GETTING IT RIGHT

In an article published in Athletics Weekly, Dave Collins, the UKA Performance Director, made the following comments after watching the English Schools competition.

“ Our eyes are drawn to the kids who come first on school sports day….to the naturally physically gifted who can turn their hands to anything, but it is a mistake.” “We need to identify people who have the potential to grow, not those who are performing at the moment……someone who has the equipment to get to the very top, not just win an age group competition.” We should be looking beyond the winners, at those who fill the minor places. He also said, “If you are large for your age as a kid (he means child) you can win more easily with less attention to technique.”

We had one of the largest teams for some time at the English Schools this year, which indicates an improvement, and although there was only one winner, lots of ‘those with potential to grow’, were in the team, which looks good according to Dave Collins philosophy, and I believe he is right, over the years there have been many examples of winners who make it to the top, but an even larger number of ‘also-rans’ who come good in their early twenties, so getting the technique right now can lead to better performances later.

This reminds me that in the recent athletes survey to improve performance standards in the county, one athlete commented, “Not enough technical detail in our training.” Here are a few examples of technique.

In last years English Schools 400m hurdles,

 look at the technique of the winner on the left, bringing his centre of gravity forward to help bring his leading leg down quickly, compared to the sheer speed endurance and lousy style of the one on his left.

Consider also the upright running posture of Jo Pavey, her core strength is quite evident, allowing the limbs to articulate to their maximum range when compared to the slightly forward lean that inhibits a good stride length, as can be seen with some distance runners.

Look at Asafa Powell’s knee lift. How many times do coaches go on about knee lift? It takes a good strength background to lift a knee as high as that at 6 strides per second, using the upper quads and lower abs in the lift, then using the hamstrings, backside (Gluteus) and lower back to bring it down to the ground with sufficient force that the quads can then push the leg backwards to drive the body forwards. Look how often you see sprinters pulling up with hamstring problems. Again, look at Powell’s posture and consider the core strength involved.

IN SHORT, IF YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES, CONCENTRATE ON YOUR TECHNIQUE AND STRENGTH, AND THE PERFORMANCES WILL FOLLOW.