Abstract
The most important presentations of national Gymnastics for all concepts are large group performances at World gymnaestrada (WG). The aim of the research was to find out what motivates athletes to participate in group performances and what are their expectations.
For the 334 czech gymnasts who were preparing for the WG in Helsinki 2015, questionnaire was created, inspired by a set of higherorder needs according to Maslow's hierarchy. The questionnaire contained 12 questions circuits.
The overall response rate was 65 %. Responses were expressed at the scale divided into five-year periods by atheletes age.
Scores were created from the response rate. The most frequent motive was marked by gymnasts for participation: "I like the joint exercises with music, atmosphere suits me with this kind of exercise." The highest score of 4.66 had an answer: "It's a chance to participate in an international event and represent the Czech Republic at the WG".
The second highest score of 4.62 had an answer: "I love to practice in large group exercises, I feel good in the nearby collective fellows." The results present that participation in the preparation and final presentation at the WG is for gymnasts not only program of locomotor training, but also fulfill their social needs, enables build friendships and gives a sense of belonging to the selected group. It turns out that a properly formed composition of large group performance can become a motive for physical activity, affect the way of life and bring athletes physical, psychological, social and aesthetic satisfaction of their needs.