Girls and Athletics / Giving a brief summary of the activity, rules and method of administration of the following games in girls' schools and colleges, women's clubs, etc.: archery, basket ball, cricket, fencing, field day, field hockey, gymnastics, golf, hand ball, ice hockey, indoor base ball, rowing, soccer, skating, swimming, tennis, track athletics, volley ball, walking, water polo, water basket ball.

by Unknown

Sprinting.

From my own observation, I have seen few girls that really know how to run. One great trouble is that the instinct is to run as speedily as possible from the minute you get on the track. First of all you should learn to run well in good form. I shall try to give a few hints to the runner which may be helpful.

Head.—The head should be up, the eyes looking straight ahead and firmly fixed on the finish line.

Shoulders.—The shoulders should be kept straight up and back, not allowed to wiggle from side to side.

Body.—The whole trunk from waistline up, however, should be bent slightly forward.

Arms.—The arms should be held loosely in a bent position, the forearm at right angles with the upper arm. The movement of the arms should be controlled; they should be allowed to swing forward and backward in accordance with the motion of the rest of the body. Many runners do not control the swinging of the arms, letting them flap sideward, downward, thus wasting energy. Some runners use cork grips for the hands; personally, I prefer to run with my hands clenched into a fist.

Legs.—Many runners make the mistake in thinking the longer your stride, the better your form and the faster you run. If you have a long stride it is often apt to be very helpful, but the runner should not try to take an abnormally long stride. By that I mean take only as long a stride as you can manage without strain, or without appearing to be running in leaps and bounds. Neither should the knees be dashed high in front.

Feet.—A great deal in running depends upon the way the feet are placed. The toe of the foot should reach out for the ground; the toe should be pointed straight ahead and each foot should be put down on the ground directly in front of its former position. The runner should take care not to run heavily, and she should, whether in practice or competition, always stride well up on her toes.

In running you should always think of yourself as a unit, running with the smoothest possible action. Some runners are not units, but arms, legs, body and knees, all wobbling in different ways, giving the general appearance of falling apart. Yet you must not go too far the other way, that is, don’t run tensely. Be limber but not loose. Try to get all the spring and lightness possible. To do this get the balance over the feet; don’t run with balance too far forward or too far back.

The Start.—The crouch start is conceded to be the best. This should be practised until the runner learns to get away at the word “go,” to get the proper push with the rear leg, and to rise to an upright position gradually. There are three counts for the crouching start: “Get ready.” The fingers are placed just behind starting line; the arms should be carried straight down from the shoulders, thus making the hands shoulder width apart; the runners then kneel on one knee, either right or left, according to preference; the toe of the forward foot should be as close to starting line as is comfortable for runner; the knee of rear leg should be on a line with front leg, close up to it, with lower part of leg (that is, below the knee) reaching back as far as possible in a straight line from the knee. A hole should be dug for the toe of each foot. “Get set.” The rear knee is raised, the whole body tense ready for the spring; the weight is thrown over the front knee so that the toe of front foot feels the weight and can get a good push over; the head is up; the whole strength of the body seems concentrated in the muscles used in springing forward. “Go” (or the pistol shot). The sprinter springs forward with all the force possible from the front foot. But she should not assume an upright position at once, but gradually, after three or four strides have been taken. In other starts you stand upright with one leg back, other leg front. Front leg is slightly bent, weight of body is over front leg.