Orc Undead Sports Warrior

Although Shen Liang is only 18 years old, a year younger than Lu Wei, he is a man who honors his bets. No matter what others say about him behind his back or tease him to his face, he still keeps his promise made before the competition.

A man of his word is his bond. Through their interactions over this period, Lu Wei found this young man to be a very interesting person. Although he wasn't tall and usually gave off a humble vibe, once his temper was ignited, he was a veritable powder keg.

After enjoying this treatment for a day or two, Lu Wei gave it up. After all, they were all teammates, and it was enough to do it once. It was a bit unfair to have others serve him food and water for a long time.

Lu Wei has basically perfected his technique and running rhythm for the 400-meter event. To make significant improvements in the remaining time, he will need to rely on daily training to gradually consolidate his skills.

Wang Qiao always felt that Lu Wei possessed a natural talent for the javelin event, and among the three events he participated in, Lu Wei's technique was arguably the most refined. If Lu Wei performed well, he might make a breakthrough at the World Championships.

If we're talking about truly challenging events, then we have to mention shot put.

When Lu Wei first participated in the competition, he practically stunned his opponents by throwing bricks. During the competition, Wang Qiao taught Lu Wei the side-step throwing technique, which was obviously several generations more advanced than the brick-throwing method, but it had long been phased out in professional training.

The two most popular throwing techniques in world competitions today are the back-slide throw and the back-spin throw.

Lu Wei basically mastered the back-sliding throw technique during the National Championships. The key points of this technique are actually very simple: face away from the throwing area, turn around and exert force in a straight line, and use the kinetic energy of the turn and the rise of the center of gravity to push the shot put. Lu Wei used this technique to improve his best score by 1 meter.

Compared to the back slide technique, the back spin technique is a more advanced throwing technique. This throwing technique relies on the athlete's longer rotation path during the throw, resulting in greater kinetic energy and a higher initial velocity of the shot put at the moment of release.

When Wang Qiao asked Lu Wei if he wanted to continue working on this technology, Lu Wei agreed without hesitation. Although this technology was more difficult to control and might not be readily applicable in the short term, since it was currently the most advanced technology in the world, they would have to make contact with it sooner or later.

It's impossible for a player to use a back-spin technique when top-level players are using it, while they themselves use a back-sliding step to grab attention; that would be rather bizarre.

"Lu Wei, don't stop, keep spinning. Remember, push with your right leg each time you spin, and maintain balance when your left leg comes around. Don't rush to spin continuously; pause after each movement!"

Wang Qiao kept reminding Lu Wei from the sidelines that there are four parts to the backspin technique: first, preparing to hold the ball; second, the spin motion; third, the release after the spin; and fourth, maintaining balance after the release.

Of these four stages, apart from the rotation, the other three stages are not significantly different from the back-sliding step method.

So during this period, Lu Wei practiced two-step spins on the 400-meter track every afternoon. Shot put is a physically demanding sport, and if he combined shot put training with his initial lack of skill, he probably wouldn't last long before he gave up.

However, one still needs to grit their teeth and train hard. The current world record of 23.12 meters was set by American athlete Barnes in Los Angeles in 1990. This world record is old enough to show that this technique is indeed the most advanced in the world at present.

After each rotation, Lu Wei only has three throwing opportunities. Wang Qiao made this requirement in the early stages of this technical training to conserve Lu Wei's upper body strength and to cultivate Lu Wei's hunger for shot put.

Lu Wei finally managed to spin around the track as instructed by the coach, but before he could even stand up properly, he eagerly tried to retrieve the shot put. After trying for a long time without success, he finally sat down on the ground in frustration to adjust.

It's because he has good physical fitness. If other athletes trained like that, they would probably be buying motion sickness medicine by now.

After adjusting for several seconds, Lu Wei finally managed to maintain his balance. Gripping the shot put, he stood on the throwing arc, gritting his teeth, looking like a soldier preparing to throw a bomb and send all the enemies flying.

"Spin in the direction of rotation, rotate one and a half times before releasing. If you throw in the opposite direction again, you are not allowed to touch the shot put today. Spin three times and come back. If your movement is wrong, keep spinning until you no longer make the mistake."

Recalling Lu Wei's first attempt at throwing, Wang Qiao felt a tightness in his anus. Lu Wei had also spun once before immediately attempting to throw. Unexpectedly, the guy spun too much, doing an extra half-turn. Luckily, Wang Qiao was focused enough, otherwise this day next year could have been his…

"Pah!" Wang Qiao shook his head vigorously, trying to stop himself from thinking about it anymore.

"Note that when preparing to hold the shot with your back to the spin position, spread your elbows out and tuck them in like a man making a delicate pinky gesture. Keep the shot close to your collarbone. If the shot falls and hits your foot, you'll be using crutches this year! During the preparatory swing, put all your weight on your right leg, and then gradually rotate, shifting your focus to your left leg! Keep repeating this movement in your mind!"

The back-sliding step technique, if mastered, can improve performance; however, if practiced incorrectly, it might be worse than the standard sliding step. To help Lu Wei build a solid foundation, Wang Qiao patiently repeated the key points of the movement on the sidelines.

Following Wang Qiao's instructions, Lu Wei completed a trial throw without missing a single step. After switching his supporting leg to his left, he quickly stepped his right leg to the center of the throwing arc, then bent his right knee to stabilize his body balance. With his left leg once again serving as the supporting leg, Lu Wei released the shot quickly using the momentum of the rotation. At the moment of release, he even flicked the shot with his fingers to increase its spin in the air.

At this moment, Lu Wei was still spinning. He quickly used his left leg as a pivot to rotate his right leg back into the throwing arc before landing. This set of movements was much more difficult than the back slide, but Lu Wei successfully rotated into the throwing area thanks to his balance, avoiding a throwing foul and disqualification.

"This result is good. Don't focus on the distance. Now is the time to refine your technique. As long as your technique is fine, your results will definitely be good in the future. You need to refine the process. This is your last chance. After you throw, continue practicing the spin."

Every afternoon, under Wang Qiao's patient guidance, Lu Wei practiced the new shot put technique repeatedly, which he could clearly feel improving his throwing ability. He dared not waste any time. His schedule was packed: 400-meter individual training in the morning, shot put technique training in the afternoon, followed by javelin throwing training, and strength training in the gym in the evening. Lu Wei wanted to seize every opportunity to improve his abilities.

As for why he did this, and what the point was, Lu Wei felt there was really no point. Winning more championships would allow him to have money to do things he wanted; in short, he just didn't want to be idle.