Evolution of throwing techniques in men’s shot put

Abstract

This study investigates and clarifies the recent changes in competition records and throwing methods of the men's shot put in Japan and abroad and presents data to contribute to the improvement of the future performance of the sport. In the world, the 16 major competitions analysed in this study were divided into two major periods: the 2000s (2000-2009) and the post-2011 period (2011-2021), and the winning throws were tabulated by country. As a result, out of 128 winners in 16 competitions in 22 years, 39 were glide throwers and 89 were rotation throwers, and the implementation rate of rotation throwing was approximately 69.5%. On the other hand in Japan, The ratio of rotational throws to the total number of winners in the past 22 years was 1.77 ± 1.31 on average. The highest number of rotational throwers among the eight winners was five in 2021. This study has shown that the use of the rotational throwing technique has enabled athletes from more regions to gain the ability to win prizes in global competitions.