Wow, this is huge. Young's training is quite specific and happened to suit Muir extremely well. According to her, it's very low mileage but even "easy" days are ran at what most would consider to be a strong pace (I think she said 6 min/mile). That kind of training philosophy doesn't seem very widespread, she might struggle to find a similar style of coach.
For both Reekie and Muir to leave suggests the problem is to do with Young. Not ideal for one Britain's few medal hopes on the track
They're both veterans with tons of experience. They'll be fine without a coach.
I think Muir could coach herself for a while, she's 29 and knows what works for her. The problem is that Young was in total control of her race diary and she trusted him to put her in the right races at the right time. More than anything, she would need someone to manage her season, not necessarily write workouts.
Reekie is different. She's younger and needs to restore form and confidence following her post-Tokyo illnesses. I think she will need more hands-on coaching to get her back to the level where she was. She's an amazing talent, and should have won a medal in Tokyo but she ran for gold instead of silver/bronze. I'd like to think she can get back into medal contention
They were first and the only one to report at the time. But now do you have access to any search engine? It is everywhere, including the Guardian and BBC.
Gabriela DeBues-Stafford is one of the world’s best middle distance runners, finishing 5th in the 1500m at the Tokyo Olympics and has personal bests of 14:31 for 5k and 4:17 for the mile.
In February 2022, Canadian middle distance runner Gabriela DeBues-Stafford spoke about leaving Young’s group to join Jerry Schumacher and the Nike Bowerman Track Club. Here’s what she said about her time with the group on Run Your Mouth with David Melly.
“Andy was very micromanaging, very controlling. There was an infantilization that went on and I didn’t appreciate that. But going to Jerry, I know my body and one thing that I appreciate from being in Glasgow is I did learn how far my body could go. I did underestimate how hard I could push myself. I really appreciate that I was exposed to that environment where I had the opportunity to push myself as hard as I ever have before. We saw the results. My PB dropped from 4:03 to 3:56. I had the perfect opportunity to run that 3:56. It was an incredible race. I appreciate that. But because of that, I also got to know my body really well and where is too far. It’s a hard process as a professional athlete to know that about your body because you’re always on the line of training as hard as possible but you don’t want to risk burnout and you don’t want to risk injury. There was no space for that input with Andy.”
Olympic athletes Laura Muir and Jemma Reekie decided enough was enough and quit their training camp in South Africa after being forced to walk more than a mile in the baking sun to get a drink. The Times understands that Andy Young, their long-term coach, had told the pair they could not visit a coffee shop because they had already eaten out twice that week. Young also stopped them from using the hire car, but when they got back they found he was still in his room and had not been anywhere. Sources say this was the tipping point, rather than an isolated incident, and the pair decided to fly home last week with Young staying in Potchefstroom. A UK Athletics (UKA) employee helped the pair arrange a 6am departure to the airport. The Times has approached Young for comment.
Olympic athletes Laura Muir and Jemma Reekie decided enough was enough and quit their training camp in South Africa after being forced to walk more than a mile in the baking sun to get a drink. The Times understands that Andy Young, their long-term coach, had told the pair they could not visit a coffee shop because they had already eaten out twice that week. Young also stopped them from using the hire car, but when they got back they found he was still in his room and had not been anywhere. Sources say this was the tipping point, rather than an isolated incident, and the pair decided to fly home last week with Young staying in Potchefstroom. A UK Athletics (UKA) employee helped the pair arrange a 6am departure to the airport. The Times has approached Young for comment.
WOW!!!
Thanks for sharing the article behind the paywall.
This raises more questions for me. Was it after a workout when they needed a drink? Was it free time and they just wanted to have some fun? Why does Young think that he can tell grown women how to spend their time? Has he promised to pick them up? (It isn't apparent to me what the significance of him being in his room was....or did he like to them about needing the car?). And what else has gone on between he and them to lead to such a drastic reaction after a seemingly small event, as annoying as it no doubt was for the women?
Olympic athletes Laura Muir and Jemma Reekie decided enough was enough and quit their training camp in South Africa after being forced to walk more than a mile in the baking sun to get a drink. The Times understands that Andy Young, their long-term coach, had told the pair they could not visit a coffee shop because they had already eaten out twice that week. Young also stopped them from using the hire car, but when they got back they found he was still in his room and had not been anywhere. Sources say this was the tipping point, rather than an isolated incident, and the pair decided to fly home last week with Young staying in Potchefstroom. A UK Athletics (UKA) employee helped the pair arrange a 6am departure to the airport. The Times has approached Young for comment.
WOW!!!
Thanks for sharing the article behind the paywall.
This raises more questions for me. Was it after a workout when they needed a drink? Was it free time and they just wanted to have some fun? Why does Young think that he can tell grown women how to spend their time? Has he promised to pick them up? (It isn't apparent to me what the significance of him being in his room was....or did he like to them about needing the car?). And what else has gone on between he and them to lead to such a drastic reaction after a seemingly small event, as annoying as it no doubt was for the women?
Olympic athletes Laura Muir and Jemma Reekie decided enough was enough and quit their training camp in South Africa after being forced to walk more than a mile in the baking sun to get a drink. The Times understands that Andy Young, their long-term coach, had told the pair they could not visit a coffee shop because they had already eaten out twice that week. Young also stopped them from using the hire car, but when they got back they found he was still in his room and had not been anywhere. Sources say this was the tipping point, rather than an isolated incident, and the pair decided to fly home last week with Young staying in Potchefstroom. A UK Athletics (UKA) employee helped the pair arrange a 6am departure to the airport. The Times has approached Young for comment.
WOW!!!
GDS in 2022 - "Andy was micromanaging, very controlling. There was an infantilization that went on and I didn't appreciate that."
Andy Young 2023 - I won't let a 30 year old Olympic medallist visit a coffee shop because they have eaten out already this week (?).
"Sources say this was the tipping point rather than an isolated incident."
Yeah this all adds up to be honest. If a coach is trying to tell you what you can and cannot do to the point that he tries to control when you get a coffee then what else is he trying to control?
Think it is quite possible that given Muir started working with him at 18 when she was only a 4:38 1500m runner, Reekie since she was 16 (?) that they didn't know any different about coaches being controlling so tolerated it for awhile/believed they had to work with him to succeed until finally snapping this week. While Stafford entered the group already pro and at 23 years old having made teams before she worked with Young had less patience for that sort of thing right from the start and lost patience much earlier.
Olympic athletes Laura Muir and Jemma Reekie decided enough was enough and quit their training camp in South Africa after being forced to walk more than a mile in the baking sun to get a drink. The Times understands that Andy Young, their long-term coach, had told the pair they could not visit a coffee shop because they had already eaten out twice that week. Young also stopped them from using the hire car, but when they got back they found he was still in his room and had not been anywhere. Sources say this was the tipping point, rather than an isolated incident, and the pair decided to fly home last week with Young staying in Potchefstroom. A UK Athletics (UKA) employee helped the pair arrange a 6am departure to the airport. The Times has approached Young for comment.
WOW!!!
GDS in 2022 - "Andy was micromanaging, very controlling. There was an infantilization that went on and I didn't appreciate that."
Andy Young 2023 - I won't let a 30 year old Olympic medallist visit a coffee shop because they have eaten out already this week (?).
"Sources say this was the tipping point rather than an isolated incident."
Yeah this all adds up to be honest. If a coach is trying to tell you what you can and cannot do to the point that he tries to control when you get a coffee then what else is he trying to control?
Think it is quite possible that given Muir started working with him at 18 when she was only a 4:38 1500m runner, Reekie since she was 16 (?) that they didn't know any different about coaches being controlling so tolerated it for awhile/believed they had to work with him to succeed until finally snapping this week. While Stafford entered the group already pro and at 23 years old having made teams before she worked with Young had less patience for that sort of thing right from the start and lost patience much earlier.
Good point! In every interview I'd seen of Laura she'd spoken highly of her coach, but with this additional info from GDS this makes sense. If this is all true I'm glad Reekie and Laura got out of there and asserted their own independence!
The Times would have chosen its wording carefully to stay right side of libel laws so in that light the phrase about the coffee shop "prohibition" is pretty telling. A coffee shop! Its a notable coaching approach to apply to a 29 y.o Olympic medallist who is a qualified veterinary practitioner.
I'm a little confused about why two grown women would listen to the guy, coach or not. If I want to go to a coffee shop I'm going to a coffee shop, permission or no. Unless the "hire car" was Andy's (assuming an Uber since it didn't say rental car) why didn't they just call their own. Very odd from both sides here.
