Olympic athlete Iwan Thomas starts his relay challenge - to pick six promising runners from a school with very little athletics facilities and turn them into a successful 4 x 400m relay team. Read the first part of his blog.
Under the guidance and training of Iwan, the team will take part (and win if Iwan has his way!) in the Young Athletics League final in Birmingham this September.
'When I arrived at the school, the sun was shining. But was it going to shine down on me? I knew about the school, and the fact the facilities for sport were not the best, but was confident that the boys would be enthusiastic. I prayed I would discover some talent.
'Excitement was high and the turnout wasn't bad. Once the trials started, I was actually overwhelmed at the determination and team spirit. It was clear to me the school may not be at the top of any reports but the attitude of all the boys was spot on!
'One boy fell, others were literally ready to throw up and I had spotted about 10 serious contenders. Now the tough bit - who not to pick and would I make a mistake? I knew I could only choose six - this was a tough challenge! Ideally I wanted a bigger squad but the powers that be said no. Six max!'
The Team
'So, I chatted for a while with the teacher and my mind was made up. The team would be:
- 'George - the boy who fell. A quiet, shy lad but without a doubt raw talent.
- 'Sonic - aka James. So much potential. His running technique wasn't good but I could see that I could fix this.
- 'Nat - mature looking, and I could see he's a natural all-round sportsman.
- 'Des - a very quiet lad but another boy with natural ability who I'm looking forward to working with.
- 'Tom - my danger weapon. A tall boy, way bigger than the others. If I can develop his speed, his long legs will do the rest.
- 'Ryan - the joker. Bit of a self-proclaimed pretty boy. I see much more to him - the most natural looking runner of the lot.
- 'Keiran - last but no means least. All day, he'd really caught my attention. Not the best athlete but a lovely manner about him and a good leader. I saw his real potential to keep the boys in check so I appointed him team manager - team member number 7.
'I left the school feeling really happy with my choice. Their attitude today was great but was it all a show for the cameras? Three months of hard graft now - not always in the glare of the cameras - with just me, my stop watch, the wind and the rain, and pain. Lots of pain!
'I'm doing this for real. This is a tough sport and I can be evil when it comes to training - I want the best out of these boys. My biggest nightmare is for them to feel embarrassed and humiliated in defeat.
'I know they are going to be up against the best teenage athletes in the country. I hate losing and I see this as a chance for them to make something of themselves - to hold their heads up high and be proud!'
The First Session
'I met the guys at Southampton Sports Centre, the first time for them all to get on a real athletics track. But first, a nice surprise. We had got them all matching kit - hoodies with their names on the back, smart Adidas trainers and, best of all, running spikes. They were all so excited - it was like Christmas come early and I felt great inside seeing their joy.
'Then, a reality check! Smiles all gone, it was time to train. I made the session quite hard to show them what was in store but not so bad to scare them off. I need them here twice a week training their hearts out if they are to stand any chance in three months.
'It went so well - can't say how happy I am with their attitude. As long as that remains committed I'm confident I can turn these raw lads into half-decent runners.
'Time will tell. Will they turn up next time? How sore their muscles will be tomorrow!'
To be continued...
