Athletics
Athletics, with its diverse events, is a popular choice for bookmakers.
Athletics does not refer to a single sport, but is a general term for competitions that test basic athletic abilities such as running, jumping, and throwing. The Olympics and World Championships attract attention from around the world, and competitions are held in other countries, so there are many events, and bookmakers offer a wide variety of betting options.
Sprints and long-distance running. There are a variety of events, from those that do not use objects, such as the high jump, to those that require the skill to handle objects, such as the pole vault and hammer throw, and there are about 50 major events held at international competitions alone.
There are many individual events, so it may seem like a simple sport, but it takes extraordinary effort and ingenuity to win, and the moment when a world record is broken is an emotional moment.
Main types of track and field betting
Since track and field has many events, there are many types of bets. Here are some of the most popular bets.
- Win Betting
- This is the simplest bet, where you predict who will win. This is a bet where you predict the athlete who will come first in each event. Bets on the winner are popular with bookmakers of all sports.
- Time Betting
- There are relatively many running events in track and field, and people often compete for time. For this reason, there are many types of time bets available.
Have you ever heard of the term "10-second barrier"? For a 100m sprinter, this is a time that can be considered a goal. The high odds of betting on breaking the 10-second barrier create excitement. - Place Betting
- Predict how high the athlete will finish in the top ranks. This is a betting method that does not require first place, so if you bet on "finish in the top three" the athlete will win whether they finish first, second or third, so the chances of winning will increase, but the odds will be lower. Weigh the risks and odds and carefully consider which bets are likely to win.
- Head-to-Head Betting
- From the many athletes participating in the competition, the bookmaker selects two athletes. This is a bet to predict which one will perform better.
It is said to be easy to predict because it is a bet that simply compares the athletes' abilities. - Total Betting / Over/Under Betting
- This is a bet to predict the total value of the competition result. You predict whether it will be above or below the number set by the bookmaker. Some bets predict the average value.
For example, in shot put, you predict the total distance thrown, or whether the average time for 100m sprinting will exceed 9.85 seconds.
Athletics bookmakers make predictions easier or harder depending on the event
Athletics is a sport with a wide variety of events, so the difficulty of making predictions varies depending on the event. Sprints are considered relatively easy to predict. This is because past competition records and individual records are indicators, and it is thought that there will be no unexpected growth. In fact, athletes who make it to the championship podium in sprints are often athletes who were originally ranked highly.
On the other hand, in long-distance races, the competition time is long, so the race development and conditions on the day are likely to have a large impact, and there are many analyses that show that predictions are often wrong. Developing an eye for assessing the situation is the shortcut to victory.