Is Athletics Australia Corrupt and is Nic Bideau the leader?

from everything I've ever heard about Athletics Australia and team selections, Nic's athletes seem to get preferential treatment... and he's on the selection committee. No doubt he's a top coach but that's a clear conflict of interest and there never seems to be a drama-free Aussie teams selection

Yes

He’s not on the committee though? I’m certainly ambivalent about NB but I’ve heard that he’s on the committee about 10 times now. Whatever you think about him, it’s rude and lazy to disparage someone with statements that aren’t true.

His people are all through the org. One that got attention this week is the wife of MTC's other coach who is on the selection committee. So like a 'mum'-like figure to Gen Gregson, the least experienced marathoner (2.29 and 2.23) who walked on in to that team with little scrutiny.

Nic has 'people' all through the diamond league-- it's how we get Rambo running diamond leagues, lots of MTC pacers....these aren't the top runners in Australia, they are Nic's pics.

Nic has some journos in his pocket. Aths Vic in his pocket. We have 'media' types now like FTK pod who are getting a foothold into certain events, access to early announcements of fields etc....it's the scourge of MTC/Nic. He's like the Rupert Murdoch of athletics in Australia. If you're 'in the game' you do not want to get him off side. If you're a punter watching, the whole thing is an incestuous, inequitable mess.

If you are an elite distance runner in Australia NB has all the contacts. There are a few exceptions ie Templeton and others but he can get athletes in to races. Get them pacing opportunities like no other. Most Diamond League events have Aussie pace makers for a reason and they are all NB managed athletes.

It's a real monopoly that won't end I believe until he leaves the sport. Then Colis B. Will take over.

love to hear more on that. if you were going to use discretion weightman had the strongest claim

Weightman got properly shafted. If she was a MTC athlete she'd have walked onto the team easily. Disgraceful from AA.

You are absolutely correct. Look into how many mediocre Auzzie athletes take up spots at the Diamond Leagues too - all NB's doing. The king of backdoor deals.

In UK if a selector is also the personal coach of an athlete in the selection mix then the selector is expected to leave the room whilst the merits of that athlete are discussed. It doesn't guarantee objectivity but it in theory helps towards it.

Always has been:

"The affidavit suggested many of the trusts were established without Ms Freeman's knowledge and many of her sponsorship deals were negotiated by Mr Bideau for "the benefit of Bideau" (as well as Freeman) through his interests in her trusts."

What an advanced system, Brits are so superior.

Not advanced or superior but could be germane to the issue the OP raised

AA - and all Oz sports politicos - have what UK cop shows call "form, guv'nor..."

https://www.nfsa.gov.au/collection/curated/asset/95238-mexico-1968-peter-norman-athletics-and-black-power-salute

smh.com.au

Arthur Tunstall's reign of error as Commonwealth Games chief

Roy Masters

Remember the reign of error by out-of-touch chef de mission Arthur Tunstall at the Victoria Games in 1994.

Open link

At least real athletes stand above the politics of asshat corrupt and politicized selection committees....

cnn.com

The third man: The forgotten Black Power hero | CNN

James Montague

It is perhaps the most iconic sports photograph ever taken.

Open link

"In his own country Peter Norman remained the forgotten man. As soon as the U.S. delegation discovered that Norman wasn’t going to attend, the United States Olympic Committee arranged to fly him to Sydney to be part of their delegation. He was invited to the birthday party of 200 and 400-meter runner Michael Johnson, where he was to be the guest of honor. Johnson took his hand, hugged him and declared that Norman was one of his biggest heroes.
“Peter was not sanctioned … we are not sure why he missed selection in 1972 but it had nothing to do with what happened in Mexico,” the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) told CNN when asked about Norman’s exclusion from the team that traveled to Munich.
“Peter was not excluded from any Sydney 2000 celebrations.”
The AOC points out that Australia’s greatest ever sprinter had been given several crucial roles in the festivities.
“He represented the AOC at several team selection announcements,” it said, “including the announcement of the table tennis team in his home town of Melbourne prior to the Sydney Games.”

Yeah! Peter Norman was invited to ANNOUNCE THE TABLE TENNIS TEAM!

What a f "defense"!!!

Should have been featured in the ceremony and honored by awarding the 200m medals...or even better, presenting Freeman's gold particularly considering their shared history of conflict with OZ sports politicos...

abc.net.au

Tripping the flow: The clever physics hack behind Cathy Freeman's golden Olympic run

https://www.abc.net.au/news/stephen-hutcheon/9137234

As she rounded the final bend in the Olympic 400m final Cathy Freeman felt the energy of the crowd propelling her forward. She realised that this was her moment, this was her night.

Open link

I mean Nic Bideau - what can you say, the guy is a legend.

This is track and field after all - a (now) mid to mid-minor global sport that has some money in it but not a lot, and somehow this guy is this behind the scenes Godfather-style figure that can pull strings to get what he wants when he wants it.

It's actually pretty comical - Nic isn't even a physically imposing figure, not does he have a compelling personality. He's this graying, frailish guy with rodent-like facial features that always has a bit of a scowl on his mug - maybe that's the "mafioso look formula" that makes people think he is more important than he really is. And this importance began how - by coaching Cathy Freeman? By marrying Sonia O'Sullivan? Managed and coached Mottram? Yeah, and?

Seriously - he doesn't hold the purse strings to the "financial underground" of Athletics Australia or anything - he is a coach that became an agent. Big. F---ing. Deal.

And that point it's why he is a legend. He basically acts like he is Don Corleone and Athletics Australia are basically like "well I guess he is right?". They could just tell him to f--k off like just any meet director on the planet also could and literally nothing would happen, but yet here he is in the year 2024 lobbying like a Tobacco or Oil tycoon for things to go his way and they do.

That's why it could be easy to despise him but I actually just laugh. Fair play to him - he just decided he makes the rules of the game to suit himself and a gaggle of limp-wristed strokers all across the athletics world (not just Athletics Australia) let him. Here's to you Nic!

It's Wightman, ya dumbo.

He won the world championship.

Athletics in Australia has a history of being officiated by corrupted bullies with no interest in actual sport. When I was running you had to pretty much pay to do anything at all all thye time yet the guy who ran the state body drove around in a 'company' Mercedes. I remember running a 5k and there were a lot of good runners there. Way better than me; World Cross, Olympians, Comm Games, and the officials pulled the start up because he wanted us to tuck our singlets in.

Worth looking up how old Cathy was when NB started coaching/managing/dating her...

And what was Cathy's 'dirty little secret'?

Can you elaborate more on aths vic being in his pocket.