Olympic athletes inspire, puzzle and amuse with unorthodox moves

PARIS – Like how the revolutionary Fosbury flop landed American high jumper Richard Fosbury the Mexico 1968 Olympics gold, and how sprinter Michael Johnson’s ramrod-straight posture won him two golds at Atlanta 1996 and four in total, athletes often go the extra mile to improvise for marginal gains.

At these Paris Olympics, there are some eye-catching moves that have been executed to devastating effect.

One of these belong to American 3x3 basketballer Canyon Barry, whose underhand free throws are no laughing matter.

The 30-year-old notched a tournament-high 8.4 points per game, but it was his “granny shot” – a double-hand, underhand toss – that gained acclaim as he converted 13 out of 14 free throws.

Although it was not enough to save the United States from group-stage elimination on their Olympic debut, Barry was happy to display the skill passed down by his father, National Basketball Association (NBA) Hall of Famer Rick Barry. The senior Barry used the technique to shoot 89.3 per cent from the line in his 14-year professional career.

What started off as a boyhood bonding exercise with his father in their basement turned into a weapon.

He told The Straits Times: “I learnt the form from my dad at a really young age. I hope the underhand free throw catches on. I’m proud to have shot it well at the tournament, and be able to honour my dad at the Olympics.”

Canyon certainly knows what he is doing – he has a degree in physics and a master’s in nuclear engineering.

He said: “It’s a more repeatable motion. There are less joints that have to work in unison to achieve the same trajectory. You build muscle memory faster, and it comes in with a lower trajectory. And as a softer shot, you get better bounces around the rim.”

In table tennis, French teenager Felix Lebrun also aims to keep the dying art of the penhold grip alive.

Only six out of 172 players at these Games do not use the shakehand grip, which allows users to be more deadly on both sides of the bat. Although the penhold grip allows greater wrist flexibility to put more spin into a shot, it often leaves the backhand exposed.

Lebrun, 17, faced no such problems as he won the men’s singles bronze by sweeping Brazil’s Hugo Calderano on Aug 4 to become the first table tennis singles medallist from France in 32 years.

He was just four when he was inspired by Chinese journeyman Chen Jian, who played using the penhold grip in the French league.

He said: “He plays differently but he is as strong as those who play with the orthodox grip, so I wanted to be like him. It’s a really cool grip to play, it offers a lot of different options compared to the orthodox grip. The wrist is much freer, especially when returning the serve, so you can have a lot more variety in the game.”

An unorthodox method is what Turkish pistol shooter Yusuf Dikec has brought to Paris 2024. Not only did he win his country’s first Olympic shooting medal with the 10m air pistol mixed team silver alongside Sevval Ilayda Tarhan on July 30, he has won over the internet with his casual stance, and by firing with both eyes open.

In typical fuss-free manner, the 51-year-old said he was just doing what was most comfortable to him.

Meanwhile, pole vault world-record holder Armand Duplantis has tweaked his pole plant to dampen the impact by dropping the pole tip “about a foot before the end of the rubber runway” and letting it slide into the vault box.

A Washington Post interactive explained that “all vaulters experience vibration as they run with the pole and a violent shock when the pole hits the end of the box before it begins to bend”.

The Swede’s father and coach Greg felt this cushions some of the tremors and gives his son extra time to get ready for impact, so he is “more ready to take off than others”.

Also making herself cosy at the Stade de France before taking flight was Ukraine’s high jump champion Yaroslava Mahuchikh, who rested inside a sleeping bag in between jumps and won gold with a 2m leap on Aug 4.

Mahuchikh’s routine began in 2018 and during the world indoor championships, an announcer cheekily said: “Yaroslava is coming out of hibernation in her comfy looking sleeping bag.”

The 22-year-old world record holder said: “I feel comfortable when I lay (on the ground) and sometimes I can watch the clouds. Sometimes I can count numbers... or breathe in, breathe out. It’s like, relax, and not think about that I’m at the stadium.”