It's a combination of athletic games that can be played on a track or a field (you probably knew that). If you enjoy running, test your long, middle, or short-distance speeds on the track. If your parents still complain about your obsession with jumping on the bed, try long jump, high jump, triple jump or pole vault. Or release your pent-up energy by throwing stuff - shots (metal balls), discuses, hammers or javelins (with lots of room around you).

Always remember that the more you practise, the better you become. Set personal goals and build up your own track and field program. Do this, and you may be one of a few Canadians to have a parade in their honour.

“Fun Fact: On August 22, 1999, Bruny Surin tied Donovan Bailey's Canadian 100 m record of 9.84 seconds.”

Running
Along with being in tip-top physical and mental shape, you'll need a pair of powerful legs and a heavy dose of determination.

Jumping
If you have long, springy legs and dream to fly, whether it's over a bar, or across a sandpit, then the jumping events may be right for you.

Throwing
Upper-body strength. It's about power and the interesting techniques to get object A to reach point B (B being farther than anyone else's B).

All of the above
Athletes who do decathlons and heptathlons (combinations of the above events) love the variety and challenge. You'll need to be in great physical and mental shape.

Keep in mind these are the basics. There's much more to learn for each event. Even the professionals find new ways to improve their skills.

RUNNING
Sprints
Keep your body slightly leaned forward and arms at your side and your elbows bent at 90 degrees. Run very fast on the balls of your feet. Most sprints are 100 m, 200 m and 400 m in length.

Hurdles
A sprint with hurdles throughout the race that runners have to jump over. To clear a hurdle, extend one leg in front of you while tucking the other behind you. Be sure to jump high enough or you're in for quite a tumble.

Middle distance
800 m, 1500 m and 3000 m races. You'll need to run quickly, not quite a sprint, but not a marathon pace either. Save energy for the race to the finish line.

Long distance
Anything longer than 3000 m. Pacing yourself is key - conserve energy. Long races don't only occur on oval tracks. Consider cross-country events or race walks as well.

JUMPING
Long jump
Run as fast as humanly possible to gain momentum and make the longest jump off one foot you've ever made in your life - right into a cushion-y pit of sand.

Triple jump
One.two.THREE! It's much like a long jump, except it's a hop, a skip and then a jump.

High jump
A large, soft 'pillow' sits on the opposite side of a bar held up by a post at each end. Run up to the bar at an angle, arch your back, lift your legs (one at a time) and jump over the bar without knocking it to the ground.

Pole vault
It's much like high jump, except the bar is set much higher and you're holding a very long pole. As you run at the bar straight on, aim the end of the pole into a notch in the ground and use it to vault yourself over the bar. What a rush!

THROWING
Shot put
Pick up the 'shot', a small but heavy ball, and hold it beside your ear with one hand. Facing the opposite direction of the field, do a couple of strategic spins to gain momentum, then throw it as far as you can. Men's shots weigh 7.26 kg and women's weigh 4 kg.

Discus throw
Hold the discus in one hand (looks like a miniature UFO) with both arms outstretched. Facing the opposite direction of the field, do a couple of strategic spins to gain momentum, then let go (hopefully, in the right direction).

Hammer throw
Got muscle? Pick up a flexible wire attached to a heavy metal ball, spin around a few times and hurl it as far as you can (loud grunting optional).

Javelin
Balance a metal or fibreglass spear-like object in one hand, sprint to the end of a short track and launch the javelin as far as you can.

RUNNING/JUMPING/THROWING
Decathlon (boys)
Ten track and field events are combined into this gruelling competition. Only fast, strong and agile athletes attempt this. The participant with the highest score at the end of this two-day event is declared the winner.

Heptathlon (girls)
Much like the decathlon except that seven events are included, instead of ten, and it's for girls only.

IMPORTANT: Always warm up by doing a routine of stretches before attempting any of the above. When performing the throwing sports, keep in mind your safety as well as the safety of spectators.

Raised in Pickering, Ontario, Perdita Felicien was a star track athlete in high school and was named 'Pine Ridge Secondary School Athlete of the Year' in 1999. Attending the University of Illinois on a track scholarship, she set an NCAA freshman record in the 100 m hurdles. That year she won the Canadian Championships in the same event and earned a trip to Sydney for the 2000 Olympic Games. She accomplished all of this by age 20. Anyone who knew Perdita wasn't surprised. An outgoing, down-to-earth person, she always believed in herself. An inspiration to many, she gives talks to groups entitled 'You have to believe you can do it'.

By the 2004 Summer Olympics, she was the reigning world champion and considered the favourite to win the 100 m hurdles. But sports are like life. They can be so unpredictable. In the finals, Perdita's foot caught on the first hurdle and she crashed to the ground. Always one to look forward, Perdita has her sights set on winning a gold medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Along the way she also hopes to set a world record. For someone who lives by the belief that 'you have to believe you can do it', there's a pretty good chance that we're going to hear a lot more about Perdita Felicien.

You can trace track and field almost all the way back to the beginning of the human race. It's quite shocking to some people, but running, jumping and throwing are not modern developments (gasp!).

Informal competitions have occurred for almost just as long, but it wasn't until 776 B.C. that the original Olympic Games first took place. Those Olympics had short and long-`distance running events, jumping competitions and discus throw.

The original Olympics were abolished in 393 A.D. by the emperor at the time, who considered it pagan. In 1896, the Olympics returned, thanks to a Frenchman named Baron Pierre de Coubertin. Over 200 competitors from 14 countries participated in the track and field events including: running, long jump, shot put, wrestling, javelin, boxing, pankration (boxing and wrestling) and equestrian events. In comparison, just last year at the Olympic Games in Athens, 11,099 athletes from 202 countries took part in the two-week spectacle (gasp, again!).

If you have dedication, perseverance and the skill to do a sport well, you too could be listening to the Canadian National Anthem being played with a gold medal around your neck - remember to bring tissues.

Ontario Track & Field Association

1185 Eglinton Ave. East, Suite 302
North York, ON
M3C 3C6
416-426-7215
http://www.otfa.ca