Research On The Evolution Of The Contest Rule Of Track And Field

The rules of a track and field sport are the uniform normalized standards and requirements that all athletes should comply with through out the competition, which are developed based on the feature and development tendency of a specific sport. From its every beginning, the development of rules is a progressive process from simple to complicated, from simplex to comprehensive. It is of great importance to study the process, its leading factors, outcome and requirement from the changes, as well as its tendency, all of which worth speculate and a systematical study.This paper studies the development of rules of track and field, using twenty two versions of rules from 1951 as materials. Literature study, comparison analysis, questionnaire survey, and statistical analysis are employed to divide the process into different stages, reveal the controlling factors, and the outcome and requirement from the changes. The defects and tendency of uptoday rules are also discussed.The study shows that: the process of rule development can be divided into four stages: spontaneously primal stage (ancient Olympics), initiatory stage (ancient Olympics to 1912), system forming stage (1912-1950s), developing and optimized stage (1960s-today). The controlling factors leading the changes include demands brought by technology and market development, progress of science, and existence of defects in previous rules. Every amendment required better technology, tactics management, training for coaches and athletes and thus higher standards for judges and games. Generally, the rules for today's sports are rational and precise but defects also exist, for example, acceptance of world record, draw for track allocation in the track game, equal grade for the eighth after first three rounds in the distance game, wind speed in the height game. Based on the above analysis on the rules from different views, the predicted trend for future rules may possible be: assurance of more justice, emphasis on human-oriented, more systematical, standardized, scientific, specific, and more adaptable to the requirement for commercialized development.This study analyzes the rule development of track and field from various aspects, providing theoretical guidance for future research. Better understanding of rules, mastering technique, and tactic management for athletes and coaches can be made through analysis of rule development, which is also importance for better organization for the game organizers and judges. Investigation of defects in today's rules can provide guidance and reference for the future amendments of rules.