Athletics Injuries
Athletics Injuries
A practical guide to common sprinting, distance running, jumping and throwing injuries.
Track and field combines high-speed running, repeated ground contact, powerful take-offs, controlled landings and forceful throwing. These demands can affect the hamstring, calf, Achilles tendon, shin, knee, foot, ankle, hip, shoulder, elbow or lower back.
Some problems start with one clear movement. Others develop as training volume, speed or intensity rises faster than the body can adapt. This guide explains common injury patterns, warning signs and how rehabilitation may support your return to training.
Sudden injuries
Pain may start during a sprint, jump, landing or throw.
Gradual pain
Tendon, shin, bone or joint symptoms may build over several sessions.
Training triggers
Speed work, spikes, hills, jumps, throws or gym load may bring symptoms on.
What are athletics injuries?
Athletics injuries are muscle, tendon, bone or joint problems that occur during track-and-field training or competition. They may be acute, such as a hamstring strain or ankle sprain, or gradual, such as Achilles tendinopathy, shin pain or a bone stress injury.
The likely injury pattern depends on the athlete’s event, recent workload, training surface, footwear, physical capacity, technique and recovery. A sprinter faces different demands from a distance runner, long jumper or javelin thrower.
Choose your athletics event
Each event group places a different combination of speed, repetition, impact, rotation and power through the body.
Sprinting and hurdling
Acceleration and maximum-speed running place high demand on the hamstrings, calves, Achilles tendons, hip flexors and lower back. Common problems include muscle strains, tendon pain and recurrent sprint-related injuries.
Middle-distance and distance running
Repeated ground contact can contribute to shin pain, Achilles tendinopathy, plantar heel pain, knee pain and bone stress injuries, especially after a sudden rise in distance or intensity.
Jump events
Long jump, triple jump, high jump and pole vault combine fast approaches with powerful take-offs and demanding landings. The knee, calf, Achilles tendon, ankle, foot and lower back may be affected.
Throwing events
Shot put, discus, hammer and javelin use force from the legs and trunk before transferring it through the shoulder and arm. Symptoms may develop around the lower back, hip, knee, shoulder or elbow.
Why do athletics injuries happen?
Most athletics injuries do not have one cause. Problems often develop when the demands of training or competition exceed the athlete’s current capacity.
Training spikes
A rapid increase in distance, sprint volume, speed work, jumping, throwing or gym load may overload tissues that have not had time to adapt.
Limited recovery
Closely spaced hard sessions, poor sleep, illness or heavy competition schedules may reduce recovery between training loads.
Previous injury
Returning before strength, speed or event-specific capacity has recovered may increase the chance of symptoms returning.
Physical capacity
Reduced strength, endurance, power or control may limit how well the body handles repeated sporting demands.
Technique and timing
Changes in acceleration, take-off, landing, throwing sequence or running mechanics may alter where load is absorbed.
Equipment and surface
New spikes, different shoes, harder surfaces or changes in training venues may alter loading through the legs and feet.
Good exercise load management does not mean avoiding hard training. Instead, it means increasing training demands at a rate the athlete can tolerate.
Common athletics injuries by movement demand
The location and timing of pain can provide useful clues, although symptoms alone cannot confirm a diagnosis.
Maximum-speed running
Hamstring strains, calf strains, hip-flexor pain and Achilles symptoms are common concerns.
Repeated endurance running
Shin pain, foot symptoms, knee pain, tendon overload and bone stress injuries may develop gradually.
Take-off and landing
Jumping can stress the patellar tendon, ankle, Achilles tendon, calf, foot and lower back.
Throwing and rotation
Repeated high-force rotation may contribute to shoulder, elbow, trunk, hip or lower-back symptoms.
Block starts and hurdles
Explosive starts and repeated hip movement may load the hamstrings, calves, hips and lumbar spine.
Strength and plyometric training
Heavy lifting and jumping drills may add useful capacity, but a sudden increase can also aggravate an existing problem.
Why do track athletes get hamstring and calf pain?
Sprinting creates high force during acceleration, maximum-speed running and the late swing phase of the stride. The hamstrings and calves must produce and absorb force quickly while helping control the leg and ankle.
If strength, sprint exposure or recovery does not match the session demand, the muscle-tendon unit may become overloaded. Previous injury can also affect confidence, coordination and return-to-speed progression.
Pain high in the back of the thigh may relate to several causes covered in our hamstring pain guide. Symptoms below the knee may involve the calf, Achilles tendon or other structures.
Why do field athletes get knee, ankle or shoulder pain?
Jumping and throwing require repeated explosive effort. Jumpers must control high forces during take-off and landing, while throwers transfer force from the ground through the legs, trunk, shoulder and arm.
Changes in landing control may increase stress around the knee or ankle. Repeated overhead and rotational loading may contribute to shoulder pain, elbow symptoms or lower-back irritation.
When should an athletics injury be assessed?
Prompt medical assessment is particularly important when you cannot bear weight, have marked swelling or deformity, heard a snap with immediate loss of function, or have focal bone pain that worsens with impact.
A suspected bone stress injury needs careful load management. Continuing to run or jump through localised bone pain may allow the problem to progress.
How may a physiotherapist assess an athletics injury?
An athletics assessment should consider the injury and the demands of the athlete’s event. The process may include the following steps.
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Discuss the injury and training history
Your physiotherapist may ask when symptoms began, which movements trigger them and how your recent training has changed.
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Examine the painful area
The assessment may include movement, strength, flexibility, tenderness and joint tests that relate to the suspected problem.
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Review event-specific demands
Running, hopping, landing, throwing or lifting tasks may help show how symptoms respond to sporting load.
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Decide whether further investigation is needed
Imaging or medical review may be recommended when the findings suggest a fracture, bone stress injury, major tear or another condition requiring further assessment.
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Plan the return to athletics
The plan should link rehabilitation milestones with the speed, volume, power and technical demands of your event.
What may athletics rehabilitation involve?
Rehabilitation varies according to the injury, event and athlete. Rest alone may settle symptoms temporarily, but it does not always rebuild the capacity needed for full training.
Settle the initial problem
Early management may involve changing training, protecting an injured area and maintaining fitness through suitable alternatives.
Restore movement and strength
Exercises may target joint movement, calf or hamstring strength, hip control, trunk capacity or shoulder function.
Rebuild sports load
Running, jumping, throwing and gym training can return in stages as symptoms and physical capacity improve.
Prepare for competition
Higher-speed work, technical drills and competition-like sessions help test whether the athlete is ready for full demands.
Recovery time varies. A mild muscle injury may progress quickly, while tendon or bone stress injuries often need a longer and more measured return.
How can athletes reduce injury risk?
No program can prevent every injury. However, sensible training decisions can improve preparedness and reduce avoidable workload errors.
- Increase running volume, speed, jumps, throws and gym load gradually.
- Keep regular exposure to event-specific strength and power training.
- Allow recovery between demanding sessions.
- Use a warm-up that prepares you for the movements and speed of your event.
- Respond early when stiffness or pain keeps worsening across sessions.
- Review technique when the same problem repeatedly returns.
- Progress back to full training rather than jumping directly from rest to competition.
Our guides to warming up and prehabilitation provide further practical information.
What should you do next?
Reduce or stop the activity that clearly worsens your symptoms. Avoid repeatedly testing a painful sprint, jump or throw at full effort.
Next, note where the pain occurs, when it starts and which training changes came before it. This information can make assessment more useful.
When pain changes your technique, affects normal walking, causes swelling or keeps returning, consider arranging an assessment. A physiotherapist may help identify the likely pain source, adjust your training and guide a staged return to athletics.
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References
- Edouard P, et al. Prevalence, incidence and characteristics of musculoskeletal injuries in athletics (track and field): a systematic review and meta-analysis. Br J Sports Med. 2026.
- Lambert C, et al. Epidemiology of injuries in track and field athletes: a cross-sectional study. BMJ Open Sport Exerc Med. 2022.
- Napier C, et al. The prevention and treatment of running injuries: a state of the art. Int J Sports Phys Ther. 2021.
- Meron A, Saint-Phard D, Saper MG. Track and field throwing sports: injuries and prevention. Curr Sports Med Rep. 2017.
Athletics injury FAQs
What are the most common athletics injuries?
Common athletics injuries include hamstring and calf strains, Achilles tendinopathy, shin pain, ankle sprains, knee pain and bone stress injuries. Throwers may also develop shoulder, elbow or lower-back pain.
Why do athletics injuries happen?
Athletics injuries often occur when running, jumping, throwing or gym load increases faster than the body can adapt. Previous injury, limited recovery, reduced physical capacity and technique changes may also contribute.
Are athletics injuries sudden or overuse injuries?
They may be either. A hamstring strain or ankle sprain may happen suddenly, while tendon pain, shin pain and bone stress injuries often develop gradually.
Should you keep training with an athletics injury?
It depends on the injury and the activity. Avoid training that clearly worsens pain, changes your technique or causes symptoms to increase after the session. Suitable modified training may sometimes help maintain fitness.
When should you see a physiotherapist for an athletics injury?
Consider physiotherapy when pain affects running, jumping or throwing, keeps returning, causes swelling or weakness, or stops you progressing through normal training.
Can physiotherapy help with athletics injuries?
Physiotherapy may help identify the likely pain source, guide exercise and training changes, rebuild physical capacity and plan a gradual return to the demands of your event.
