Bet on Athletics -Discus with Willhill

Discus

Originally part of the pentathlon in the Ancient Greek Olympics, it has now become part of the standard athletics field events. The aim is to see how far you can throw the discus.

Has the name suggests the discus is a disc shaped object made mainly of rubber but has a metal or wooden rim and core to make it up to the required weight. the maximum central thickness is 4 to 4.6cm for men it will weigh 2kg and for women 1kg.

Like the shot put throwers have three attempts called trials to throw the discus as far as possible from within the circle. The thrower must remain in the circle until his/her discus has landed and they may only leave from the back half of the circle, The discus must land in the marked landing area for it to be a valid throw. Distances are rounded down to the nearest centimetre or (half Inch).

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Some Basic Info

The discus is thrown from a circle which is 2.5m (8ft) in diametre and the landing sector fans out at a 35 degree angle from the centre of teh throwing circle.

Discus throwers tend towards the big size although strong shoulders and arms are needed most power comes from the legs.

The discus became an olympic event for women at the 1928 games the first man to break the 200ft barrier was American athlete Al Oerter in 1962.

This sport is all about centrifugal force the thrower takes up a position at the back of the circle. He/she rest the discus in the throwing hand, then makes one and a half quick powerful turns on the balls of the feet, to produce the force to release the discus at shoulder level, as the discus is released off the index or middle finger it spins clockwise (if your right handed), headwinds are welcomed because it increases the lift thus lengthening the throw.