ATHLETICS

Activity 4. Let’s make a Flipchart

ECHALUCE RHAILEY B.
GRADE 11 HUMMS-1
PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND HEALTH
THROWING EVENTS
Throwing events are amongst the oldest in track and field athletics. Where competitors once threw rocks
and spears, they now use the shot and javelin. Throwing events require great strength and throwers are
usually the biggest athletes in any athletic competition. There are four recognized throwing events in
modern track and field athletics: the shot put, the discus, the javelin and the hammer.

Shot Put
The shot put has been an Olympic sport since 1896 and involves pushing or putting a heavy metal ball
called a shot out of a 7-foot diameter concrete circle. The shot weighs 16 lbs. in men's competitions and
8.8 lbs. for women. The two main methods used in shot put are the spin and the glide. Most top putters
use the spin method. The men's world record for the shot is 23 meters, 12 centimeters -- or 75 feet and 10
inches, and is held by American Randy Barnes, as of 2010. The women's world record of 22 meters, 63
centimeters -- or 74 feet and 3 inches, is held by Natalya Lisovskaya of Russia.

Discus
Discus throwing has been a sport since ancient Greece circa 708 B.C. and consists of throwing a heavy
circular disc as far as possible. Up until 1906, the discuss was thrown from an elevated pedestal but
modern discuss throwers use a circle similar in size and design to shot putters. Discus throwing was
featured in the first Olympics in 1896 and was one of the fist women's Olympic events in 1928. Men
throw a discuss weighing 4 lb., 7 oz. while women's discus weighs 2 lb., 3 oz. Discus throwers use
rotational throwing technique, which can see the discuss flying to distances as far as 250 feet.

Javelin
Javelin throwing was once an integral part of ancient warfare and the farther a warrior could hurl a
javelin, the greater his standing in the army. The first men's Olympic javelin event was in 1908 and in
1932 for women. Originally made of wood, modern javelins are made of metal. Men's javelins weigh 800
g and women's javelins weigh 600 g. Javelins can be thrown huge distances and have had to be
redesigned as athletes were generating throws in excess of the length of modern athletics stadium. Javelin
throwing is the only track and field throwing event that allows a run up.
Hammer
The hammer throwers of old used to throw blacksmiths hammers. The hammer used in modern
competition does not really resemble a hammer and consists of a heavy metal ball and a long wire handle.
The hammer is thrown from a 7-foot diameter concrete circle after the thrower has spun around three or
four times. The hammer used in men's competitions weighs 16 lbs. and the hammer used by women
weighs 8.82 lbs. The men's world record is held by Yuriy Sedykh and measures 86.76 meters, as of 2010.
The women's world record is 78.30 and is held by Anita Wlodarczyk of Poland.

RUNNING EVENTS

Short Distance or Sprints

A sprint is a short running race. In a track and field competition there are generally three different sprint
distances: 100m, 200m, and 400m. The original Olympic event, the stadion race, was a sprint of around
180m. A sprint race starts out with the runners in starting blocks in their lane. The official will say "on
your marks". At this point the racer should be focused on the track, have their feet placed in the blocks,
fingers on the ground behind the starting line, hands slightly wider than shoulder width, muscles relaxed.
Next the official will say "Set". At this point the runner should get their hips slightly above shoulder level,
feet pushed hard into the blocks, holding their breath and ready to race. Then there is the bang and the
race has started. The runner should exhale and run out of the blocks not jumping. The initial part of the
race the runner is accelerating to top speed. Once top speed is achieved then endurance kicks in as the
runner tries to maintain that speed for the rest of the sprint.

Middle Distance
The middle distance races are the 800m, the 1500m, and the 1 mile long runs. These races require
different skills and tactics to win that the sprints. They rely more on endurance and pacing than just pure
speed. Also, the runners don't stay in a single lane for the entire race. They start out in staggered lanes, to
make the distance the same for each runner, but the race soon becomes open with no lanes and the
runners must to pass around each other to gain the lead.

Long Distance
There are three main long distance races: the 3000m, the 5000m, and the 10,000m races. These races are
similar to the middle distance races, but the emphasis is even more on correct pacing and endurance.

Hurdles
A hurdles race is one in which obstacles are placed at intervals along the track that the runners must jump
over on their way the finish line. Typical hurdle races are the 100m and 400m for women and 110m and
400m for men. Timing, footwork, and technique are key in wining hurdles events. Of course you still
need to be fast, but jumping the hurdles in stride without much slowing down is how to win in the
hurdles.

Relays
Relay races are where teams of runners compete against each other. There are typically 4 runners and 4
legs to the race. The first runner starts with the baton and runs the first leg handing off to the second
runner. The hand off must typically take place within a given area of the track. The second then hands off
to the third and the third to the fourth. The fourth runner runs the final, or anchor, leg to the finish line.
Common relay races are the 4x100m and the 4x400m.
JUMPING EVENTS
Like running races, jumping competitions seems to be part of our DNA from the time we are kids. We
like to see how high and far we can jump and who can do it best. There are four main track and field
jumping events. Here is a description of each:

High Jump
In the high jump event, the athlete gets a running start and must jump over a bar without knocking it over.
They land on a big soft cushion. Like many track and field events, there is a key element to doing well in
this sport, which in this case is being able to jump high, but technique is very important as well. Timing
and leaving your feet at the right point as well as how you bend your body as you go over the bar are all
important. There have been many techniques used for high jumping over the years, but the current, and
most successful, is called the Fosbury Flop. The Fosbury Flop technique involves leading with your head
over the bar (vs. leading with your feet) and twisting such that your back is to the ground and closest the
bar as you go over it. Jumpers then land on their back.

Long Jump
Like many field events, the long jump involves more skill and technique than just being able to jump.
First the athlete must have good speed as they sprint down the runway to prepare for the jump; next they
must have very good footwork at the end of their run so they can launch as close to the line as possible
without going over the line and faulting; third they must make a good jump; and lastly they must have
proper form through the air and into the landing. All of these techniques and skills must be executed to
perfection to pull of a good long jump.
Pole Vault
While all of the field events take require technique to excel, the pole vault may be the toughest to master.
In this track and field event, the athlete runs down the track holding a pole at one end. At the end of the
run the plant the far in of the pole into a metal box in ground and then propel themselves up and over a
high bar using both a jump and the spring of the pole to gain height. They must get over the bar without
knocking it off. They then land on a large soft mattress for safety. The world record for the pole vault is
over 6m (over 20 feet!) and is held by Sergey Bubka, probably the greatest pole vault athlete ever.

Triple Jump
The triple jump is similar to the long jump, but there are three combined jumps that go into the total
length. These are called the hop, the step, and the jump. The athlete will first run down the track gaining
speed; at the start of the jump or take off point they will jump from one foot and land on that same foot
(hop); they then jump again, this time landing on the opposite foot (step); next they jump as far as they
can and land on both feet (jump).