BASIC SPRINTING

By Jess Jarver

From time to time there is a need to go back to the accepted fundamentals of an

event. For this reason we present in the following text the basics of sprinting to
assist young athletes and novice coaches. The article is an extract from the
author
sbookAt hleti
csFundament als,publ i
shedbyA. H.&A.W.ReedPt y.Lt d.
Re-printed here with permission from Modern Athlete and Coach.

Sprinting is running at full speed over a short distance. The two major factors that
determine the sprinting speed of an athlete are the stride length and stride
frequency. It has often been said that sprinters are born and not made. This is
only party true. Fast running undoubtedly depends largely on inherited physical
characteristics and there are some who are extremely gifted with natural speed.
However, there is also room for improvement for the less gifted through efficient
training to develop running technique and leg power.

There appears to be no particular body type ideally suited for sprinting.

Successful sprinters come in all shapes and sizes, ranging from the lean and tall
to the short and muscular athletes. Nevertheless, all have two common qualities
they tend to be powerful and possess great leg speed.

It is important to note that, according to sport scientists, the best age to develop
leg speed is between the ages of seven to eleven years. By the time the
youngsters are thirteen to fourteen years old their sprinting patterns must be
established. After that it is practically impossible to improve stride frequency and
further progress depends mainly on improving strength to increase stride length.

At the same time, it is equally important to note that early and narrow
specialization, in order to succeed in competition, must be avoided at all costs.
Forced specific sprint training might bring short-term results but failure and
stagnation later. The wise approach in the development of young sprinters is to
improve movement speed by participation in running games and for them to learn
an efficient sprinting technique before the age of fifteen. Specific training begins
after that and, provided the foundation is well built, should bring good rewards.

TECHNIQUE FUNDAMENTALS

Running

Most children develop a very natural and efficient sprinting action on their own.
Regretfully, however, such natural action is often spoiled by poorly trained
coaches, anxious to establish a prototype action without understanding the basic
mechanics of sprinting and individual differences. No two athletes are identical in
looks, nor are their needs and weaknesses. It is therefore essential to
concentrate on the development of a running technique that is based on sound
mechanics to fit individual requirements.

Points to be observed

1. All actions of the sprinter take place in a forward-backward plane. This

means that: feet must point straight forward, not outwards or inwards;

a. knees must travel forwards and backwards, without moving in or

out; and arms, bent at approximately 90 at the elbow, must move
virtually in the same plane with the legs.

2. The forward movement of a sprinter is achieved by the legs driving

backwards behind the body. This means that:

a. the drive must be complete with the knee and ankle joints fully
extended;

b. the lower leg must not reach forward to land ahead of the body;

c. at the completion of each stride the contact with the ground is made
by the ball of the foot; and

d. whenever compromise is required between leg speed and leg drive,

it must be in favor of the driving action.

3. A perfect balance is a must for a sprinter. This means that:

a. the shoulders and trunk must be steady to avoid twisting action;

b. the head must be kept in a natural alignment with the trunk; and

c. the trunk is virtually upright and there should be no forward bend

from the hips.
 4. The sprinter has to avoid tension at all cost. This means that:

a. the jaw and neck must be relaxed;

b. the shoulders must be dropped with no tension in the forearms; and

c. the hands must be loose with the thumb on the index finger and not
clenched into fists.

The overall picture the coach is looking for is made up of the following major
points:

1. An upright trunk with a slight forward lean so that the driving leg is behind
the body.

2. The forward drive from the leg is completed by a full extension of the hip
and ankle.

3. The front knee is high to allow the drive of the back leg to be completed.

4. The leg action is compensated for by a vigorous arm movement.

5. The head is in alignment with the trunk and the body is relaxed.

Basic faults

It appears important to point out t

hateachat hletesspr i
nt i
ngac ti
oni sindiv i
dual
.
It would be unwise to attempt to turn every sprinter into a carbon copy of the
coach sint erpr
etationofwhati sani dealspr i
ntingf or m.I tisthereforeunwi sef
or
the coach to interfere with the young athl
etesspr i
nt i
ngact i
on,unl essitbadl y
infringes the basic accepted mechanical principles.

Of course, there are some bad faults that must be eliminated as soon as possible
and the coach has to decide where to draw a line. He has to make up his mind
what is relevant and adjust faults in order of priority for corrections. The following
describes seven basic faults, four of them postural and three dealing with foot
placement:

1. Poor head position, causing a hollow back and restricting forward drive.

Correction: The head guides the upper body movement. Stress

in all runs correct head position with the eyes looking straight
ahead.

2. Running with an arm action across the body with the trunk swinging from
side to side.
 Correction: Eliminate arm action crossing the centre line of the
body. Control arm and shoulder movement, making sure they
are directed forward.

3. Bending from the hips with too much forward lean of the upper body,
restricting stride length.

Correction: Stress the correct angle of the whole body. Ask the
athlete to make himself tall, keeping the hips high.

4. Upper body leaning backwards with the hips dropped. The athlete is in a

si
tt
ingpositionandl acksdrive.

Correction: Stress the correct angle of the whole body and

introduce driving exercises, leaning against an obstacle or with
a partner.

5. Running on the full soles of the feet.

Correction: Stress an active landing of the feet. Eliminate

si
tti
ngposi t
ionandi nsistonk eepingt hehi pshi gh.

6. The foot placement is too wide, the athlete is swinging from side to side
and not running straight.

Correction: Stress bringing the outward swinging leg through in

a straight line and a straight forward driving action. Introduce
running on a marked line.

7. Toes are pointing out, the running track i not straight.

Correction: Use a marked line to check feet placement and

stress landing on the ball of the foot.
 FUNDAMENTAL DRILLS

Leg power development: bounding

Bounding runs are among the best leg-power development exercises because
the action is similar to sprinting with the exception that each stride is performed in
a jumping fashion. For the full benefits to be gained, it is essential to perform
bounding runs keeping the following in mind:

1. Each bound should be aimed for distance, not height, to allow fast forward
movement;

2. The driving leg should be completely stretched;

3. The drive must be supported by the action of the swinging leg with the
thigh at least parallel to the ground;

4. The upper body should remain upright without a bend in the hips; and

5. The arm and shoulder action should be pronounced and correspond to the
rhythm of the leg action.

Bounding runs are performed usually over distances of 20-30 meters. According
to the specific aim of the performance, the speed component can be stressed by
fast action, the strength component by longer bounces.

Typical exercises are:

1. Bounding over obstacles (one series is made up of 10 to 12 repetitions).

The distance between the obstacles does not exceed 1 meter in the
beginning but is gradually extended.

2. Bounding up the stairs (one series is made up of 8 to 10 repetitions).

Athletes bounce several stairs at a time, moving diagonally if possible.
Emphasis is on speed.

3. Bounding from line to line (one series is made up of 8 to 10 repetitions).

Several lines, different distances apart, are used. The hitting of the correct
distances is stressed.

4. Hoop bounding (one series is made up of 8 to 10 repetitions). Hoops or

old types, different distances apart, can be used.

5. Bounding set distances (one series is made up of 6 to 8 repetitions).

Bounding takes place between distinct landmarks, from tree to tree,
football goal to centre line, etc.
Leg power development: driving

Next to the bounding runs, the most common leg power development exercises
are pushing and pulling actions that stress the driving phase. Most are simple
partner activities between equally strong athletes. As strength is vital in the
acceleration stages of the sprint, the exercises are usually performed in various
stages of forward lean.

The following points should be watched:

1. Avoid bending of the hips. The hip axis should be pushed forward in each
stride.

2. The swinging leg must assist each stride with a powerful knee lift.

3. Arms, if free, assist the driving action, swinging backward and forward.

4. In exercises consisting of one athlete pulling and the other pushing, the
resisting partner must not completely stop forward movement. Typical
exercises are:

a. Pulling contest (2 to 3 repetitions). Each partner, secured to the

other by a rope and pulling in different directions, attempts to reach
a line 5 to 6 meters from the starting point.

b. Pushing contest (2 to 3 repetitions). Same as the pulling contest but

no rope is used and partners push with straight arms against each
other
sshoul ders.

c.
Horsedr
iving (4 to 5 repetitions of about 20 meters). The driver,
at
tachedt
ot hehor se,all
owshi msel fto be pulled slowly forward.

d. Running against object (5 to 10 repetitions). The athlete increases

the pushing action against a tree or a wall while running on the
spot. The exercise can be turned into a contest by counting the
number of double strides performed in 5 to 10 seconds.

Speed development I

Gradual acceleration runs, accumulating speed from jogging to fast sprinting, are
used for speed development. Because the whole distance is not covered with
maximum effort, accelerations help to avoid tension. The following are
recommended:

1. Start with runs over 30 to 50 meters, increasing the distance gradually up

to 80 to 120 meters.
 2. Accumulate speed first by increasing stride length, later by continually
increasing stride frequency.

3. Attempt to maintain relaxation throughout the final phases of acceleration.

Watch the face, smile and keep a loose jaw.Don tclencht het eeth.

4. Maintain maximum speed for only 20 to 25 meters before deceleration to

runout .

Typical exercises are:

1. Gear change (3 to 6 repetitions) on a track marked every 10 to 20 meters

by a flag, indicating the change to the next gear, until top speed is
reached.

2. Meet in the centre (5 to 7 repetitions) on a 100-metres-long track marked

in the centre by a flag. Partners starting from each end attempt to
accelerate so that they pass each other at the flag.

3. Uphill accelerations (3 to 5 repetitions).

Speed development II

Immediate accelerations, accumulating speed right from the beginning, are used
to prepare for the start. The distances range from 40 to 60 meters of which only
the first 20 to 30 meters are covered in violent acceleration. The remaining
distance is used for a run-out with emphasis on relaxation. Correct forward lean
to correspond to the rate of acceleration is stressed.

Typical exercises are:

1. Accelerations from walk (10 to 12 repetitions) over 40 to 50 metres.

Violent acceleration starts at a marked point and continues
for 20 to 30 meters.

2. Catching a partner (10 to 12 repetitions) with one partner jogging about 2

meters in front of the other. Following a signal, the trailing partner attempts
to catch the leader within a distance of 20 meters.

3. Racing in pairs (10 to 12 repetitions), starting with a jog and accelerating

violently from a marked starting line.

4. All these exercises can be performed from various starting positions, such
as standing, walking, jogging, kneeling, lying prone or on the back.