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compensation following an accident
illness or injury - nationwide
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Safety at an athletics meeting should be of paramount importance to the organisers. With many athletes, officials and spectators at an event, all concentrating on their respective race, jump or throw, athletics track accidents would be a likely occurrence if certain precautions weren't taken.
Track accidents
On the track, athletes are warned only to run on the all weather surface in an anti-clockwise direction. If an athlete is running on the track and encounters somebody on the lane in front of them they should shout "track", thus alerting that person to their presence and that they are approaching at speed.
Athletes are advised to wear "spikes", running shoes with metal spikes in the soles, and these will not only enhance their performance, but will prevent slipping in wet conditions.
In-field accidents
Possibly the most dangerous place to be at an athletics track is on the "in-field" where the throwing events take place. During the hammer, discus, and javelin events, a number of officials will be required on the in-field to spike the throw (put a measuring implement into the spot where the thrown object hit the ground), recover the equipment, and, in the javelin, adjudicate whether or not the implement landed in accordance with the rules of the event.
The shot putt, pole vault, high jump, long jump and triple jump events are sometimes held in separate areas, away from the in-field, but if the events are held on the in-field all officials and competitors must be aware of the safety measures in place to prevent themselves from being hit by thrown objects.
During all the throwing events, with the exception of the shot putt, officials and athletes will be alerted that a throw is about to occur by the sounding of a small horn blown by the head-official overseeing the event. Officials on the in-field should respond to the sounding of the horn to let the head-official know they are ready for the competitor to throw, and consequently aware that an object is about to be thrown. These actions will hopefully prevent any member of the team from being hit.
However, sometimes, especially in amateur events, the throwers may not be quite so proficient in their technique and the implements can be thrown out of the normal area in which the implement would be expected to land. To prevent athletes and spectators from being hit in this way, ropes and rails should be used by organisers to keep people from entering into the path of any oncoming items.
If these safety precautions are not implemented and a person is hit by a thrown object, they may be able to pursue a claim for personal injury compensation against the organisers of the event.
Claiming compensation for an athletics track accident
If you have been injured in some way at an athletics event and you feel the organisers could have and should have prevented your injury, you may be able to claim 100% compensation by instructing the expert personal injury solicitors at YouClaim.
Even if you were partially responsible for the accident, perhaps because you wandered unknowingly onto the in-field while a throwing event was taking place, it may still be possible to make a claim against the organisers if barriers were not erected and the warning horn was not being used.
Call our knowledgeable legal advisors today on 0800 10 757 95to see if we can help you on a no win, no fee basis. We aim always to protect accident victims from legal fees, costs and disbursements and guarantee that in a won case you will receive 100 percent compensation.
To talk to us about your athletics track accident, please call our free helpline, have an e-chat online or, alternatively, you can fill in our form and we will call you back at a time to suit you.
