Edward Sarul
Encyclopedia
Edward Sarul is a former Polish
track and field
athlete who competed in the shot put
. He was the inaugural champion at the World Championships in Athletics in 1983. He also won the gold medal
at the 1983 European Cup. A six-time Polish champion in the shot put, he held the Polish record
for the event for twenty-six years (from 1983 to 2009) with his personal best of 21.68 metres.
.
His career highlights occurred in 1983. He built upon his achievements from the past season with a 21.68 m national record
throw in Sopot
in July, taking him to twelfth place on the all-time lists. He won the shot title at the 1983 European Cup in London
that summer, beating Ulf Timmermann
. At the inaugural 1983 World Championships in Athletics
he defied the more favoured East Germans, Udo Beyer
and Timmermann, by leading the competition with an opening throw of 21.04 m. He then consolidated his lead with a throw of 21.39 m and won the gold medal
to become the first ever shot put world champion. He came runner-up in the contest for Polish sportspersonality of the year
for his achievement, finishing behind fellow track and field athlete Zdzisław Hoffmann who won the triple jump
at the World Championships.
He remained in good form the following year, setting a season's best of 20.89 m in Seville
, but was excluded from the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics as the competition was boycotted by the Eastern Bloc
countries. His final major competition came in 1986: he won the Polish indoor title and represented his country at the 1986 European Athletics Indoor Championships, finishing in fifth place.
His personal best of 21.68 m stood as the Polish national record for the event from 1983 until 2009. It was beaten at the DN Galan
meeting in July 2009 by the reigning Olympic champion Tomasz Majewski
, who greatly extended the mark with a throw of 21.95 m.
and recommended against repeatedly using heavy loads: "I believe that the strength required in the shot put is slightly different from that achieved with the barbell".
In training, he frequently used lighter shots than the typical 7 kg required for competition. He suggested that more generalised fitness training would be beneficial for younger throwing athletes, leaving strength training
until their twenties, although he advocated perfecting technique from an early age. He demonstrated his superior lifting speed in trials for Dr. Bogdan Poprawski's paper Strength, Power and Speed in Shot Put Training at the Poznan Sport Institute.
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
track and field
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
athlete who competed in the shot put
Shot put
The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" a heavy metal ball—the shot—as far as possible. It is common to use the term "shot put" to refer to both the shot itself and to the putting action....
. He was the inaugural champion at the World Championships in Athletics in 1983. He also won the gold medal
Gold medal
A gold medal is typically the medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture...
at the 1983 European Cup. A six-time Polish champion in the shot put, he held the Polish record
Polish records in athletics
The following are the national records in athletics in Poland maintained by its national athletics federation: Polski Związek Lekkiej Atletyki .-Men:-Women:-Men:-Women:# = not recognised by federation-External links:* * * * *...
for the event for twenty-six years (from 1983 to 2009) with his personal best of 21.68 metres.
Career
Born in Nowy Kościół, he made his international debut as an under-20 athlete, finishing eighth at the 1977 European Athletics Junior Championships. He had his first successes at the Polish outdoor national championships, where he won the shot competition in 1979 and 1980. He lost his title to Janusz Gassowski the following year but rebounded in 1982, taking both the outdoor and indoor shot put titles. That year he finished eleventh at both the 1982 European Athletics Indoor Championships and the 1982 European Athletics Championships. He also extended his personal best over the 20-metre mark for the first time, closing the season with a best of 20.64 m set in WarsawWarsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
.
His career highlights occurred in 1983. He built upon his achievements from the past season with a 21.68 m national record
Polish records in athletics
The following are the national records in athletics in Poland maintained by its national athletics federation: Polski Związek Lekkiej Atletyki .-Men:-Women:-Men:-Women:# = not recognised by federation-External links:* * * * *...
throw in Sopot
Sopot
Sopot is a seaside town in Eastern Pomerania on the southern coast of the Baltic Sea in northern Poland, with a population of approximately 40,000....
in July, taking him to twelfth place on the all-time lists. He won the shot title at the 1983 European Cup in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
that summer, beating Ulf Timmermann
Ulf Timmermann
Ulf Timmermann is a German shot putter who broke many world records during the 1980s and is the first and one of only two people to ever throw over 23 metres ....
. At the inaugural 1983 World Championships in Athletics
1983 World Championships in Athletics
The inaugural World Championships in Athletics were run under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations and were held at the Olympic Stadium in Helsinki, Finland between August 7 and August 14, 1983....
he defied the more favoured East Germans, Udo Beyer
Udo Beyer
Udo Beyer is a former East German track and field athlete who competed in the shot put.- Life :Beyer is the oldest of the six children of heating mechanic Hans-Georg Beyer and his wife Eva-Marie and was born in Stalinstadt, today Eisenhüttenstadt. He grew up in Breslack, , and in Eisenhüttenstadt...
and Timmermann, by leading the competition with an opening throw of 21.04 m. He then consolidated his lead with a throw of 21.39 m and won the gold medal
Gold medal
A gold medal is typically the medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture...
to become the first ever shot put world champion. He came runner-up in the contest for Polish sportspersonality of the year
Polish Sportspersonality of the Year
The Polish Sportspersonality of the Year is chosen annually since 1926 by the readers of the newspaper Przegląd Sportowy. Record holders are track and field athletes Irena Szewińska and Stanisława Walasiewicz and ski jumper Adam Małysz - four times each....
for his achievement, finishing behind fellow track and field athlete Zdzisław Hoffmann who won the triple jump
Triple jump
The triple jump is a track and field sport, similar to the long jump, but involving a “hop, bound and jump” routine, whereby the competitor runs down the track and performs a hop, a bound and then a jump into the sand pit.The triple jump has its origins in the Ancient Olympics and has been a...
at the World Championships.
He remained in good form the following year, setting a season's best of 20.89 m in Seville
Seville
Seville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
, but was excluded from the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics as the competition was boycotted by the Eastern Bloc
Eastern bloc
The term Eastern Bloc or Communist Bloc refers to the former communist states of Eastern and Central Europe, generally the Soviet Union and the countries of the Warsaw Pact...
countries. His final major competition came in 1986: he won the Polish indoor title and represented his country at the 1986 European Athletics Indoor Championships, finishing in fifth place.
His personal best of 21.68 m stood as the Polish national record for the event from 1983 until 2009. It was beaten at the DN Galan
DN Galan
-External links:**...
meeting in July 2009 by the reigning Olympic champion Tomasz Majewski
Tomasz Majewski
Tomasz Majewski is a Polish Olympic gold medalist shot putter. He is 204 cm tall and weighs 140 kg ....
, who greatly extended the mark with a throw of 21.95 m.
Training style
Standing in direct contrast to sporting opinion at the time, Sarul believed that outright strength was not the most important factor in shot putting and that correct, natural technique was the key to good performances. He also used varying loads in weight trainingWeight training
Weight training is a common type of strength training for developing the strength and size of skeletal muscles. It uses the weight force of gravity to oppose the force generated by muscle through concentric or eccentric contraction...
and recommended against repeatedly using heavy loads: "I believe that the strength required in the shot put is slightly different from that achieved with the barbell".
In training, he frequently used lighter shots than the typical 7 kg required for competition. He suggested that more generalised fitness training would be beneficial for younger throwing athletes, leaving strength training
Strength training
Strength training is the use of resistance to muscular contraction to build the strength, anaerobic endurance, and size of skeletal muscles. There are many different methods of strength training, the most common being the use of gravity or elastic/hydraulic forces to oppose muscle contraction...
until their twenties, although he advocated perfecting technique from an early age. He demonstrated his superior lifting speed in trials for Dr. Bogdan Poprawski's paper Strength, Power and Speed in Shot Put Training at the Poznan Sport Institute.