Left out: Being a lefty might be a disadvantage in elite throwing sports

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2026-01-07 11:01

International

CC:0 - Story by Ben Kaldi, Australian Science Media Centre

Italian and German researchers say that despite around 10% of the population being left handed, only 2-5% of elite sports players that compete in sports that require some kind of throwing are lefties. The researchers looked into the handedness of over 6000 pro javelin, discus and shot put athletes, and say that left-handers were strongly underrepresented, which they say might suggest that being a lefty is a disadvantage for these track and field events.

News release

From: The Royal Society

Thrown off balance: left-handers are underrepresented in elite throwing sports

Left-handers make up about 10% of the general population, yet they are often overrepresented in duel-based sports like combat sports or interactive ball games, where their uncommon movement patterns may offer a competitive edge. Much less is known about left-handedness in non-antagonistic sports without direct opponents. We analysed more than 6,000 elite track and field athletes (2005–2024) in javelin, discus, and shot put, identifying handedness by the arm used for throwing or putting. Across all disciplines, left-handers were strongly underrepresented (only ~2–5%). Our findings suggest that, unlike in interactive sports, left-handedness may be disadvantageous in these individual throwing events.

Journal/
conference: Royal Society Open Science

Research:Paper

Organisation/s: Università degli Studi di Trento Centro Interdipartimentale Mente/Cervello, Italy

Funder: No funding information listed.

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