If this quote from the new British athletics head coach Christian Malcolm is true, why do we even need coaches?

He’s talking about some guy that plays football or rugby instead of running, not some guy that can get fit in 10 months and beat world class runners

Aren't you a former coach? You tell us.

Keyword - Random wrote:

Aren't you a former coach? You tell us.

Obviously you would still need a coach. You need someone generally keep the mood up, give them workouts, etc. But I put it up because i found it to be interesting. It's very rare to see coaches admit how much of it is about working with Grade A talent.

Now. I'm certain there isn't a human being with the talent in distance running to go from zero to Olympic champ that quickly. Would it be possible in some other event like the 100? I have no clue.

Obviously you would still need a coach. You need someone generally keep the mood up, give them workouts, etc. But I put it up because i found it to be interesting. It's very rare to see coaches admit how much of it is about working with Grade A talent.

Now. I'm certain there isn't a human being with the talent in distance running to go from zero to Olympic champ that quickly. Would it be possible in some other event like the 100? I have no clue.

Field events: build momentum to a 1-2 second action.

The longer the action must be sustained, the less that natural ability is necessary.

There have always been sprinters -- although very few -- who could run top times with only a few months of training because of raw talent.

He does not mention coaching at all so your assumption is baseless.

That said their is one thing that makes a great coach.. a great athlete.

I think it's just an inspirational coach quote that appeals to the inclusivity crowd.

I cannot think of any story where someone really came from nowhere. It can happen in the marathon I guess but typically they would have just been an unknown runner from football or coming back to running after time away. Paul Evans came from football I think to the Marathon.

I know of kids that have turned up to the track at 15 and become national champion on the track in their first year.

Christian is a good chap, I hope he gets the chance to show what he can do.

76chine wrote:

Field events: build momentum to a 1-2 second action.

The longer the action must be sustained, the less that natural ability is necessary.

I agree up to a point. The switch (at least on the men's side) from glide to rotational technique in the shot certainly seems to have swung the pendulum away from raw power and toward technique. (Up to a point of course; I can barely pick up a shot!) But while it's certainly true that it takes a lot more training to master the skill of the rotational technique, it would be a mistake to ignore the fact that coordination abilities are (1) innate and (2) tightly connected to the acquisition of difficult skills like the rotational technique.

ukathleticscoach wrote:He does not mention coaching at all so your assumption is baseless.

It was rojo after all...

I sort of agree. Natural strength and natural ability.

Regarding track, there are probably people who never tried to sprint or run long distance that are naturally gifted in those areas.

The magic combo would be finding natural talent and proper coaching.

I mean real coaching, not “ I’ll rub this cream on my kids, then you” coaching.

Not everyone does need a coach. However, some people do need guidance. And, if the athletes are on the same "team" then they are all under that one coach.

However, many pro track athletes are self-coached.

He's so wrong. I assume he's referring to the throwing and jumping events but he's so wrong. You can't just beat the best in the world with no technique no matter how athletic you are. That's quite inaccurate what he said.

I will add that you need a coach for every event except long distance running as you need a second opinion and second set of eyes to monitor your form and technique in basically every other event.

WTF does your word salad post even mean? If I have to read it several times to figure out meaning through all the errors, it's probably a waste.

800 dude wrote:

76chine wrote:

Field events: build momentum to a 1-2 second action.

The longer the action must be sustained, the less that natural ability is necessary.

I agree up to a point. The switch (at least on the men's side) from glide to rotational technique in the shot certainly seems to have swung the pendulum away from raw power and toward technique. (Up to a point of course; I can barely pick up a shot!) But while it's certainly true that it takes a lot more training to master the skill of the rotational technique, it would be a mistake to ignore the fact that coordination abilities are (1) innate and (2) tightly connected to the acquisition of difficult skills like the rotational technique.

Have you seen the weights Crouser and Walsh shift.

ukathleticscoach wrote:

He does not mention coaching at all so your assumption is baseless.

That said their is one thing that makes a great coach.. a great athlete.

Well....let`s put it like this......a great atlete makes a coach famous if it`s a coach who is very

experienced and can develop any given athlete whatever level when the coaching starts.

Are you now offering your coaching services for free then? I think you should

Um, ever hear of Julius Yego?

The nutbag Cerutty showed this long ago with Elliot.

Also: see Dennis Kimetto, Lagat and Abdi, among others. A donkey could coach these guys to medals.

He is probably thinking of Michael Rosswess. About a year after his first race he was running in the Olympic 200m final (Christian Malcolm's event). His technique was really ragged, but he never really improved despite being some excellent coaching.