Learn the standing start: split stance, first steps and reacting to a signal — with milestones, typical mistakes and the rule for races over 400 metres.
The standing start is a start from an upright position: you stand in a split stance behind the line, lean your upper body forward and run off on the signal [3]. Over 400 metres it is even compulsory: the start is made from a standing position, and the starter says only “On your marks” before the gun is fired [1].
The honest answer to whether this is just the “little brother” of the block start: no, it is a different start. According to the guide of the athletics federation, the acceleration from a standing start is not identical to the one from the blocks [2]. In return, it is easier to learn. A university teaching script summarises that beginners and younger pupils perform better from the standing start than from the technically and physically demanding crouch start [4]. It is a teaching script, not a study, but it matches coaching practice.
The standing start is a mini-skill with a big effect: it is part of every race over 400 metres, of the relay take-off position [5] and of training as a start form without blocks. Realistically, you do not need weeks, just a few clean sessions. Polishing it still takes time.
Stand shoulder-width at the line, tip forward slowly and run off only when you are nearly falling [3]. That way you feel what a forward lean is like before you have to do anything “correctly”.
Milestone (practice standard): 5 fall starts in which you are not upright again right after the first step.
Walk three steps and sprint off with an extreme lean after the last one. Alternatively: about five metres of high-knee running, then lean and start [3]. The drill builds the first step without you having to think about the stance.
Milestone: 6 out of 8 starts with a flat, fast first step.
The lead leg is in front, the toes of the back foot roughly level with the heel of the front foot. The knees are bent, the upper body leans forward [3]. Your weight is forward, but you stand stably.
Milestone: 8 out of 10 starts in which you run off from the stance without hesitation and without rocking.
After the signal the back foot is pulled forward flat and fast, and the arms work actively [2]. Acceleration is characterised by a clear forward lean, a lowered head, flat foot strikes and longer ground contact times than in free sprinting [2]. You rise gradually, step by step, not all at once.
Milestone: 10-m starts in which you only straighten up after several steps.
Now reacting is added: your partner gives the signal at random (clap, hand sign, whistle). Games such as “avalanche” train reacting to a visual signal [5]. According to the teaching script, starts on different signals are part of start games [4].
Milestone: 3 starts in a row without a false start and with an immediate reaction.
Sprinting off means top speed, so: warm up first, then start. Of 357 athletes at the 2018 European Championships, 48 % had had a hamstring injury at some point in their career and 24 % in the current season [6]. Starts are a risk area for cold sprints.
Only start on dry, level ground and keep the run-out free. If something pulls, stop. This guide explains and motivates; it does not replace supervised training or a coach, especially if you later move on to block starts.
The standing start has a big brother that is often overlooked: the three-point start. In relay take-offs it is a compromise, because it combines the acceleration of a crouch start with the view of the check mark from a standing position [2]. You learn it in seven steps: split stance, both knees on the ground, a hand as a distance gauge in front of the front knee, place the support hand, form a triangle, turn the heels slightly and lift the knees [2]. Do this only once your standing start is secure.
In races over 400 metres, except for the 4×200 m, medley and 4×400 m. According to the rules, those are started from a standing position, and there is only the command “On your marks” [1]. In training and at school, the standing start is also the usual way into starts without blocks.
For beginners the standing start is the safer way in: a teaching script reports that beginners and younger pupils perform better with it than from the crouch start [4]. However, the acceleration is not identical to the one from the blocks [2]. If you compete in sprints, you add the block start later.
Lead leg in front, back foot with the toes roughly level with the heel of the front foot, knees bent, upper body leaning forward [3]. Your weight is forward, but you stand still. Look diagonally down in front of you, not at the finish line far away.
In a standing start the start begins when one or both feet lose contact with the ground before the gun has been fired [1]. Mere bouncing without losing ground contact is not automatically a false start. An unintended movement can be judged “unsteady” [1].
Have a partner give the signal at random: clap, hand sign, whistle. Reaction games such as “avalanche” train running off on a visual signal [5]. A teaching script also lists starts on different signals as a start game [4].
Visual Exchange: Taking the Baton While Looking Back in the 4×400 m Relay