Basic Skills of Athletics

Definition of Athletics
Athletics is one of natural physical activity of human being that contain natural actions like
walking, running, jumping and throwing,

 It is a physical activity in which millions of people throughout the world participated and
in which many more millions take an interest through the media,
 It is one of the basic sports & its origin is naturally rather than remote

The origin of the word athletics is derived from the combination of four Greek words such as:

 Athleo - fighting
 Athlos – match(competition)
 Athlon - reward
 Athlete - participant in athletics events

Today there are about 210 National Federations registered in IAAF (International Associations
of Athletics Federations)

Athletics was introduced as a competition to Ethiopia in 1943;

The major classification of athletics events are;

 Track events
 Filed events
 Road running
 Race waking
 Cross- country running
 Mountain running

Track events are takes place on special prepared circuit.

It includes;
 All types of running
 All types of relay race
 All types of hurdle clearance
 All types of steeple chase

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 Running which can be
 Short distance running
 Middle distance running
 Long distance running
Sprinting (short distance running)
It includes 6om ,100m , 200m & 400m running , 110m , 400m for men & 100 ,
400m for women hurdle , 4- 100m & 4- 400m relay racing

It is defined as running a short distance in a tip speed within a short period of time;

 The lower limit of sprint running is 60m

 The upper limit of sprint running is 400m

The physical qualification for sprinting runner is

 Strong and short

 Heavy
 Quick or fast runner
 A good age for running sprinting is from(22-24)

The most basic training for sprinting is

Curve running on track
Training to keep balance on curve

Factors affecting short distance running

Reaction time
Muscle fiber type
Techniques
Speed &coordination of the athlete
Psychological readiness

Short distance running is considered as a complex physical activity , which can be includes ;

Starting
Efficient run forms
The finishing

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The starting

There are two types of starting

Crouching start
Standing start

Short distance running events are started from a crouch position.

There are three commands of crouching start

On your mark
The get set position
Go

The standing start

There are two phases of standing start

On your mark
Go

Middle distance running

It includes 800m & 1500m

Long distance running

Long distance running are usually considered as ; 3000m steeple chase , 3000m , 5000m ,
10, 000m , 21km , 42. 195km or marathon & cross country

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Steeple chases

The steeple chase is one of the rarest events in the track events

The standard distances shall be;

2ooom & 3000m

 2000&3000m is hurdle & water jump running for both sex

 There shall be 28 hurdle jump & 7water jumps included in the 3000m events &
 18hurdle jumps & 5water jumps in the 2000m
 The height of steeple chase 0.914m for male & 0.762m for women
 The weight of steeple chase is 80kg-100kg

Techniques of steeple chase

 Lead up
 Development of aerobic
 Steeple chase hurdle & water jump clearanc

The relay race

Relay is the only true team events in athletics. It is also originated in United State of America. In
relay racing the batten must be passed within the 20m long exchange zone.

Relay racing is a team work; in which four runners participate in a competition. The purpose of
the race is to exchange the batten between four runners & having a result as one athlete is
running in the race on the track number 1 & 3 must use the right hand whilst number 2 & 4 use
their left hand

Methods of batten exchange

There are two methods used for the actual batten exchange

Visual methods

Non visual

For the long distance relay racing we use visual method of exchange but for short distance we
use non visual method of exchange.

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Passing & receiving the batten between two teams we know two kinds of passing & receiving.

Upward receiving techniques

Downward receiving techniques

The standard distances shall be;

 4 x 100m
 4 x 400m
 4 x 2oom
 4 x 800m
 4 x 1500m
 Road relay
 Cross country relay
 Marathon relay

The phases of relay racing

 Preparation
 Acceleration
 Exchanging

The Batten
It is a stick which are made by wood or plastic & used to short distance running & long
distance purpose. And it is also can be made of wood or metal with white and black color as
well as must be smooth, hollow tube.

Length of batten
28cm-30cm

Weight of batten
5ogm

Thickness of batten
1ocm
The circumference of the batten 12- 13cm.
But the only relay at the Olympics & world champions are the 4/ 100ms & 4/ 400ms
relay.

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 Hurdle
Hurdle is a specialized form of running in which some strides are exaggerate to allow the
athlete to negotiate the 1o hurdle in his / her path

It is belong to an attractive discipline in which performance is determined by running ,

speed technical movement , level of coordinating ability , explosive power , level of joint
flexibility & the ability to perform movement coordinating

The standard distances shall be

 Men -110m, 400m hurdle

 Women-100m, 400m hurdle

The hurdle spacing and distance

Distance Height of Distance Distance & Distance

st
hurdle from 1 line hurdle from the last
to 1st hurdle hurdle to the
finish line
Men 110m 106.7cm 13.72m 9.14m 14.02m
400m 91.4cm 45m 35m 4om
Women 100m 84cm 13m 8.5m 10m
400m 76.20cm 45m 35m 40m

Phases of hurdle
 Approach run to the 1st hurdle
 Sprinting between the hurdles
 Hurdle clearance

The hurdle techniques

 Sprinting balance throughout
 The approach to the hurdle
 Action of the lead knee leg
 Action of trail leg
 Action of torso head
 Action of arms
 The finish action through the tape

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The physical qualification of hurdle

 Flexibility
 Speed
 Co-ordination
 Reaction time
 Strength

Race walking include:

 10km, 20km & 50km

Road running include:

 5km, 10km, 15km,16km, 32km, half marathon & marathon

Field events

Field events is one of athletics events & which includes events like
 All types of throwing events &
 All types of jumping evens
Throwing events
It can be
 Javelin throw
 Shot put throw
 Discus throw
 Hammer throw
There are two types of throwing events:
1. Heavy throwing events are:
 Shot put
 Hammer

2. Light throwing events are:

 Discus
 javelin

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 Shot put throwing
 It is one of the heavy throwing events in track & field competition
 It must be a solid made from, Brass or any metal
The weight of shot put
For men 7.26kg
For women 4kg
The diameter of shot put
For men 110-130mm
For women95-110mm
The throwing circle –in side diameter 2.135m

The throwing sector 400

1.22m

40o

2.135m

The phrases of shot put

Approach
Holding the shot put
Starting position in circle
Glide or shift
Release

The physical qualification of shot put

Speed
Strength
Power

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Hammer throwing
 It is one of the heavy throwing events in the field competition
 It is also actually a metal ball attached to grip by a wire
The weight of hammer
 For senior male 7.26kg
 For junior male 6kg
 For youth male 5kg
 For women 4kg
The length of hammer
4 feet
The throwing circle of hammer
2.135m
The throwing sector of hammer

400
1.22m

40o

2.135m

Discus throwing
 It’s origin is Greek
 It is one of light throwing events
 It must be flat

The weight discus

For men2kg
For women1kg

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The diameter of discus

For men 219-221mm

For women 180-182mm

The thickness of discus

50-57mm

The throwing circle of discus

In side diameter 2.5om

The throwing sector of discus

400

1.22m

4.2m 40o

2.50m

The phases of discus throwing are

 Hand hold
 Position
 Swing
 The turn
 Release
 Reverse

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The physical qualifications of discus thrower are;

Weight over than 100kg

About 2m height
Having strong hand
Wide fingers and long arm

Javelin throwing
It is one of the light throwing events in field event

The weight of javelin

For men 800gm

For women 600gm

The length of javelin

For men 260-270m

For women 220-230m

The throwing sector of javelin

290
8m

290 4m
30m-40m

The grip of javelin

For men 15-16cm

For women 14-15cm

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The phases of javelin are;

The grip
The carry
The run
Release
Follow through

The physical qualifications of javelin are;

Tall in height
Strong muscles
Heavy in weight
Good power
Explosive capacity
Power of relaxation

Jumping events

It can be

 Long jump
 Triple jump
 High jump
 Pole vault

There are two types of jumping events

Horizontal jumping events

Long jump
Triple jump

Vertical jumping events

High jump
Pole vault

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Long jump
Is an event in which the participants run &proper their body in to the air for the greatest
horizontal distance

The four phases of long jumping

The approach run

The take off
The flight &
The landing

The styles of long jumping

The hanging styles &

The hitch kick styles Landing Area

8m

30m-45m Depth 35cm-50cm 2.75m

Take off board

The physical qualification of long jumper

Taller
Faster
Having sprint leg
Having neuromuscular coordination
Endurance
A good age for long jumper is from (22-28)
Good height
A powerful lower body
Flexibility
Balance
Agility
Good power
Great speed of reaction
Sprinting

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Triple jump (hop, step & jumps)
It is one of the horizontal jumps discipline

 Triple jump consist of an approach three successive jumps &the landing

 The triple jump must take off &landing on the same foot in the 1st jump, on the 2 nd jump
the jumper must land, on the opposite foot &on the 3 rd jump the jumper may land in any
manner

Rational techniques of triple jump

 The approach
 The hop
 The step
 The jump
 Landing

The rational (phase) techniques of triple jump

The approach run
The take off
The step
The jump
Relaxation on Hop-step-jump movement and landing

A characteristic of a good triple jumper are

 Speed
 Good strong leg
 Outstanding rhythm coordination in jumping

Triple jump is similar to that of the long jump, the only difference is lower horizontal velocity

High jump

It is one of the vertical jumps which competitors clear the vertical obstacle based on the laid
rules) to take off from one foot

The rational techniques of high jump

The approach run
The take off
Bar clearance &
Landing

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The styles of high jumping
The scissors styles
The eastern roll styles
The western roll styles
The straddle form
Fosbury (Flop style)

The Field of High Jump

Cross bar diameter 2.5cm-3cm
Weight=2kg
(3.6m-4m)(The length of the cross bar) Shape=Circular or Rectangular

5m

4m

Pole vault
 It is one of the vertical jumps

There are six key steps in pole vault

 Running approach
 Planting the pole
 Take off
 Swing &pull up
 Clearing &
 Landing

Combined events
 Heptathlon
 Decathlon &
 Pentathlon

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Heptathlon for women & Decathlon for men are both two day’s competition which tests the
athlete’s abilities in hurdles, sprinting, middle distance running, throwing & jumping.
Heptathlon is an athletic competition for women in which each athletes competes in seven
different events

Heptathlon
It shall be held on two day in the following order

1st day 2nd day

 100m  Long jump

 Shot put  Javelin
 High jump  800m
 200m

Decathlon is competition in which male athletes compete in 10 different sporting events

Decathlon; consists of ten events which shall be held on two days in the following order

1st day 2nd day

 100m  110m hurdle
 Long jump  Discus throwing
 Shot put  Pole vault
 High jump  Javelin
 400m  1500m

Pentathlon; is consist of five events which shall be held on one days in the following order
 200m
 1500m
 Long jump
 Discus
 Javelin

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The values of participating in athletics events
To fulfill our daily activities
To improve speed& agility
To protect ourselves from different hazards
To have good ethics
To have correct cardiovascular endurance
It has social values
Health &fitness values
Image building values
Economical values
Educational values

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