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4×100 Relay Baton Passing – Upsweep, Downsweep or Push Pass?

Posted: 22 Jan 2010 06:00 AM PST

Is there a preference on how to pass the baton blindly in a 4×100m relay? At the International level, Canada, USA & Jamaica all use the push pass. France, however, uses the upsweep pass.

Once upon a time, France held the WR in the 4×100m Relay before the Americans dominated the event. That is, until Jamaica came along.

The USA 1968 relay squad of Vincent Matthews, Ron Freeman, Larry James, and Lee Evans used a blind upsweep pass for the 4×400 meters! You don't see that anymore. Watch the first 3 minutes of this video on YouTube.

The two main criteria on deciding which technique to use is (1) successful legal exchange (Duh!) and (2) maximizing the free distance.

Here's a good tutorial on the 4×100m relay push pass and calculating 4×100m potential based on your four 100 meter sprinters' season best.

I talked about visual exchanges for the 4×200 and 4×400m in prior articles, as well as calculating splits for the 4×400 (and indoor 4×200m).

Upsweep, Down-sweep or Push Pass?

Here's a quick review of the 3 common exchanges:

Up-sweep – The incoming runner passes the baton up into the outgoing runner’s hand
Downsweep – Receiving arm extended, but hand level is just above hip height. Hand is almost like a V, and baton is ready for landing between the thumb and first finger.
Push Pass – the arm is extended out parallel to the ground and the hand is open with the thumb pointing down.

Here are 2 good examples of hand and arm position of the push pass:

Photos courtesy of http://www.insideathletics.com.au/ and http://www.examiner.com/

Stay on your Side of the Lane

Here are a few key pointers on baton and lane position.

Lead off has baton in right hand, stays on the inside at the exchange
2nd runner takes baton on left hand, stays on the outside
3rd runner takes baton on right hand. This exchange is crucial as the the outgoing runner is on the inside, and the 2nd runner is on the outside and fatiguing! With more distance to cover, you only have once chance to get it right. Being a right handed 3rd "leg", this is why Usain Bolt prefers the 3rd leg
Anchor takes the baton on the left hand and stays on the outside when receiving. We've seen Carl Lewis switch hands after receiving the baton. While this is totally unnecessary, in all fairness he has never dropped a baton.

If you want a good video of the French team relay camp training with the upsweep pass, here's a great 10 minute video from YouTube.

Tags: Coaching, Track and Field, Videos

Maurice Wilson – Sprint Training the Jamaican Way (DVD)

Posted: 21 Jan 2010 09:00 AM PST

Maurice Wilson: Sprint Training the Jamaican Way (DVD)

Maurice Wilson's resume is impressive:

Jamaican National Track & Field Team Assistant Coach (Sprints) at the 2008 and 2004 Olympic Games and in four World Championships;
Head Coach to the 2002 and 2001 Jamaican World Junior Teams;
Head Girls Track Coach at Holmwood Technical High School in Manchester (JA) where his squads have taken seven consecutive girls National Championships

Coach Wilson shares the training philosophies and protocol that are at the heart of the Jamaican sprint success. In this one hour video, he shares the following:

Warm up. Enjoy injury free workouts using Wilson’s 9-drill dynamic warm up.
Running Drills. Features a 9-drill sequence that shows you how to incorporate proper running technique into the execution of the training drills.
Strength Philosophies. Wilson details the Jamaican philosophy for strength development for sprinters.
Strength Work. Learn three variations of Wilson’s strength program: circuit training, hip strength and stability strength.
Contrast Training. Create power and endurance in your athletes! Wilson demonstrates five examples of contrast training.
Training Program Breakdown. Wilson details both macrocycle and microcycle breakdowns of the training phases that include General Preparatory Phase, Specific Phase and Competitive Phase.
Meet Preparation. Learn to prepare your athletes for the meets that matter most. Wilson shares a detailed plan for competition-day preparation and tapering.
Competition Day Preparation. Uncover how to warm up an athlete at a meet and ensure they’re in the proper state of mind to compete. Use specific strategies in regards to rest, diet and mental planning that will allow your athletes to put all of their focus into the race.
Race Strategies. Give your athletes an edge on race day with proven race strategies for the 100 and 200.
Injury prevention. Wilson shares the "Jamaican Way" on training philosophies designed to serve the best interest of the athlete.