TRACK AND FIELD ATHLETICS

I. TRACKANDFIELD ATHLETICS

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TRACK AND FIELD ATHLETICS

Track and field athleticsis one of the most popular kinds of sports. It is a sport in which athletes compete in running, walking, jumping and throwing events. It is called track and field because the events are contested either on the track or on the field of the stadium.

Organized athletics are traced back to the Ancient Olympic Games from 776 BC. Modern athletics began in the schools and universities of England in the 19^th century. The athletics meeting forms the backbone of the Summer Olympics. Most modern top level meetings are conducted by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) which has a total of 215 member federations today.

Running events up to 10,000m in distance are conducted on an oval outdoor 400m track during the summer and indoor 200m track during the winter. The track is split into six to ten lanes. Each runner is assigned a lane at the beginning of the race, with starting blocks marking the beginning of the race. The winner of all races conducted on the track is the first person whose torso crosses the finishing line.

Running events on the track are split into different categories by the distance being run. The short distance races consist of 100m, 200m and 400m. They require immense power and speed. The middle distance races consist of 800m and 1,500m, requiring the athlete to demonstrate good speed combined with endurance and have enough energy to make a final push to the finish line. The long distance races consist of 5,000m and 10,000m and require extreme endurance and aerobic training.

The relays most commonly consist of 4x100m and 4x400m sprints with four runners each completing one leg of the race. According to the rules contestants must pass a baton to the next runner on completion of their own leg within a marked changeover zone.

The hurdles races are contested on a track with ten hurdles in each lane, spaced evenly over the course of the track. Contestants are required to jump over each hurdle with both feet dealing the height of the hurdle bar. The hurdles are positioned in such a way that they will fall over if the runner touches them and although contestants will not be disqualified for knocking hurdles down accidentally. The three types of hurdle races include 110m for males, 100m for females and 400m hurdles for both male and female athletes.

The steeplechase is the 3000m race over obstacles that consist of twenty eight stationary barriers and seven water jumps which are situated on the track.

The races which cover distances longer than 10,000m take place on the road. The marathon is a race covering the distance of 42.195km. The marathon is the ultimate challenge in endurance and strength, requiring the athletes to pace themselves from the beginning to avoid running out of energy and postponing the stage, when athletes suffer extreme fatigue.

Race walking events take place over 20 km for both male and female athletes and 50 km for male athletes only. Race walking requires the athlete to cover a set distance as quickly as possible but unlike the running technique, the toe of the rare foot is not permitted to leave the ground until the heel of the front foot makes contact with the ground. The athlete is also required to keep their supporting leg straight until the body passes over it.

There are four jumping events in field athletics: high jump, long jump, triple jump and pole vault.

In the high jump event athletes sprint down a runway towards a four meter long horizontal bar and jump vertically over the crossbar on to a cushioned mattress. The most common technique is known as the ‘Fosbury Flop’.

The long jump requires athletes to sprint down a runway and jump off a platform into a stretch of sand, with the aim of landing as far from the starting point as possible. The distance travelled is measured by the first mark made by the athlete’s body in the sand on landing. The jump is also a fail if the athlete leaves the runway after the take-off line at the end of the take­-off board.

The triple jump also known as 'the hop, step and jump’ begins with a sprint down the runway and is followed by a hop, a step and a jump before the athlete propels their body into the air with the aim of landing as far from the starting point as possible, in the same manner as the long jump. When the athlete hops, they must land on the same foot as they began sprinting on and the step should land on the opposite foot.

The pole vault requires the athlete to clear the height of a crossbar using the pole made of fiberglass. The athlete begins the jump by sprinting down a runway and then plants the pole into a box in front of the crossbar.

There are four different throwing events included in athletics competition which require athletes to demonstrate power, strength and accuracy trying to propel an object as far as possible so that it lands within the marked area. The four events are: the hammer, the discus, the javelin and the shot put.

The hammer requires the contestant to have extreme strength and excellent technique, in order to throw the metal ball attached to a handle by a steel wire across the field. When making the throw the contestant must stand within a designated area, marked by a circle surrounded by the protective enclosure called the cage.

The discus requires the athlete to throw a disc shaped object across the field as far as possible. As with the hammer, athletes must throw from within a circular area, surrounded by the protective enclosure.

The javelin combines speed with great strength, requiring the athlete to throw a long spiked pole as far as possible across the field. The javelin has a grip which the athlete must hold on to when throwing. The thrower first sprints down the runway, then throws the javelin before reaching the foul line. The javelin must land with the tip hitting the ground before the tail.

In the shot put the athlete is required to throw the shot beginning from a stationary position within a marked circle using one hand only.

Combining seven different track and field events the heptathlon is an all-female event which tests the endurance, strength and all-round ability of the athlete, awarding contestants points in each event for their best performance. The heptathlon consists of the 100m hurdles, the high jump, the shot put and the 200m run on the first day of competition and the long jump, the javelin and the 800m run on the second day.

Like the heptathlon for female athletes, the decathlon tests the stamina and strength of male athletes through ten different track and field events spread over two days of competition, with points being awarded for the contestant’s best performance in each event. The decathlon consists of the 100m run. The long jump, the shot put, the high jump and the 400 m run on the first day and the 110m hurdles, the discus, the pole vault, the javelin and the 1,500m run on the second day of the competition.