy for kids. Pilots used the trampolines for training. NASA also started using trampolines. They helped astronauts get ready to go into space. And Nissen even helped turn the trampoline into a sport.
Trampolining combines acrobatics and bouncing. It became an Olympic event in 2000. In 2008, Nissen himself tested the trampoline at the Olympic games in Beijing. That was 78 years after the day he first decided to take a leap.
QUESTION 2
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Think about the events below. Which of these did George Nissen do last?
George Nissen got a patent for his invention that he named the "trampoline."
George Nissen tested the trampoline at the Olympic games in Beijing.
George Nissen helped create the new Olympic event of trampolining.
George Nissen took a photo with a kangaroo that spread around the world.