Terminology, Rules, and Commands

Track: a surface made of rubber and is usually 400 meters long. 

Track lanes: boundaries marked with white lines that range from 36” wide to 48” wide, depending on the facility. 

Athlete who crosses the finish line torso first.  Arms or feet do not count.

SPRINTS

The following races are run in lanes for our developmental series, and the athlete must stay in their lane at all times. If they take three steps in a row outside of their lane, they can be disqualified. 

• 100M (meters): a sprint down a straightaway of the track 
• 200M: ½ of a lap 
• 400M: one lap 

Starting commands in races of 400M or less: On your marks, set, (slight pause), then *gun sound* 

MID and LONG Distance Runs, Relays and Racewalk 

The following races are run from the starting line and the athlete must cut into lane 1 once they have a 1 stride lead.  If they take three steps in a row inside of lane 1 they can be disqualified. 

• 800M: two laps 
• 1500M: 3.75 laps, and is known as the metric mile. A mile is 1609 meters or four full laps. (1600M) 
• 3000M: 7 ½ laps 

Starting commands in races of 800M or longer: On your marks, (slight pause), then *gun sound* 

Relays: four athletes run a percentage of the race and hand a 1-foot long aluminum tube(baton) to each other. We don't currently participate in the relay races but are considering it for this year.

Racewalk: a fast walking race where the athlete must keep one foot on the ground at all times and also straighten their leg upon impact to the ground each time. (This race is judged and timed).  We don't currently participate in racewalking but will consider it if we find a volunteer coach that can coach this for us. 

THROWING IMPLEMENTS

The following are used for throwing events that we'll participate in this year.

Shot put: a round steel ball that weighs 

• 2 lbs for 7-8 yr olds
• 6 lbs for 9-12 yr olds & 13-14 yr old girls 
• 4kg (8.8lbs) for 13-14 yr old boys 

Discus: like a weighted Frisbee (contested 11/12 and up) 

Turbo javelin: a developmental level spear training tool plastic modified (for safety) that is made especially for young competitors (300g 7/8 and 9/10) 

Finn Flier/Aero Jav: a developmental level spear training tool, plastic modified (for safety), that is made especially for young competitors (450g 11/12 and 13/14)  - We don't currently participate in Finn Flier/Aero Jav due to lack of grass surface for throws.

JUMPS

The following are jumping events and recorded by measure.

Long Jump: a sprint down a straightaway jumping off a whiteboard into a sandpit. 

High jump: a parallel crossbar that is jumped over from one foot, landing on three foam mats placed behind the stance. We don't currently participate in the High Jump but will consider it if we find a volunteer coach that can coach this for us.