For some people , talking about the internal rotation of the throwing arm can seem to be a bit ”old fashion” at a time where coachs and athletes are more concerned by power and delivery speeds production or are too busy arguing on the pro and con of the actual ”diving’ technique ” mode.

And yet , the internal preparatory rotation of the throwing arm is still a key element of the javelin throw technique , not only for better performances but also as possible prevention of relatively frequent injuries at elbow or shoulder level.

The tensions produced by throwing speeds which sometimes reach well over 100km/h are extreme and very often at the limit of the human body  joints , tendons , ligaments , insertions possibilities. They can be aggravated by wrong bio mechanical positions , by a leak of mobility due to inappropriate or excessive strength training , by fatigue caused by multiple intensive repetitions , by the higher delivery speeds when using light implements , by an insufficient warm up or by difficult weather conditions …

One of the rare efficient ways to prevent injuries in the javelin throw is to achieve an internal rotation of the throwing arm prior to the ”whipping”strike ..

Note , that if we shall mostly talk about the throwing arm , there is simultaneously an opposite rotation of the left arm which must not be neglected because it does also play a role in building tensions and postural alignments before the final delivery.

Available documents : 1-PDF 20 pages Rotate the arm(s) before the strike  2-Vid 1 shoulders flexibility test -3-Vid 2 Compilation of arm rotation exercises  -Vid 3 – Progression of exercises rotation +throw with a club (Tirado) .