Effects of restricted visual input on javelin throwing

This paper reports two studies that investigated the possible contributions of peripheral and central vision to javelin throwing in novice throwers. Performance under full vision was compared with two conditions that restricted visual input using lightweight goggles. Vision was restricted to either a central visual field (25.3°), hence removing peripheral vision or to a peripheral one by blocking out a central field of 53.1°. In the first study, all throws took place in a single session. For this study, novice throwers showed improvement in performance over successive throws with full vision and when central vision was restricted. In contrast, no improvements in performance occurred when peripheral vision was absent. The second study assessed performance over four sessions on successive days. In this study, loss of peripheral vision reduced performance relative to both full vision and restriction of central vision. In addition, the absence of peripheral vision was associated with reductions in the distance between the feet during the plant phase of the throw. Taken together, these results suggest peripheral vision may be an important contributor to performance in sports involving a controlled run up.