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September 1, 2007
Roman Who?
Czech Decathlete Roman Sebrle
Continuing with the track and field theme Franklin initiated with his post from last week on American sprinter Tyson Gay, I thought I'd spotlight one of the best all-around athletes in the world whom most Americans are likely completely unaware of.
His name is Roman Sebrle, from the Czech Republic. He's a decathlete and holds the distinction of being the current Olympic champion, the current World Championships champion (having just snagged the gold in Osaka this past week), and the world record holder in the event. In fact, with his world record mark of 9,026 points, he's the only decathlete in the history of the sport to score over 9,000 points.
The decathlon takes place over two consecutive days, five events on the first day and five events on the second day.
Day 1 Events:
* 100m sprint
* Long jump
* Shot put
* High jump
* 400m run
Day 2 Events:
* 110m hurdles
* Discus
* Pole vault
* Javelin
* 1500m run
Talk about a nice mix of speed, power, endurance, and technical skill.
But perhaps you think the decathlon is lacking in some way as a test of all-around athleticism. If so, post the events you'd have contested in the decathlon to comments.
Posted by Connie Moreno at September 1, 2007 10:00 PM
Comments
Hmm.. Maybe a gymnastics routine. Like the rings perhaps? :)
Posted by: Kirsten Clemmensen at September 2, 2007 8:40 AM
I agree with Kirsten, he is lacking a demonstration of balance skill.
Posted by: Jeralee at September 2, 2007 10:59 AM
I think if you've ever seen somebody pole vault up-close, or tried it yourself, you would realize there is a great deal of balance, accuracy, coordination, and strength required of this event.
My contention would be that there isn't a lot of bilateral work going on here. All of the throwing events would take place from the dominant side which could create an imbalance.
That being said, however, I wish our society would look more towards decathletes as reaching the pinnacle of fitness rather than Tour de France riders or marathoners/ultramarathoners.
They seem to have an excellent grasp of many of the 10 elements of fitness we all hold so dear.
Posted by: jim at September 2, 2007 9:20 PM
Speaking as a former pole-vaulter, I'd argue there isn't largely a "balance" element involved compared to the other elements of the sport. It's more core strength and core speed, and then timing and luck. It's all about pole placement (hitting the center of the pitbox) and vertical jump timing, then the swingup, where your core is used to get you inverted as quickly as possible. Perhaps a demonstration of "sustained balance" is more of what I think is missing - something like you'd see in a gymnastics event like the pommelhorse, etc.
Posted by: Jeralee at September 3, 2007 4:18 PM
Pole vault and javelin are more skill based than athletic.Sure there is athleticism involved (as is ping pong) but its more the skill you have in the event that is the deciding factor in competitions than one person being stronger or faster.
Posted by: Justin at September 3, 2007 11:26 PM
Pole vault and javelin are more skill based than athletic.Sure there is athleticism involved (as is ping pong) but its more the skill you have in the event that is the deciding factor in competitions than one person being stronger or faster.
Posted by: Justin at September 3, 2007 11:27 PM
I pole vaulted and
won the HS Intramural
decathlon every year...
mostly because I was the
pole vaulter, 100 YARD
sprinter, long jumper
& I was the Football QB,
so I was about the only
one to get a score on the
javelin since we didn't
compete in Javelin in High
School back then.
Posted by: jimc at September 5, 2007 2:07 PM
PS - Decathlon is my favorite
track & field event
Posted by: jimc at September 5, 2007 2:13 PM