Some good results over the weekend at the first official athletics meet of the year. Oscar Coggins won the Mens open 1500m and Camden Richter was 2nd in the Womens Open. Both in strong times considering the training phase they are currently in. 

​Also impressed to see some of the younger kids getting involved considering that there were no age categories in this competition and they had to race with HKs top athletes. Zoe Yip also competed in a 4KM race for charity on Sunday and won the youth category. Well done to all and see you at race 2. 

Full results here http://hkaaa.com/en/comp_news_details.php?id=27&news_id=80

Mens 100m - Arthur Liu 14.32 
Mens 800m - Mahan Malhotra 2.13
Mens 1500m - Oscar Coggins 4.10, Mahan Malhotra 4.42, Clement Beylier 5.37 
Womens 1500m - Camden Rickter 5.02, Jade Saunders 5.42, Victoire Beylier 5.57
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Congrats to those who raced DIV 1 School athletics over the past week. Outstanding performances from Matt Tan who broke the 1500m and 3000m B grade records. His brother James also had a great meet with a 2nd and 3rd place in the 5km and 1500m A grade. Jasmine Drew picked up two silvers in the 800m and 1500m for the C grade girls and Miles W, Swiss D and Oscar Wong were top 8 in their events. All athletes are on our YDP programme. Unfortunately most of our other programme athletes are not in D1 schools so didn't get to race. 

​Lesson 3 - Unconventional training practices
There were also some unconventional ideas to experience which may not have strict scientific reasoning but obviously have their place and are backed up with years of results.

• Big gears on the bike especially during easy rides
• No liquids during swims
• Lots of  high intensity even for junior athletes
• No Power meters or HR monitors
• 3 training zones, moderate, medium, and mad (max)

The key to working each aspect into the programme is the correct balance and quantity for each athlete and knowing when to call it a day. Everyone is treated very individually.  Although the sessions were mostly in groups everyone had their own variation of the set. Most of our group in HK know this is something I commonly apply to our sessions and is why we get exceptional results. It’s important to note there is no point in going to a camp and smashing athletes to bits so they need to take time off when they get home. The work/rest ratio is very important as well as the energy system you are working. Brett is a true genius when it comes to this.  
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Lesson 4 - Independance outside of training
Whilst on camp other vital skills that the athletes learn on camp with no parents or helpers around include shopping, traveling, cooking, health, cleaning, time management, budgeting and recovering to name a few. Each day an athlete took turns to buy and cook healthy meals  under my nutritional guidance. Cricket, Henry and Oscar are all very capable in this respect, and took most of these duties in their stride without the need of much input from me. In HK basic skills are rarely taught  but are essential ones in becoming a good athlete.  

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Lesson 5. Coach-athlete trust
The message from this camp for performances coaches is that almost anyone can prescribe a training session or plan. When two coaches set the same programme and one gets better results than the other, that is the true art of coaching and where Brett is a step above the rest. It is the interaction of the coach and athlete and how the athlete is guided through the many obstacles to the top of the podium by squeezing out an extra few % that makes the difference. Many of these obstacles have nothing at all to do with what sessions are given and often the training becomes inconsequential. None of the athletes on the camp questioned the coach no matter what the session was, there was 100% trust to get the best results. Brett's squad produces continual results whereas other squads "have hit and miss" years, whether they be private or National federations.
On a local level our 26 squad has consistently produced youth and junior athletes over the past few years by applying many of the same training principles to our individual athletes as Brett does. We also pride ourselves on having a high level of coach-athlete interaction, something I see very few other coaches able or willing to do. Standing on the track shouting with everyone doing the same set isn’t good coaching. Letting your athletes know they are all individually important to your squad is essential for development and they will reward you with hard work if you apply this philosophy to you coaching. 

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TALENT ID VIDEO - Series 2Part 2 of a great series on Talent ID. This is a fantastic presentation and some of the concepts can be taken on board in sports like rugby in Hk, who have a reasonable development programme. 


However, for triathlon we are so far behind with very little talent ID and an inadequate setup to nurture potential athletes, it's pointless to think about the content of the video just yet. Three very simple concepts that can be applied to triathlon that would make an overwhelming improvement. 


1. Allow the best athletes to race and make it easy for them to do so. Make selections based on results. This will produce role models and make triathlon an attractive sport to be involved in.

2. Encourage the clubs to develop potential athletes with incentives and do not force those athletes away from the club once they have reached a good level. Currently no clubs in HK are focusing on producing potential Elite athletes. 

3. Set up good talent ID protocols and recruit from schools and other sports clubs such as swimming.

​This will only work if the first two points are achieved or no athlete or parent will want to be involved. 
Let's hope this year something can be done. With only 3 senior athletes currently on the national squad something must be done ASAP. It will take a majority of the trihk committee to take action before any changes can be implemented.