Athletes in Action

r. TIIROH71VG THE fA~ ELIN (7) THE moment the left foot touches the ground the right knee, still flexed, swings inward to the front and the throw is commenced with a violent twist of the shoulders from right to left . This shoulder-swing brings the hand directly behind the shoulder, as seen in Fig. 7 opposite, but the hand must be kept well back, and the elbow must be kept well up. 'I ake care that the point of the javelin is neither tipped up nor directed sideways. 6\t the same time that the shoulder-twist begins, the right leg pushes the right hip up and the whole body forward, as shown on the opposite page, so that the shoulders and hips come square to the line in which the javelin is to be thrown; but care must be taken not to drop the left shoulder, or the body will break away to the left and pO\\·er will be lost when the throw is made. The right elbow now closes in towards the head, while the hand hangs back as shown, so that the elbow is leading as the throw is made and the hand is able to rise to the point of delivery directly above the right shoulder. Kote, especially, in the picture opposite, the walk- like attitude of the legs, indicative of perfect style, the direct forward traction of the javelin over the shoulder and that both feet have gained a position in line with the throwing direction. ' The right-to-left turning movement of the body, which changes the position shown in Fig. 6 to that shown in Fig. 7, combined with the swinging in of the right hand behind the right shoulder and the right leg action of pushing the right hip up and the whole body forward on to the left leg, which forms the point of resistance for the delivery, must be practised many times as a standing-exercise drill. Check the attitude of the body and the angle of the javelin frequently by means of snapshots, taken from both sides and from front and back. I') '-l I.;.)