Coaching and Care of Athletes

HURDLING America on June 19, 1936, and a world's r ro metres high hurdles record at Berlin on August 6, 1936. The time for both records was 14· r secs. Since then he has performed the extraordinary feat of winning a r ro metres high hurdles race in 13·7 secs., thus beating his own world's record. Towns himself attributes much of his hurdling success to the constant training he has done with sprinters, which enables him to be fairly sure of always returning something a fraction of a second better than even time for roo yds. on the flat. T. P. Lavery, South Africa, won the 120 yds. high hurdles championship at the British Empire Games in 1938 in 14 secs. on grass, but is said to have been favoured with a slight following wind. Rules which apply to all types of hurdle races require that such races shall be run over ten flights of hurdles, adjustable in he!ght, but rigidly fixed for competition. These hurdles are 4ft. in width, and consist of two wooden uprights supporting a rectangular wood frame. A competitor knocking down three or more such hurdles is disqualified, and if he displaces one cannot claim a record. In races over the new type of international hurdle the whole ten hurdles may be knocked down without a man's being dis– qualified or debarred from claiming a record. This new hurdle may be made ofwood or metal; it weighs 22lb. 5l oz., is 3ft. r r ins. in width, and has a 27! ins. base. The height may be adjustable, but it must take a force of at least 8lb. applied to the centre ofthe top rail when fixed at 3 ft. 6 ins. to overturn the hurdle. The top rail must be striped in black and white. Each hurdler must be given his own line of hurdles, and must keep to that line throughout the race. A hurdler suffers disqualifi– cation if he trails his leg or foot alongside any hurdle. It is easy to commit this fault when taking a hurdle set on the curve of the track. THE HIGH HURDLES It has been said in Chapter XV that the sprinter may, when using a certain style, run as much as 25 yds. from the starting-holes before gaining the true sprinting body-angle of75°. In high hurdles races, however, the first flight of hurdles is set up 15 yds. from the starting-line in both the 120 yds. and the r ro metres races. It follows, therefore, that the coach must teach his hurdlers a style of starting and running which will enable them to bring their bodies 281