throws equipment guide

javelin

Footwear

Javelin throwers are allowed to throw wearing any type of footwear, be it trainers, spikes or even flat thrower's shoes. In competition situations there may be instances, for example in wet or frosty conditions, where the officials will only allow a standing throw unless the athlete sports shoes fitted with both heel and forefoot spikes so as to avoid slipping accidents. High Jump spikes will be suitable for occasional throwers, or a set of detachable spikes, commonly known as a J-Plate or J-Heel can be attached to sprint/ jump spikes; again for occasional use.

A typical design for javelin footwear (some examples of which are seen in the picture above) will have the aforementioned complement of spikes on a strong but mildly flexible footplate. Some throwers prefer boots, some shoes, or a combination of both with a boot on their blocking foot (to aid stability) but a shoe on their drive foot (to aid flexibility).

All will have a strong upper and full length lacing, often supported by one or more velcro-secured stabilising straps.

A further javelin-specific design is for a reinforced toe area. The outer sole is usually a thick and durable rubberised material which wraps across the toe in some cases, or there is additional material across the toe area so as to avoid excessive wear when the thrower strikes with their drive foot then wraps their foot over and drag it through at the end of the throwing procedure. Normal spikes and trainers will soon wear through at the outer toe if used regularly, as can be imagined through the image below:

Javelin

Javelins are manufactured to three main specifications:

Dimensions & Weight
Centre of Gravity (tipping point) & tip design
Flex

UKA and IAAF specify the dimensions and weights of the javelin; most commonly 400, 500, 600, 700 & 800 gram at correspondingly increasing length and thickness. Manufacturers are allowed very little variation in these weights and measures, however there is a little variation allowed in the tipping point so that throwers achieving greater distances can take advantage of aerodynamic uplift during flight before the diminishing energy of the implement causes it to dive towards the earth; this effect is also slightly affected by the tip design which can be optimised for throwing in to the wind (headwind javelins) or with the wind blowing from behind the thrower (tailwind javelins).

The third major factor in javelin design is the flex rating. The scale of this rating runs from 1 for a practically rigid javelin up to 20 for a very flexible implement. Ratings from around 4 to 6 should realistically be reserved for the very best throwers as their technique will have been finely honed over years of practice and mistakes rarely happen; these javelins cost an excessive amount as they are highly engineered and fine-tuned.

Javelins engineered with flex numbers from 6 to 12 are designed with less experienced throwers' needs in mind. The extra flexion in the javelin body reduces the stresses on the thrower's body, especially shoulder, elbow and wrist joints. Athletes that have not reached full skeletal and muscular development should be encouraged to throw with a higher flex javelin for the vast majority of their training throws and reserve stiffer, more expensive implements (often gifted to them by well-meaning parents!) for best efforts in training and competitive situations. Greater flexion has the added benefit that less-experienced athletes of all ages will experience quite consistent results as flawed technique has less of an impact on the final distance.

Below is a graphic representation of this concept:

Injury Prevention

With the best intention it can be very difficult for a coach to protect against or predict injuries to throwers. Most injuries come through allowing poor technique to continue, poorly-judged overload training, athletes not warming-up and accidents (such as hyper-extensions or slips). In Northern Europe the weather and temperature can be very diverse across the seasons so it is advisable to carry several thin layers of clothing if poor weather threatens. In the unfortunate case of injury looming or actually occurring, throwers need to moderate their full throw activity and limit throws to short approach throws, ball throws or cable work. There are a large variety of protective devices available and it can be advisable to have a trunk wrap and an elbow sleeve available to athletes who have reached a level where they are explosively delivering the javelin. The old adage -- Prevention is better than Cure -- definitely applies to injuries and should form part of all athletics training.

Special mention must be given to an athlete's knees as the full javelin throw is hardest on these two joints and unfortunately forms a large percentage of problems for enthusiastic javelin throwers. Much work should be done to protect and brace the knee via quad strengthening, plyometric training and strict avoidance of overloading the knees with either excess bodyweight or overloading in the gym.

In the undesirable event that an accident or serious injury occurs, the road to recovery can be long and frustrating, but with the correct advice and protective equipment, full mobility and ability can be restored in time. Some useful protective equipment is seen below:

Something else to throw?

Knocken / Throwing balls / American Football / Howler

Further to the injury prevention benefits of throwing with a flexible javelin, much can be gained from throwing a variety of other balls in pursuit of javelin performance. A small ball (about cricket ball sized), weighing from 300g to 1000g (depending on the athlete) is very useful for repeat drills, body positioning drills, throwing at a wall and / or netting and even throwing casually to a partner. When a coach wishes to show a thrower specific parts of the throw process, for instance the transfer of weight from drive to delivery phase, a ball in hand provides similar weight to the javelin without the distraction of controlling and keeping safe whilst learning new skills.

Throwing a half-sized American Football can provide a good feedback mechanism for coaches as the direction the ball is carried before the throw is easily discerned and flight characteristics including the amount of spin are very visible and easily corrected.

Howler / Vortex balls have an arrow-like tail attached to the back of a toy-sized American Football and can be good (and fun!) for juniors to throw, however as they will fly well even when thrown with poor technique, are of limited value in learning javelin technique.

Some example of javelin-related implements are seen below:

Other Training Aids

Bungees

For some athletes, the basic concepts of the javelin throw come easily, for others, the learning process can take longer to master. Using bungee cords with various grips can really help with co-ordination and understanding the stretch-reflex that occurs in the shoulder in order to launch the javelin effectively.

In addition to helping learn technique, using bungees can help with conditioning the throwing muscles and tendons with the strong powerful movements that closely mimic the throw, whilst remaining safe and controlled. In the image below it can be seen that the short bungee used in the image on the left mirrors much of the javelin technique displayed on the right:

Another very useful piece of equipment and one that is often overlooked, is the indoor javelin adaptor. It is a small and unobtrusive piece of plastic that fits over the end of a javelin tip, allowing for indoor throws in to netting. With the variable nature of weather it can be very useful to have a few of these adaptors handy to allow for safe indoor training. One of the adaptors can be seen in the composite image, below:

circle throws (HAMMER, DISCUS & SHOT PUT)

Footwear

The shoes used for the circle throws, Shot Put, Discus & Hammer, appear of a very similar type and for the less-experienced athlete there is little difference in performance to be concerned about. The major difference is in the underside of the shoe, where a variety of patterns may be seen, as below:

All show a broadly similar wide toe area, with a flat sole and a solid, unraised heel. The two shoes on the left are multi-purpose shoes, with the Adidas pair in yellow designed for excellence in the hammer particularly as it has rounded edges to the footplate, allowing for cleaner heel to toe turn efficiency.

The second shoe, with white sole from Under Armour is a dedicated glide shot put shoe, as it has a very flat profile, wide heel and a slightly rough surface to give good feedback to the thrower.

The third, the black and yellow sole from Asics, would give good performance to higher-attainment rotational shot putters and discus throwers due to the dedicated rotational elements on the forefoot.

The final shoe, the black-soled one from Nike mirrors much of the Adidas' design, with the low-bite smooth footplate and narrow heel with rounded edges giving smooth transition on heel to toe turns. It would also serve as a decent rotational shot and discus shoe given the rounded elements under the forefoot.

Beginners would find little difference between these shoes and should be advised to start with a shoe that is comfortable and makes them feel secure and controlled in the circle. When an athlete reaches a more specialised throwing requirement, they may want to invest in an event-specific pair of shoes.

Discuses

The discus offers the greatest variety of types in the circle throws as its aerodynamic profile means that a faster spin can carry it further... however caution is definitely recommended as an inexperienced thrower attempting to throw with a high-spin (high rim weight) discus will see their efforts fall short of the distances they might achieve with a more centrally-weighted implement. Seen in the image below are five discuses-- their distance rating increasing from left to right with the distribution of weight towards the rim:

The solid rubber discus at left has an equal distribution of weight across its surface and is suitable for all practice throws at club level.

Weight distribution: `linear' throughout the implement

The second discus is one very commonly seen and will have approximately half of the weight in the centre of the discus and a similar amount around the circumference of the rim; it will be very well suited to most throwers and perfect for those averse to the feel of the rubber discus. The design allows for new or inexperienced throwers to gain confidence in the flight characteristics of the event however is a good training tool for throwers at higher levels of attainment too.

Weight distribution: `centre-weighted' -- 40-50% central, 50-60% edge

The discus in the middle of the picture is a very popular choice for the improving athlete who has got to a point where the club discuses are dropping out of the air towards the end of the flight. Their throw will have reached a level and speed of release where the aerodynamic properties of a spinning discus gain the extra metres of glide provided by a freely-rotating implement that has slightly more rim weight.

Weight distribution: `low spin' -- 25-40% central, 60-75% edge

Once the athlete has mastered the lo-spin / low-spin discus, they can move on to the fast-spin / super-spin units. As can be seen in the image above, a large percentage of the weight of the discus is now towards the rim. This weight distribution will allow for the momentum of the rim to carry on and fly the discus out to distances within 80-85% of elite levels. The massive spin and release speed achieved by excellent throwers is essentially preserved in the centripetal force of the heavy rim rotating around the light centre of the implement. This high spin speed creates an area of high pressure beneath the disc that creates lift, much the same way that a helicopter achieves lift when its rotor reaches a certain speed...

Weight distribution: `high spin' -- 15-25% central, 75-85% edge

Ultra high spin discuses are realistically only for elite athletes that are throwing at National and International level. The vast majority of the weight is in the rim and the speed and power that these top athletes generate is captured in the rotational energy and uplift that will carry the discus along to the longest distances possible!

Weight distribution: `very high spin' -- up to 15% central, 85% or more edge

Hammers and hand protection

Hammers are a non-aerodynamic object and so one ball on a wire will have very similar flight characteristics to another; however athletes at higher levels of attainment develop definite preferences to handle type, ball size and to a small extent wire length

Occasional throwers of the hammer require very little specific equipment as a basic throw can be completed from a standing position. As attainment improves and the thrower learns to turn, the effective weight of the hammer increases and a finger guard of some sort may be desirable. Hammer gloves can be purchased cheaply and follow a few strict rules, whereby the fingers must not be fully enclosed, must remain separate and that the thumb remains external to the glove. An alternative is to individually wrap the fingers in bandage, though for all but the high level throwers this can take a lot of time to do so a simple hammer glove suffices.

Throwers should wear a glove on the same side as the shoulder they release the hammer over when throwing. A `right-handed' thrower will require a glove for their left hand whereas a `left-handed' thrower will wear a glove on their right hand.

The handle of the hammer can have a straight bar (as per the silver and red handles in the image above) or have a gentle curve (as per the blue handle). The choice is completely up to the individual and athletes tend to form a preference at higher attainment levels. The handle width is also variable with 110, 120 and 130mm options available. Throwers are encouraged to trial different types of handle early in their throws training as different clubs have different equipment so the hammer used at a competition may have a different feel to the type that the athlete normally uses at training. This can be mitigated by buying a hammer to the athlete's preferences however this is the choice of the individual and cost should be weighed against years of competitive usage on an individual basis; the weights for female throwers varies less than for males through the junior age groups.

The head of the hammer must be round and can be cast in any metal that is not softer (but including) brass. The size of the head is allowed to vary within set diameters per weight and the centre of mass is tightly regulated. Much has been discussed as to the aerodynamics of a smaller head being superior to a larger head however these gains are definitely non-existent at normal club levels and will only show slight effect above 45m realistically. Hammer heads of stainless steel and brass are commonly seen and have better resistance to weathering as they don't rust. All painted hammers will eventually receive scuffs and scratches but is a purely aesthetic consideration.

Shots and wrist supports

Shots are exactly the same as the head of the hammer apart from a flat plate being inserted where the bearing fits in to a hammer. They vary in materials, weights and sizes in exactly the same way as the hammers in the section above and the size of the ball used may affect the comfort of the thrower so it is adviseable to try a variety of sizes for best `feel'

The only other consideration outside of footwear is for the optional protection of a wrist support. Some officials at competitions may question the wearing of a brace, but as long as the palm, thumb and fingers are not covered it can not be construed as a glove and should be fine to throw in. From a coaching perspective, it may be advisable to work at strengthening the wrist independently and saving the wrist support for when it is really needed as over-reliance on braces and support is not recommended in the long term.

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