The hammer and weight throw are enjoying a
resurgence in American Track and Field. The USATF recently added the hammer to
its youth schedule, and there is more and more interest among high school
programs to include the hammer. Hal Connolly, the 1956 Olympic gold medalist in
the hammer, is making major strides in promoting a grass roots effort to
popularize the event in this country once again.
Anatoli Bondarchunk of the former Soviet
Union, has revolutionized the event with his technical philosophy and training
methods. Even though he has been coaching for over 30 years now, his methods
are still neglected in this country. The primary tenets of his technical
philosophy include maintaining good posture, and pushing the ball. Too many
beginning hammer throwers are still taught the old "grip it and rip
it" method of hammer throwing, which can offer them short term gains, only
leads to long term frustration and even injury.
There was a time when American hammer
throwers were the envy of the world. There were few others in the world that
could compete with US hammer throwers at the early Olympic Games. As the event
shifted from a strength event to more of a technique event, American throwers
have slipped from their dominant standing. In fact, Hal Connolly (1956) and
Lance Deal (1992), are the only two Americans to medal at the Olympic Games in
the past 50 years.
If the thrower sets the system up correctly
from the entry, it is then a matter of "pushing the ball" and
maintaining proper posture. Throughout each successive turn, the thrower should
aggressively drive and turn the right foot, knee, and hand through each double
support phase. As the tangential force of the ball increases due to its speed,
the thrower must continue to lift his chin, or the crown of his head to
maintain proper posture and prevent "breaking at the waist," or
crashing down on the right side.
In order for hammer throwers to develop to
the best of their potential, it is important for them to focus on the winds and
entry of the throw above all else. The thrower must set up a properly balanced
thrower-implement system. If the system is not set up properly from the entry,
it is impossible to correct through the course of the throw. Classic
illustrations of setting the system up correctly can be seen by Bondarchunk's
star pupils, Sergi Litvinov and Yuri Sedych. Some of the top hammer throwers of
today have refined the entry even further as can be seen by Ivan Tikhan of
Belarus (now coached by Sergi Litvinov).
The time has come for American hammer
throwers to regain their prominence on the Olympic medal stands. Continue
developing your coaching knowledge and actively working with young athletes to
advance our sport.