Sports. I tested for you the javelin shooting on target in Arras, an ancestral regional sport
In the North, Pas-de-Calais and Somme, 750 javelinists practice javelin shooting on target, which is almost all of the French license holders. A sport that is practiced with a javelin of about forty centimeters thrown by hand at a small target located 8 meters away.
Originally, this javelin is a weapon that dates from the 12th century. A mixture of spear and arrow, it consists of the tip of the spear and the fletching or plume (part with feathers to stabilize the flight) of the arrow.
The game initially appeared in Champagne, then in Flanders and Artois where miners played after their day’s work, in cafes. Since 1984, a French federation exists. Its ambition, pétanque having come from south to north, was to go the opposite way, by going to develop the javelin shooting on target throughout France.
Unfortunately, the federation, which still had some 2,500 licensees in the year 2000, saw the number of members melt like snow in the sun. There are 750 left today. “The town halls ferment the rooms one after the other. Every year we lose two or three rooms, that is to say about fifty players. In Frévent or Saint-Laurent-Blangy, in Lille, in Nuncq-Hautecôte, in Béthune where we had two clubs, the rooms are closing for questions of asbestos, sale of private land, futsal project etc. And each time, there are no new premises made available. So much so that today there are around sixty clubs left in the Nord, Pas-de-Calais and Somme regions.“, explains Didier Hay, president of the French federation of javelin shooting on target, created in 1984 for questions of subsidies and organization of competitions.
For my test, I went toASPTT Arras, club of about thirty members with its room made up of half a dozen targets and a few hundred cups displayed on the four walls of the room. Here, we play, of course, but we also think about competition. And for good reason, Jean-Pierre Cappe, president of the club, which welcomes us, is one of the two most successful French players. With a javelin thrower from Liévin, Jacques Bon, they are the only ones to hold a gold medal from the federation. Excuse the little, it’s a sign that they have won at least ten times the French championship, the French Cup and ten federal competitions as well.*
The sport is played individually, in doubles and in triples, as in pétanque. In general, two javelins are thrown each turn. With a step forward or feet together, as we prefer.
For my first throw, after a demonstration and some advice from Jean-Pierre, I would say that I first had to gauge the distance of 8 meters separating me from the target. My first javelin – too short – fell into the foam (used to avoid damaging the tips of the falling javelins) at the foot of the target. My second javelin – too strong – lands well above the target, in the wooden support. It begins well !
On the other hand, I am pleasantly surprised by my next two throws. Beginner’s luck? Distance / weight ratio of the javelin already recorded? I put a javelin in the red (outermost) part of the target, which corresponds to a point. Satisfied, I gain confidence and tell myself that I will be able to score a few points during a game. But the white part of the target, in the center (two points), remains inaccessible to me.
“What interests me, even if I feel it less than before, is the influx of the mind, the desire to win, to do well, and its channeling, its transformation into skill, agility when throwing“, explains Jean-Pierre, who uses relaxation to perform better.
Keenly interested in his proposals, I decided to put them into action during a triplet (three against three with, in addition, a grabber in each team to take down the javelins from the targets and bring them back to the shooters).
But as everyone knows, hell is paved with good intentions. And with my throws, my team will suffer: I will score no points with 20 javelins thrown! Not glorious… The opposing team and my team may encourage me when I brush against the outer ring, it won’t fit. Philippe, Françoise and Véronique (with André as the harvester) will therefore easily win against Michel, Jean-Pierre and me (and Lou as the harvester).
The list comes from the French javelin target shooting federation. It is made up of around fifty clubs, all located in the Nord, Pas-de-Calais and Somme regions. Here are the municipalities concerned.
* Each competition earns ten points, at least 300 points are needed for a federation gold medal.