Oliver Helander threw a record of 89.83. Mika Köykkä, an expert in sports biomechanics, analyzes Helander’s throw and tells what was successful and in which area there is still room for improvement.
Aino Paloniemi,
Petra Manner
Helander reacted moderately when he re-watched his record throw on Friday at Kuortane at the request of Sport.
– I guess it looked pretty good. The pace was good. The support went well. The left half didn’t open too early, Helander summed up.
The almost nineties throw pleased the athlete. Helander’s season goal is to stabilize the 85-meter level.
– After fighting a few years of injuries, of course it feels good to always succeed.
– The most important thing would be that the level would rise, and not just individual long throws, but all throws would be around 85 meters. There is a lot to improve on it, Helander commented to .
In his opening race in Dessau, Germany, Helander scored 80.36. He estimates that this time the throw was considerably more momentum.
– That was probably the biggest reason why the spear flew so much further. Of course, the technology hit that throw. It didn’t go too far to the front, even though this throw was a bit front, Helander analyzed.
The running speed remained high
Expert in sports biomechanics Miika Köykkä became acquainted with Helander’s record throw. Köykkä of the Research Center for Racing and Top Sports (Kihu) praised the fast approach speed of the throw. The speed achieved by Helander during the fast run was maintained in the throw until the end through the support step.
– The key to a successful throw was that he was able to maintain the running speed achieved during and after the cross-step jump until the outrigger hit the ground.
Köykkä also says that Helander’s body chain worked just fine. The pace of body parts increased in throwing with strong support. The speed passed smoothly through the pelvis, upper arm, forearm and wrist to the spear.
According to Kihu’s data, the duration of the cross-step, support step and traction phase totaled 0.517 seconds.
The throwing left room for improvement
According to Köykä, the throwing movement itself left room for improvement in the record play. Helander has the capacity to throw even further when the throw draw comes to an end.
Traction means the distance traveled by the spear from the impact of the support leg to the ground to detach the hand from the spear.
Helander’s record throw was 1.73 meters. In the 86.93 result he threw three years ago, Helander’s traction was 2.05 meters.
– The traction didn’t go all the way. If he gets to grind it soon and gets to spear it all the way to the end, then even longer throws are expected, Köykkä says.
The spear arched in a good position
The position for the spear was good in Helander’s record throw, but not great.
– The spear did not have so-called lateral angles, ie it did not start transversely. The spear left with a slight drag, but still in a really good position.
According to Köykä, the development points of the throw are related to the traction distance and the removal height of the spear. The removal height was 1.98 meters. In the peak arc three years ago, the removal height was up to 2.11 meters.
On Tuesday, the starting speed of Helander’s spear was 28.8 meters per second. When he threw a spear at 86.13 in Tampere in August 2021, the throwing speed was 29.3 meters per second. On Tuesday, the starting angle was 33.7 degrees.
– The starting angle for the spear was okay for this situation. In the optimal throw, the angle could have been a little higher.
– Things may have a cause-and-effect relationship. If the spear can be completed by rising slightly higher on the body on the support leg, then the spear will start at a higher angle and additional meters can be obtained from there, Köykkä sums up.