Sprint relay
The aim of the 100 metre sprint relay is, with the
assistance of four athletes, to carry a baton (30 cm long, 13 cm
in circumference and no less than 50grms in weight) around 400
metres as quickly as possible.
Baton exchange
The
rules of relay competition require the baton to be exchanged
within a 20 metres changeover zone. So that the outgoing runner can
achieve maximum acceleration at baton exchange the athlete can
commence his/her run 10 metres before the changeover zone. The
baton exchange should occur 5 metres before the end of the
changeover zone. Because of this, each athlete has to sprint more
than 100 metres:
Upsweep
The receiving hand is placed
with the palm facing down and a wide angle between the thumb and
the rest of the fingers. The incoming athlete passes the baton in
an upward movement into the receiving hand. The advantage of
this method is that this is a normal position for the receiving hand. A
disadvantage is that it will require some manipulation of the
baton in the hand to make the next exchange safely.
Downsweep
The
receiving hand is placed with palm facing up and a wide angle
between the thumb and the rest of the fingers. The incoming athlete
passes the baton in a downward movement into the receiving hand.
The advantage of this method is that it will require no
manipulation of the baton to safely make the next baton exchange.
A disadvantage is that it is not a natural position of the
outgoing athlete's hand to receive the baton.
Push pass
A
Push pass is where the outgoing athlete (outgoing) athlete’s hand is
held facing palm forward (vertical) and the baton is pushed into the
hand in a forward motion by the incoming athlete. Generally requires the
outgoing athlete to have their arm out to the side thereby losing
free space. Most commonly used by senior athlete apparently because of
upper body muscle mass prohibiting them stretching their arm backward
Question
1)What are the responsibilities of the incoming and outgoing runner during the sprint relay?
a) Describe the upsweep technique?
b) How many metres does the baton travel during the 4*100m relay?
