Athletics (British Sports Library)

HURDLING 83 impossible to hold the seven-stride method, he must at once drop into a natural style of running. In anticipation of this happening he must spend a considerable amount of time in the practice of running at a hurdle from varying distances, so that he may adjust the final three or four strides before 9 reaching it in such a way that he will make his clearance in proper form. In previous chapters of this book emphasis has already been laid upon the value of working from the ball of the foot and of keeping the heels off the ground. To the hurdler, both in the sprint and the take-of£ for clearance, the exaggerated push-off from the ball of the rear foot is absolutely essential, and cannot be too strictly cultivated (Sketch 8). The art of landing after clearance calls for a