Tag Archive for: Heptathlon

GAINcast Episode 123: Coaching to gold (with Toni Minichiello)

When Jessica Ennis stepped on the starting line at the 2012 Olympics, anything but a gold would have been considered a failure. Four years later, after giving birth to her first child, and medal would have been deemed a success. Standing beside her the whole way was her coach, Toni Minichiello. On this episode of the GAINcast he joins us to discuss setting an athlete up for success and other lessons he has learned throughout his career. Read more

Get Rid of the Decathlon? If It Ain’t Broke, Don’t Break It

Four years ago I left my hotel room to head for the London Olympic stadium. We got an early start to navigate the public transportation, security queues, and ticket lines. We still got to our seats an hour before the competition started, but I felt like we were late as the stadium was already packed. It was immediately clear they were not there to see the men’s hammer throw qualification like I was. Neither were they there to watch the steeplechase qualifying round. They were there to see one person: Jessica Ennis. The people in front of us brought their five-year-old daughter to witness the spectacle and her scream nearly blew out my eardrums once Ennis started the competition with a national record in the hurdles. The event’s power to draw in fans was on full display in London. The multi-events are a two-day test to crown the world’s greatest athletes and fans stand in awe of the diverse skill-set the top athletes possess. Therefore it was a bit odd when I learned that a new proposal from European Athletics would get rid of the heptathlon and decathlon forever in favor of newer formats. Read more