Mary Oetken - Discus Throw

Emerging out of Ancient Greece, the Discus throw has been a part of the Track and Field Olympic games since the 18^th Olympiad. Back in ancient times, the sport was played with discuses made from iron, stone or bronze. Today the modern disk now has a metal core and rim and the sides are typically made up of plastic. Back in ancient Greece, the sport and athletes who competed in it were glorified for their physical strength, coordination, and precision. Over the years, even with the emergence of new sports and new rules, the sport of discus throw has managed to stay pretty much through all the years.

What is the discus throw?

Discus throw is a track and field event where an athlete throws a really heavy disk in hopes of getting it the farthest out of all of the contestants. The Disc itself weighs 4.4 pounds with an 8.5 inch diameter for men and 2.2 pounds with a .180 inch diameter for women. When going to throw the disc, the competitor stands in a circle and will typically face the opposite direction in which he or she wishes to throw it. Then with a few steps and a spin, they build momentum and release. The distance of the throw is measured from the very front of the circle to where the disc lands and is normally rounded down to the nearest centimeter.

Currently Jurgen Schult from (at the time) East Germany holds the record made on June 6, 1986 with a 74.08 meter throw. More recently at the 2012 summer Olympics, Gerd Kanter from Estonia won with a throw of 66.39 meters!

I had seen discus throw before but never knew what all went into it and how far professionals actually throw it. After learning about this and being able to be part of the European games where it takes place, I can not wait to get the opportunity to watch them in action.

 Today in Amsterdam, we had our 3^rd day of work that wrapped up the last day of the kids championship competitions. Working with the kids and being able to take part in the operations of this event has truly been a great experience and one I will hold on to and keep with me! 

After a long work day of playing with kids and learning Dutch, we went and toured the Amsterdam Arena which is home to the AFC AJAX soccer team. The team is sponsored by Mercedes-Benz so each member of the tem has a car parked there and we found out that they are not allowed to drive anything else or it is a breach of contract! Another thing that was crazy was the difference between the visitor and home locker rooms. The visitor room was nice but completely bare. We were told that it only has 10 showers when there are 11 people that play, so was it done on purpose or was it actually an accident? No one will ever know!

So thankful for the opportunity to continue to have fun experiences here in Amsterdam and I am so excited for the next 3 days and what is to come!