Good technique is essential for players to fully participate in and enjoy their sport - safely. Poor technique can expose players to the risk of acute injury and if used for a prolonged time can cause persistent injuries. Many sports have risky elements such as tackling, jumping, landing, stopping and catching. Identify the risky elements in your sport and make sure players learn and use the correct techniques at all times. A good idea is to record a player's performance with a video camera.
Jumping and landing
When jumping and landing, forces more than twice the body weight are transmitted through the body. Encourage players to:
- keep the trunk and legs aligned and not twisted on landing or during take-off
- bend and flex the hips, knees and ankles when landing, to spread the impact over time and to transfer the impact to the muscles. This avoids jarring at the joints.
- keep legs aligned, with knees over the toes.
Throwing and kicking
Large muscular forces are created in kicking or throwing an object such as a ball. A coordinated step-turn-whip action is characteristic of good throwing and kicking. This involves a sequence, beginning with large muscle groups and finishing with the smaller muscles of the limb that is in contact with the object.
Encourage players to:
- involve all the body parts, to achieve maximum power when the goal is maximum distance
- move the body parts in sequence, starting with the large body parts and ending with the part of the body that is in contact with the object. This reduces the risk of injury to smaller muscles.
- involve body parts simultaneously in a push-like motion when the goal is accuracy.
Grip and posture
Holding equipment such as an oar, bat, stick, club or racquet incorrectly may lead to poor performance, tissue damage and the development of overuse injuries.
Encourage players to:
- learn the correct grip as soon as they start playing the sport, to reduce the risk of injury
- use good posture in play and at school or work
- work at maintaining posture.
Catching
Incorrect catching technique results in poor performance and is a frequent cause of injury to the fingers and hands.
Encourage players to stretch out the arms and pull them back towards the body when catching a ball. This will minimise the risk of injury to the small joints of the fingers, as the larger muscles of the arms can absorb the impact of the ball.
Coordination
Good skills improve performance and reduce the risk of injury. Skills are also easier to teach and learn when players have a good base level of coordination.
Encourage players to:
- develop coordination early, with practice on the fundamental skills of the sport
- develop the basic skills first before refining any technical aspects
- practise the basic skills regularly and with variety.
Equipment
Using a racquet or bat that is too large or too heavy limits performance, and may increase the risk of injury. Encourage players to use the appropriate equipment for their age and ability level.
Footwear
Slips and falls can be minimised with good footwear. Encourage players to use the correct footwear for the sport and consider the surface conditions when choosing footwear.
Last updated:20April2009