Success in Athletics and how to obtain it

THROWING THE jAVELIN 193 Such perfection of action is, of course, only to be attained after years of careful study and continual practice. The run must be as loose as possible, in order that none c,f the body muscles are brought too prominently into active play until the moment when the actual throwing action commences; nor must the javelin be gripped tightly while the hand is acting as a passive carrier, or the muscles of the forearm and wrist will be contracted and tired unnecessarily, but the finger– grip must be exercised as firmly as possible when the arm begins to come back for the throw. In the last second, and just before the feet are reversed, while the right foot is still well under the body in rear of the left leg, the shoulders are sharply twisted from left to right to enable the right arm to get a long reach and good shoot out as the throw is made. It is important during the run, and in making the throw itself, to keep the steel-shod head of the javelin pointed absolutely in the direction in which it is desired to make the throw-£.e. at right angles to the throwing-board-otherwise the hand will come to the position of round-arm instead of straight to the front, and the same great length of throw will not result, for the javelin will break from the hand sideways at less than a right angle from the board; and besides this, when the hand travels to the front bya circuitous instead of a straight path, the same power is not generated by the arm, and a pain is soon felt in the region of the elbow. It is again emphasised that in its upward flight, on leaving the hand, the javelin should be at an angle of between 30° and 45 ° to the ground. This angle, 13