The javelin is a light spear first used in ancient Greece. It was originally used for hunting and war, but is now used primarily in competitive sporting events. Modern javelin games involve hurling this spear for distance, rather than accuracy. The javelins used in contemporary competitions can be made of either metal or wood.
Ancient Greek Javelin Games
According to the Classics Technology Center, the ancient Greeks separated their javelin events into two categories: throwing for distance and throwing at a target. Throwing a javelin for distance was one of the components of the pentathlon, a series of five athletic events. Athletes of the era used a thong to hold the javelin steady before releasing it. When Greek athletes competed to throw javelins at a target, they were mounted on horseback and threw their javelins from a galloping pace.
Olympic Javelin Toss
The modern Olympics have included the javelin toss as an event since the 1908 Games. At that time, only men could enter the javelin toss. The women's javelin toss was added in 1932. Scandinavian athletes have historically dominated this event in the men's category, with the majority of Olympic medals to date. In the women's category, Barbora Spotakova from the Czech Republic won the gold medal in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the most recent Olympic competition at the time of publication.
IAAF Javelin Events
The International Association of Athletics Federation coordinates javelin events around the world. Other than the Olympics, the most prominent javelin competition is the IAAF World Championships, which were in Daegu, South Korea, in 2011. The IAAF regulation javelin for men's competitions is at least 102.4 inches long and weighs at least 1.8 lbs., according to the Encyclopedia Britannica. The women's javelin only needs to be 86.6 inches long, and weighs 1.3 lbs.
The Evolution of the Javelin
The javelin has come a long way since the Olympic Games of ancient Greece. In that era it was made of olive wood, according to the IAAF. In the late 18th century, the Scandinavians modified the design to be made of birch wood, and standardized the one-handed throw. A U.S. resident named Franklin "Bud" Held invented the hollow metal javelin in 1954, which allowed athletes to set new distance records. By 1984, athletes were throwing javelins so far that the IAAF introduced additional modifications to curb the distance these spears could travel.
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