Ian King

Meet stretching – before it becomes extinct

/by

When I stayed at Mammoth Mountain in California for the first time in the 1990s with a Canadian national team for a training camp three things stood out to me about the venue. First that it was warm enough almost for t-shirt but yet there was snow. Secondly, that you could ski and surf in the same day such was the proximity of these slopes to the beach. And thirdly, the bronze monument of the Mammoth.

I was intrigued by the beauty of an animal that no longer existed in that region.  Like many animals, they had become extinct. Based on the rate of suppression and decline in take up rate post the mid-1990s, I suggest flexibility training or stretching as it is often called is at risk of the same fate – extinction.

Here’s a bit of history from my observations over the last half a century to support this concern.

The 1970s

The 1970s was big decade for stretching. The American physical educator Bob Anderson and his wife Jean self-published their first edition of the book titled Stretching. It was a small spiral bound edition, full of great guidance and driven by what I believe was a genuine intent to serve the world. It was picked up by more established publishing houses in 1980 and this helped spread the world globally.

Personally, it was where my stretching journey began:

My personal history in stretching goes back to the 1970s, in my high school years. During track and field amongst other sports I was exposed to stretching. I do not recall any negative connotations or concerns in that decade towards stretching or flexibility training. I suspect doing stretches would not have turned anyone’s head in that decade. [1]

I was the product of the 1970s, and I was the product of track and field and martial arts, both of which were sports leaders in the embracement of flexibility. So, I had a reasonably high level of personal involvement, commitment and competence in this physical quality. [2]

In the late 1970s my exposure to martial arts also began, and stretching was integral to that sport in that era.

I sum-up the 1970s approach to stretching in this way –

You did it or you didn’t do it – no-one cared

I liked the days in the 70s when no one really cared, no one even talked about it; we just did it, and no one had an opinion on that; they did or you didn’t do it. And since then, every decade, we’ve gone through a new reason why not. [3]

The 1980s

The impact of iconic books such as the Anderson’s Stretching book grew during the 1980s thanks to broader publication and distribution channels.  Stretching was simply part of what so many sports did.

In the 1980s during university, I participated in a variety of sports, some of which – such as martial arts – promoted flexibility training as paramount. [4]

I feel it’s reasonable to say that stretching was gaining momentum on the upside during the 1980s.

I took this value into my competitive training and competing in other sports in the second half of the 1980s – competitive powerlifting and weightlifting, rugby union etc. I noticed people looked, some asked questions, but no-one really cared. [5]

The other factor that in hindsight stands out to me about this decade was the lack of resistance.  I was gaining traction as a coach and consultant in strength training – and my approach was to take stretching along for the ride as a non-negotiable partner to my strength training services.  And I had zero push-back.

I was further unique, in that I chose to bring flexibility training along with strength training. From the early1980s, I would not provide strength training – either in program design or in supervision of training – without concurrent flexibility training. That was my starting point. Length and strength. [6]

I was doing it with athletes in all sports. I was doing it with up to 20 different sports at the elite level during the late 80s and 90s. And no one really objected to it. No one said anything. No one complained. The coaches probably struggled a little bit because I was eating into their time, and that’s a story in itself. But, in essence, my conclusions were shaped by the athlete’s response, their performance and injury prevention response to my application. And I formed a number of hypotheses during the late 80s, in particular, about the relationship between stretching and injury prevention.  

And I implemented them, and I studied the results, you know, in the real-world laboratory sense, in particular throughout the early 90s, when I gained a lot more control in the training process. [7]

To reiterate – I was hired to provide strength training and I gave that, and stretching, as a pair of services. The latter was not asked for, but no-one said no or objected. Quite the contrary – what I was doing in stretching was often received as more unique.

I sum-up the 1980s approach to stretching in this way –

No-one gave a rat’s ass

When I was teaching stretching in the 80s, … no one gave a rat’s ass. No one really cared. [8]

The 1980s built on the ambivalence of the 1970s towards stretching with an increased involvement in the training method.

The 1990s

The 1990s began where the 1980s had left off, and for the first half of that decade my approach of bringing stretching along for the ride did not experience any pushback.

And by the mid-90s, I formed an incredibly effective approach to flexibility, and I formed, by then, the solid belief that flexibility is the most important physical quality, and the physical quality that will have more impact upon all other physical qualities, and also on the quality of life going forwards. [9]

And then, by around 1995, I sensed a change, a new negativity to stretching.

And after 15 years of doing it, by the mid-90s, something had happened. What was that?  Suddenly I learned of a new theory.  Stretching was bad. [10] 

The 2000s

By the turn of the century this anti-stretching sentiment had momentum.

By the late 1990s/early 2000’s the stretching paradigm was that static stretching had an acute (short-term) impact of reducing your strength, so if you want to do it, only do it afterward the workout.  This paradigm suggested more dynamic or PNF (i.e. proprio-neuromuscular facilitation, a special mix of static and dynamic stretching) type stretching should be done before the workout, but again only short duration holds were apparently needed. [11]

What were the proposed reasons for the shift against stretching?

I noted three stages of negativity against stretching during the last half of a century.

The first was pushing back on the increased support for stretching being a way of reducing injuries.

My first exposure to negativity to stretching was in the late 1980s. This resistance to stretching was in the form of ‘stretching has not been proven to prevent injuries’. Essentially it was based on short-term studies suggesting that groups that stretched did not have a lower incidence of acute injuries than groups that did not stretch. This completely overlooked the long-term impact of stretching and its role in preventing use or chronic injuries.

It was not what I would call a strong pushback, and it failed to gain a lot of momentum.  You could say this reason to stretch is still hanging around in the background. [12]

The second reason that was subsequently proposed was that stretching created a risk of injuries through hypermobility.

In the late 1980’s and early 1990’s I witnessed the rise of a paradigm that suggested you shouldn’t stretch too much because if you got too flexible, you would be injury prone i.e. your increased flexibility would result in a higher incidence or chance of being injured.  [13]

And the third reason that was subsequently proposed – and I conclude the first two were not achieving the goals of suppressing stretching – was that stretching (especially pre-training stretching) made you ‘weak’.

By the late 1990s/early 2000’s the stretching paradigm was that static stretching had an acute (short-term) impact of reducing your strength, so if you want to do it, only do it afterward the workout.  This paradigm suggested more dynamic or PNF (i.e. proprio-neuromuscular facilitation, a special mix of static and dynamic stretching) type stretching should be done before the workout, but again only short duration holds were apparently needed. [14]

What do I think was the real reason behind this shift against stretching?

Quite simply, I believe the rise in popularity of stretching through the last three decades of the 20th century presented a problem to some, to which they found a solution – crush it. After all, it worked for the car industry to slow the emergence of electric cars![15]

In the 60s when I was training, nobody really did it. In the 70s when I started doing it in high school, no one really cared. In the early 80s when I was doing it in a professional training environment, people would ask, oh that’s interesting. No one really cared. Guess what? When it became so popular and the sports scientists decided that they needed to exert their influence to control the situation, what was the first thing they said? You can’t do it until we decide why you want to do it. And they’re still deciding. [16]

I suggest that as stretching gained in support throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s alarm bells were ringing. The attitude of ‘we will prove it wrong until we approve it’ was evident from academia.

In the late 1980s I took my professional skills to North America. I noticed that my commitment to stretching was significantly more than what my Canadian and American counterparts were doing.[17]

I sensed a feeling of resentment at the practitioner level that athletes were getting exposed to the benefits of stretching at time when strength / strength and conditioning cohort had no personal or professional knowledge of, belief in and skills of stretching.

So, what was happening on the coach front? At least one-third of the successfully self-marketed ‘strength coaches’ in the US market do not train at all.  However, 100% of them do not stretch, have never stretched, and would be made a fool of if the interest in and demand for stretching was to continue to rise as it was in the early 1990s. [18]

Many if not all of my colleagues have never stretched, cannot touch their toes, and therefore from an ego protection perspective the last thing they will allow is the rise of a training value that makes them look bad.[19]

This was where I felt the resistance first.

At a second level, and a few years later, the academics were what I suggest recruited to stem the tide of interest in stretching.

The academics had the power of ‘science’. If it was published in a peer-reviewed article, it carried more clout.  Despite this the practitioners who typically recruited ‘science’ to show they were ‘cutting edge’ (I coined the term ‘pracdemics’ for this)[20] did their best to support the cause to suppress stretching.

These are some of my favourites…

If you took rubber bands out of the freezer and prepared to use them by stretching them, what do you think would happen? You would easily break quite a few. This is why athletes frequently pull muscles…[21]

…wild animals don’t do static stretching–they do long, slow-moving stretches, or even explosive bounding movements that form an integral part of all of their lives. “And the stretch is not a relaxed stretch; it’s done with a lot of tension. That’s an important point because we are often told to stretch only relaxed muscles. Look at the stretch of a cat, how it stretches up to its maximum with tension, according to what feels right. This type of active intuitive stretching equips you to cope better with strenuous exercise.[22]

…stretching the joints and the fascia is like stretching out your favorite sweater… once you have done that it will never hang the same.” [23]

So, what is really going on?

I’ve been talking about the suppression of stretching over the last 25 plus years, with the ‘C’ work – conspiracy – in the message.

In the 1990s:

There is also the underlying effect of a western world sport’s medicine philosophy that has historically paid more attention to injury rehabilitation than injury prevention… Or is there a tendency to reinforce frequent and long-term injury treatment patterns?[24]

In the 2000s:

Now, I know I’m being a little bit of a, truly am being a bit of a theorist here on the conspiracy aspect, but that’s reality. How many people want to make themselves redundant?[26]

Allow me to let you into a little secret and share the  conspiracy theory side of myself – do you think the massive medical/therapy industry really want you to learn how to avoid injuries Yes, I am a bit of a conspiracy theorist! [27] [28]

In the 2010s:

It’s really been a great example for people of what I call the conspiracy of stretching. And I’ve made that statement now since the late 90s. I started a bit tongue-in-cheek, but now I’m quite serious, where people who want to be in control, and coaches who can’t touch their toes, are saying, ‘well, geez, the movement is getting stronger.’ I better delay this until I work it out.[29]

Now, I don’t mean to come across like a conspiracy theory, but… There are reasons why in the last 10 years, last 10, 15 years, there’s been more negativities written about flexibility than there was in the prior 50. [30]

And still, in the 2020s:

Post 1995 pre-training static stretching became vilified, i.e. there were concerted efforts to discourage your pre-training sessions. You can learn what I think is the reasons behind this in my 2nd Edition Legacy book. [31]

Where is this all going?

In the late 1990s I felt the rise of consumer interest in stretching would result in stretching being the dominant ‘new training focus’ of the first decade of the new millennium. 

Will the first decade of the next century be known for the popularity of flexibility research? [32]

In both, the role and potential contribution of flexibility is poorly understood in general and therefore is no surprise that this quality has not been exploited in training.  I predict that these matters will be for most, the ‘discovery of the decade’ at some stage between the years 2000 and 2010.[33] [34]

I was wrong.

As 2010 arrived I put my hand up for an inaccurate prediction and became disillusioned with the prospects.

Now, I wrote in 1997 that flexibility was, in my opinion, the last frontier of physical training. But by the year 2010, I’m sure it would have been embraced. Well, 2010, as I’ve said before, is about to happen. And flexibility training has gone nowhere but around in circles and been attached to so many negative labels. [35]

I also tried kicking the can down the road.

.So, yeah, I don’t know, 10 years? I’ll put it back. I’ve got to write something about that. Put it back by 10.[36]

 Perhaps it will be so in the decade 2010 to 2020?  There are some signs that the ‘trend-spotters’ – those who watch for trends and start teaching them early in the acceptance phase to position themselves as the leaders and teachers of the new trend (and to allow them to create new educational material to sell to the masses) – are on the move in relation to flexibility i.e. they have gone from making fun of flexibility to now promoting their DVDs on how to do it, especially the once mocked static stretching.[37]

So, when 2020 came along I became less optimistic, conceding that the deserved rise of stretching to the recognition it deserved might not happen in my lifetime.

I say now that I don’t think in my lifetime that flexibility will be given the credibility that it deserves. [38]

Why do I talk about the possibility of extinction?

On my estimates the 2000s was going to be the decade of recognition of stretching, in the way aerobic training was in the 1980s and strength training was in the 1990s. [39]

You could call the eighties the decade of researching aerobic training, and nineties the era of popularity in researching strength. [40]

It was deserved. But it didn’t happen. In fact, the reverse happened. Two subsequent decades have past – the 2010’s and the 2020’s – and the movement to vilify stretching has gained momentum. And I give them respect for this effort, even if I don’t believe it is in humanities interests.

That’s now three decades or thirty (30) years of suppression.

Let’s talk about the game plan, including the implications.

I want to share an analogy I have learnt from listening first-hand to arguably one of the most imposing No. 8’s to play rugby for Australia, Mark Loane, talk about what he learnt from his time playing rugby in South Africa for the Natal province in 1980 the historic game plan of South African rugby – to metaphorically ‘strangle’ or the tight head prop as a means to ‘kill-off’ the opposition resistance and game plan. Now you could say that is a common rugby tactic, but I do not believe any other rugby nation has embraced or embedded this philosophy in their psyche as much as South Africa.

I see a similarity with stretching. If the vested interests can ‘strangle’ stretching, it will ‘die off’, give up, go away, become extinct. And how long will this take?

To answer that question, I share a way of viewing this, by dividing entrants to sports or strength training by their era and matching their exposure to stretching.

Table 1 – The period of entry into sport/fitness/strength training matched with the association with or exposure to stretching

The period of entry into sports / fitness/ strength training

Their association with/exposure to stretching (flexibility training)
1980-2000 Witnessed &/or experienced stretching
2000 – 2020 Heard about stretching
2020 – 2040 Did no see or hear about stretching

The 1980- 2000s cohort – Witnessed &/or experienced stretching

From speaking to a growing number of individuals whose entry into sport, fitness or strength training was in the 1980-2000 period, a pattern has emerged. They for the most part had engagement in stretching prior to 2000, however at or around 2000 when the dominant paradigms shifted against stretching, they stopped stretching.

Some found their way back. Many didn’t. Most, I suggest. I would also venture to say their injury incidence increased post being discouraged from stretching.

Here is a great example of this pattern, in a case study of an individual who found their way back to stretching.

Hi Mr. King.  After reading the Legacy book Vol 2. book here is my review. The content of the book is excellent and  in few moments eye opening.  As you know I already use your concepts in my training so I can testify that they really do work. 

I support your emphasis on flexibility and static stretching because when I started to stretch the Ian King way my health really improved. Ironically, when I started to train almost 30 years ago, I did stretch. I did stretch a lot. My early influences were books by Bob Anderson, Bill Pearl’s ‘Getting stronger’, Tudor Bumpa’s ‘Periodization’, the first edition of the NSCA`s Essentials. They all emphasized static stretching, so I stretched. I never had any overuse injuries at that time.

In the early 2000’s things started to change. I came across Functional guru (Boston guy),  he said that static stretching is bad. Big names like Bompa, Siff, Kurz also started to attack static stretching in warmups. NSCA changed their position on static stretching, so I embraced dynamic and ballistic ‘stretching’.

You guessed it, my body became full of tendinitis’s, trigger points, pain. I lived in agony for few years until I read GBII (those concepts are also  in Legacy book).  Static stretching in warm up phase plus few weekly sessions helped me to restore my health. Static stretching rules!–Hans.[41]

The 2000- 2020s cohort – Only heard about stretching

These individuals began their teenager and or adult training in the period between 2000 and 2020. They did not experience the period of increased involvement and embracing of stretching.  They did however have the opportunity to have heard about it.

Therefore, they have no first-hand experience of a world where stretching was embraced. Instead, they rely on the indigenous tradition of passing on lessons verbally from person to person, as their only source of exposure.

Now whilst this method of passing on knowledge was effective in earlier ages, I suggest it is less effective when it is competing with conflicting values and the power of the written word decrying stretching.

Therefore, power of stretching is diluted for this cohort, who have no first-hand knowledge of the prior more favorable to stretching times. Unless of course they fake it, however I suggest this is not a sustainable or effective long-term strategy.

The following is an example of this.

Original publications

‘Other’ – 2024
So, over the last twenty years all I have seen are reasons why you shouldn’t stretch!  [42]

In the 70s when I started doing it in high school, no one really cared. [43] 

I liked the days in the 70s when no one really cared. [44]

In the 1970s and 1980s athletes stretched and no-one cared. [45]

Move forward to the 1980s, and there I was, stretching happily, endlessly, in the gym, as a competitive powerlifter. And no one cared. [46]

If you trained in the 1980s and you were stretching and someone walked past you…They couldn’t give a rat’s ass. [47]

When I was teaching stretching in the 80s, … no one gave a rat’s ass. No one really cared. [48]

 I think the biggest thing with that whole paradigm is that 20 years ago, no one used to give a fuck if someone was lying in the corner doing stretching. [49]

 

 

Theres a few ‘problems’ with this account over and above the fact that by 2004, the world had moved away from stretching for a decade….

Apart from the obvious paraphrasing of a very familiar statement, this ‘coach’ was about 8 years old in 2004. Are we to believe they formed a professional judgement about the treatment of flexibility training in commercial training areas at the age of 8 years old?[50]

Quite simply, this cohort was denied first-hand experience of a world which embraced stretching. Individuals faking their life experiences is not going to overcome this reality, rather this lack of integrity is not helping stretching’s cause.

The 2020-2040s cohort – Did not witness/experience or hear about stretching

These individuals beginning their teenager and or adult training in the period between 2020 and 2040 will neither . They did not experience the period of increased involvement and embracing of stretching.  They are also unlikely to have the opportunity to have heard about it.

We are now in this period. I suggest that if the suppression of stretching can be effectively maintained, then towards the end of this time frame – which is only a little over decade away – stretching will be a relic from a past age, on the verge of and facing extinction.

Conclusion

I have come to accept that stretching as a mainstream acceptable training method may never return. At least not in the form that I believe it is most effective – pre-training static stretching.

On the contrary stretching may become extinct.

Why do I say that? Because I believe that decision lays with individuals and groups with vested interests.

You will only be ‘allowed’ to stretch WHEN two things occur:

  1. The equipment manufacturers and distributors have worked out how to profit from the training method; and
  2. When the dominant ‘gurus’ have worked out enough about stretching to make out they are experts! [51]

And they may never give it the green light to come back.

Which will be a real shame, in my opinion, for the masses.

And by the mid-90s, I formed an incredibly effective approach to flexibility, and I formed, by then, the solid belief that flexibility is the most important physical quality, and the physical quality that will have more impact upon all other physical qualities, and also on the quality of life going forwards. [52]

Rather than completely wave the white flag I have recently prepared a document to support you getting to know stretching – before it becomes extinct.  It provides a low-bar time commitment to foster more individuals giving it a go, supported by additional information about stretching.

The title recognizes an early attempt to encourage the world to stretch, published in 2000 and again in 2002 [53] – The Lazy Man’s Guide to Stretching.

I encourage you to visit stretching before it becomes extinct!

 

References

[1] King, I., 2011, Stretching debate, I Form, Magazine, Feb 2011

[2] King, I., 2019, How did you develop your approach to flexibility, Off the Record #50, 31 July 2019

[3] King, I., 2010, Legacy Seminar, Gold Coast AUS, 26 April 2010

[4] King, I., 2011, Stretching debate, I Form, Magazine, Feb 2011

[5] King, I., 2011, Stretching debate, I Form, Magazine, Feb 2011

[6] King, I., 2026, Get Buffed! V – Get Optimally Buffed! Ch 5 – Pillar 3: Stability

[7] King, I., 2012, KSI Coaching Program Level 2 Foundations, Unit 4 – Theory of flexibility development, (Video) 17 May 2012

[8] King, I., 2011, How to Write Seminar Series – Pt 1 – How do I ensure balance in my strength training to prevent injuries? Nerang Qld Aust., Sun 15th May 2011

[9] King, I., 2012, KSI Coaching Program Level 2 Foundations, Unit 4 – Theory of flexibility development, (Video) 17 May 2012

[10] King, I., 2010, Barbells & Bullshit, Pt 3 of 10 – Flexibility an example of influence on physical qualities, DVD/Audio Series

[11] King, I., 2002, Get Buffed! II – Get More Buffed! Ch. 8 – The stretch – a performance advantage!

[12] King, I., 2026, The Lazy Man’s Guide to Stretching, Ch. 7 – The flawed excuses not to stretch

[13] King, I., 2002, Get Buffed! II – Get More Buffed! Ch. 8 – The stretch – a performance advantage!

[14] King, I., 2002, Get Buffed! II – Get More Buffed! Ch. 8 – The stretch – a performance advantage!

[15] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Motors_EV1

[16] King, I., 2011, Flexibility – You can’t do it until we decide, YouTube

[17] King, I., 2026, The Lazy Man’s Guide to Stretching, Ch. 1- My stretching journey

[18] King, I., 2018, KSI Coaching Program L0 Orientation Course, Unit 5 – What flexibility training should I do with my clients?

[19] King, I., 2019, How did you develop your approach to flexibility, Off the Record #50, 31 July 2019

[20] King, I., 2010, Barbells & Bullshit, King Sports International (Book)

[21] Boyle, M., 2004, Functional training for sport, p. 29-30

[22] Goss, K., 1999, Weight Training Secrets from Darkest Africa, draft submitted to the ASCA for publication

[23] Forum thread, 2003, Ian King’s stance on stretching, t-mag.com, from 31 May 2003 (Other)

[24] King, I., 1997, Winning & Losing, p. 26

[25] King, I., 2000, Injury Prevention and Rehabilitation Series. (DVD)

[26] King, I., 2000, Injury Prevention and Rehabilitation Series. (DVD)

[27] King, I., 2000, Heavy Metal Q and A with the King of Strength Coaches, t-mag.com – Issue 133 Dec 1, 2000

[28] King, I., 2003, Ask the Master, p. 87

[29] King, I., 2011, KSI Coaching Program L1 Legacy Course, Unit 11 – Flexibility (Video/Audio)

[30] King, I., 2012, Ian King Live in London, 29 Feb 2012

[31] King, I., 2025, Legacy – Ian King’s training innovations, Vol. 1 – Injury prevention & Performance enhancement, Theory #27 – It’s a conspiracy

[32] King, I., 1997, Winning & Losing, p. 113

[33] King, I., 1999, Foundations of Physical Preparation (course)

[34] King, I., 2000, Foundations of Physical Preparation (book), p. 50

[35] King, I., 2010, Barbells and Bullshit – Challenging your thinking, Pt 3 of 10 – Flexibility an example of influence on other qualities (Video/Audio)

[36] King, I., 2010, Legacy Tour Seminar – Predicting the tipping point in stretching, Gold Coast, Sunday 25 April 2010

[37] King, I., 2011, KSI Coaching Program, Level 1 – Legacy, Unit 1 – History of physical preparation

[38] King, I., 2010, Barbells & Bullshit, Pt 3 of 10 – Flexibility an example of influence on physical qualities, DVD/Audio Series

[39] King, I., 2025, Legacy, 2nd Edi. Volume 1 – Injury prevention and performance enhancement, Theory #22 – The dominant focus buy decade

[40] King, I., 1997, Winning & Losing (Book), p. 113

[41] Personal communication, Hans to Ian King, Email dated 25 January 2026

[42] King, I., 2002, Get Buffed! II – Get More Buffed! Ch. 8 – The stretch – a performance advantage!

[43] King, I., 2011, Flexibility – You can’t do it until we decide, YouTube

[44] King, I., 2010, Legacy Seminar, Gold Coast AUS, 26 April 2010

[45] King, I., 2011, KSI Coaching Program L1 Legacy Course, Ch. 34- Concerns for the world of physical preparation

[46] King, I., 2010, Barbells & Bullshit, Pt 3 of 10: Flexibility – An example of influence on physical qualities

[47] King, I., 2012, Ian King Live in London, 29 Feb 2012

[48] King, I., 2011, How to Write Seminar Series – Pt 1 – How do I ensure balance in my strength training to prevent injuries? Nerang Qld Aust., Sun 15th May 2011

[49]  Reference withheld to protect the message

[50] King, I., 2026, Legacy, 2nd Ed., Volume 2 – Flexibility and Strength, Theory #211 –

Our profession relies on you NOT fact checking

[51] King, I., 2018, KSI Coaching Program L0 Orientation Course, Unit 5 – What flexibility training should I do with my clients?

[52] King, I., 2012, KSI Coaching Program Level 2 Foundations, Unit 4 – Theory of flexibility development, (Video) 17 May 2012

[53] King, I., 2002, The lazy man’s guide to stretching, t-mag.com, 28 Jun 2002. (Article)

 

Ian King

A thought for physical coaches – The lifetime value of our decisions

/by

In my holistic research recently I was exposed to information that I have wondered about. One of the individuals I have determined to be worthy of learning from shared information recently that I picked up on. I knew who their influences were, and I often wondered what the asset position is of the person I learn from. I learnt some answers to that today. Not the exact answer, but enough to get insights.

This information typically only becomes accessible when you get close enough to the mentor, and if you dedicate enough time to studying what they share – in print (books, emails, newsletter) and in videos and seminars.  I have done a lot of study of this person – years of it – to stumble upon this simple nugget.

As the person who commenced the first physical coach mentoring program, the value in mentoring matters to me, as it does to anyone when they choose a mentor.

Moments such as when I learnt this nugget of information from the mentor I speak about in this article require a moment when the person drops their privacy guard and shares a bit more openly. I know that moment. When I am talking to my higher-level coaches, I am more open with them but even then, need to review everything I am inclined to share before it comes out of my mouth.

There are a lot of reasons for this.

Firstly, there is simply privacy. We all want to determine who learns what about our person affairs. I am very conscious of this personally, and professionally, as our high-level coaches can confirm.

Secondly there is interpretation. In some situations, with some people, information shared with intent to help does not always work out that way. The way information can be interpreted can at times be more damaging than good, including with the best interpretations of both parties. Let alone when one of the parties has less than good intent.

The third consideration is readiness.  I am a strong believer that a student needs to qualify they are ready for that information, because if they are not, it will not server optimally.

Finally, there is confidentiality. When a person shares something with someone, even with the ‘right person’ at the ‘right time’, if that person then shares that information with another person who the original person has no say as to what is shared to whom, then all bets are off. It’s a shit show and all the efforts of the original person to ensure their information serves optimally is shattered

I know. It’s as simple as seeing as a person blasting out my innovations during their 10-year incubation period.[1] Ones that I have not even chosen to make public or talked about much.

So, after all this, I will share with you the information. But you will note that I am not giving names or details or specific context.

The person who I trust to learn off publicly thanks the person who exposed him first to the line of thinking, some 35 years ago – for how much money that person’s advice had made him. And it was a bigger number than I was expecting. And I know that my mentor is humble and discreet and not a bullshitter. Basically, he is disqualified from being an IG influencer!

And so, I know his asset position is even more than that…Wow!

And I know the lifetime value of this mentor’s mentor choice.

This is one of the many things that intrigue me.

So many focus on the perception others have of them.

Like – what if I changed my professional description from ‘personal trainer to physical preparation coach?’ Or what if I changed my title back from ‘physical preparation coach to personal trainer?’  Will I get more interest in me, my services?

Or how many people do I have following me on IG, or what multisyllabic words can I say or to get more? Or whether I should get hair implants and a fake tan? What car should I buy, drive and post about?

The other thing that I guess more perplexes me is how do I get across to our lower and even middle level coaches what we focus on and achieve in the higher levels?

After all, our ‘profession’ is so low bar – low income, low behaviour, low expectations – that there is very little awareness or expectation of more.

And then there is our ‘lane’. We are expected to stay within sets and reps.

Yet we do so much more.

KSI and my lifetime value to our high-level coaches – at least those who stay the course and change enough to graduate is getting clearer now, after a quarter of a century.

And it does have a dollar value. It might not be the same number as the one I learnt today about my mentor. But it is a number that if we shared it openly would at best get dismissed, at worst be subject to financial regulator complaints.

Ah, the challenges of life.

And then there are the challenges for those who remain the crab bucket of our average in our ‘profession’. Not for me thanks. And not for our gradates. It’s not easy getting out of that crab bucket but it’s worth the challenge. I know, it’s only for those with a strong desire and believe, willing to face and overcome adversity. But then living homeless is also filled with adversity – as I know personally – so we all pick our poison.

 

References

[1] King, I., 2025, Legacy – Ian King’s training innovations, Vol 3 – Injury prevention & performance enhancement, Theory #13 – A decade of testing

Ian King

So happy for you Kenny!

/by

On May 9 2026, in Round 17 of the 53rd season of off-road stadium motorcycle racing in the USA[1], the 2026 AMA Supercross championship was determined. And the winner was German born Kenny Roczen. It was a great season, with the winner only finalized on the results of the last round, Round 17.  And we are so happy for you Kenny!

Every sport has its nuances, and every season is different. The 2026 season was a great season, despite the absence of some great riders, not the least Australian Jett Lawrence (missed the whole season)[2] and American Eli Tomac (out for the latter part of the season.[3])

There are a lot of reasons why we are so happy for Kenny. Here’s ten of them.

#1 – Kenny had never won an AMA Supercross title

Kenny has completed 13 seasons of AMA Supercross [4] [5] – that’s longevity in itself – but until 2026 had now won a title. That’s 12 full seasons without a title.  That’ might crush some. But not Kenny!

There are other factors behind Kenny prior inability to win the AMA title, including significant crashes.

#2 – Kenny had come back from a serious injury

In Round 3 of the 2017 AMA season – Kenny suffered serios injuries in a crash. [6]   He was the Championship leader at the time.

Then midway through the main event of that third race he crashed, flew 30 feet from his bike and landed on the face of a jump. His left arm took the brunt of the impact.[7]

There was reasonable thought that Kenny’s career was over.  Then in January 2018 the headlines read:

11 surgeries and a year later, Ken Roczen is back [8]

It was his 5th season, and his first on a Honda. He had been runner up in the 2016 AMA Supercross title and had also just won his second AMA Motorcross title. In the eyes of any, he was favoured to win the 2017 AMA Supercross Title. [9]

So, he lost his 5th season due to that crash, and history suggests it took quite a few seasons to overcome that on his way back to being an AMA Supercross Champion eight seasons later. That’s tenacity!  Every athlete to has suffered a career (or life) threatening injury in sport would be proud of you Kenny.

This point was not lost on Kenny, who during his acceptance speech from the 2026 AMA Supercross podium, where he said what he had done should be a message of hope for other athletes in a similar situation. [10]

This is just a testament that you never give up and anybody at any age wherever you’re competing and you have anxiety you want to get it done but you have strange emotions that rob your energy your not alone. I have the same thing, but I don’t give up. I work on it daily and this is what, this is how pays of and you can do it too.—Kenny Roczen, acceptance speech after the 2026 AMA Supercross 450 cc title win.

#3 – Kenny is the oldest rider to win an AMA Supercross championship (450cc)

Age is a factor in open age class sport. Most athletes retire/leave this category before they turn 30. According to published records,[11] Kenny was born 29 April 1994, and turned 32 just over a week before the defining race. Even though the average age in this discipline is trending older, that’s much older than the average.

The average age of AMA Supercross race winners and champions is trending older, currently sitting at 27.02 years old for the 2020s. Historically, the average age of champions was closer to 23 during the 2000s and 24 in the 2010s.[12]

Table – Average age of Supercross Winners by Decade [13]

_________________________

Decade           Average Age

___________________________

2000s             23.59 yrs

2010s             24.70 yrs

2020s             27.02 yrs

_________________________

No athlete of Kennys age is likely to dispute – age may give you experience wisdom, but it is harder on the body to compete against younger athletes. That’s an adversity Kenny overcame. Here are the stats:

  • Oldest rider to win [14]an AMA Supercross title [15]
  • First rider in their 30’s to win [16]an AMA Supercross title [17]

#4 – Kenny had overcome a pattern of fading in races

Most were in awe of Kenny’s return and that was the focus during the first few years post his 2018 return to racing. However this focus was soon replaced by the apparent challenge that he was fading during races and the season. This was not a one-off situation. It plagued him the best part of the next decade. For example:

In 2019 –

Ken Roczen has been experiencing unexplained health problems for several weeks. To our knowledge, previous examinations have not revealed any new information as to what is causing the persistent fatigue and weakness.[18]

Battling an undiagnosed health issue throughout supercross, Ken Roczen believes the problem has resurfaced after facing increased fatigue during Southwick’s sixth round of the 2019 Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship over the weekend.[19]

In 2020 –

In today’s Honda press release, Roczen cited a need to rest and recover from his ongoing health issues, as well as focus on the coming birth of his first child, with his wife Courtney. After another supercross season spoiled by late-season health concerns, Roczen will now sit out for this next championship and focus on 2021.[20]

In 2021 –

Last off-season, Ken Roczen did everything he could to understand why he gets sick, drained, and lethargic during the season. He skipped the Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship in 2021 to rest, then spent the off-season visiting doctors and trying to solve his issues. Then December came and another gnarly illness ended up keeping him off the bike for an entire month. He won Anaheim 1, but his season quickly crumbled. [21]

In 2022 –

Due to health-related issues, the German native will sit out of the remainder of the series and put his efforts towards recovering and preparing for the upcoming Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship. [22]

In 2023 –

I used to feel so good as a kid, and I used to be strong. Now with this virus in my immune system, a lot of the stuff was so out of my control. At first, you were second-guessing yourself because before you figured out that something was wrong, you kind of grind through some stuff. You’re thinking, “Man, I just have to get more fit, and I have to get better. Before you know it, you’ve had brain fog daily, and you feel fatigued and tired. You’re not recovering. That went on for a long, long time, and it was a nightmare. [23]

In 2024  –

Ken Roczen definitely didn’t have a brilliant day on the track during his comeback at the AMA Nationals. But instead of burying his head in the sand, he let fans know what was going on on his social media channels: “The good news is, I still know how to ride a dirt bike. The bad news is: Not for long, though, if I keep going like this.”…Roczen is currently struggling with his energy levels – a problem he was already aware of before the last race. [24]

The bottom line is Kenny has had health conditions that have held back his racing results post his return to racing in 2018.

Roczen has dealt with the effects of the Epstein-Barr virus since recovering from serious injuries in 2017 and ’18, although he has made progress at different times – including after sitting out the entire 2020 AMA Pro Motocross series. He was stricken by an unrelated illness at the end of calendar-year 2021 but was nonetheless able to take a surprise win at the first event. Unfortunately, he hasn’t felt like himself since then, a situation that was compounded by a bout with COVID-19 just after the January 22 San Diego round. Roczen hasn’t been able to put the issues behind him, and rather than risk a downward spiral in health and morale, he and his team have made the difficult decision for him to withdraw. During his hiatus, Roczen will seek professional treatment from specialists he has worked with in the past, including some in Europe. His exact return date will depend on how that process goes.[25]

Questions remain as to why it took so long to address them. None-the-less there were positive signs in the 2025 season:

There are other intangibles to Roczen’s game this year that provide even more hope. Glendale, while again not a win, packed more examples.

First, Ken is strong from start to finish. Even when he’s feeling bad, Ken is lethal early in a race. When he’s having problems, it shows up later. When he’s right he can maintain that pace to the end, and this year he’s been doggedly determined down the stretch. Ken hasn’t faded one bit.[26]

By 2026 the talk of his inability to finish a race strong;

The 31-year-old has been relatively vocal of late, questioning the narrative that he ‘fades’ as the 17-round series develops, which reflects a broader view of how the German export approaches the sport. Roczen is well-regarded for his explosiveness out of the gate and remains one of the strongest when it comes to early-race – and early-season – execution. That form, however, has proven difficult for the Progressive Insurance Cycle Gear Suzuki leader to maintain, [27]

Which was enough to fire him up, which was a positive sign. He hit back in 2026 with:

“So, I guess I get where they’re coming from, but the last time I faded in a season was 2022. Honestly, let it go… Let me do the talking out there. And then if I keep doing it, you can go right back to it, but as of right now there have been absolutely no signs, and I’m sick of hearing that, honestly.”

#5 – Kenny was on a least represented brand of the ‘Big Four’ in the competition

Kenny has been on a Suzuki for a few seasons now. Suzuki is arguably the least represented of the ‘Big Four’ Japanese brands in AMA Supercross of late.

In terms of overall rider count and number of factory-backed teams, Suzuki is the least represented brand among the major manufacturers in AMA Supercross. [28]

However, it has a stronger history than this suggests:

On pure AMA Championships (between the three classes) Kawasaki has won 25 times, Suzuki 12 times, Yamaha 9 times, KTM 8 times, Honda seven times and Husqvarna two times over the past 20 years. [29]

#6 – Kenny was on the only kick start bike on the starting line

Even more unique, the Suzuki bike Kenny won the 2026 AMA Supercross Championship on does not have electric start. Instead, in the traditional way, Kenny has to kickstart his bike. Every time he stalls it, crashes etc. etc. Which led to this recent nick-name ‘Kick-start Kenny’. Suzuki are the only full-size motorcross bikes that still rely on kickstarts.

Apparently they did experiment with an electric start prior to the 2025 season, but it was not a permanent feature. When asked about this Kenny was quoted as saying:

Yeah, it was tested, it broke and we have not revisited it yet, or it’s not been ready yet to throw it back on.[30]

#7 – Kenny came back from 31 points down during the 2026 season to win

To win from 31 points down is not only significant, it may be the greatest comeback in the sports history. Not by the number of points behind per se, but combined with the fact that the rider he had to beat to win was still on the starting line up each race.

Ken Roczen overcame a 31-point deficit with only a few rounds left in the season to capture the title in Salt Lake City. Experts widely noted that entering the final rounds with that large of a gap and closing it without your primary rival missing any events is almost unprecedented in modern Supercross.[31]

You can read summaries of other significant AMA Supercross comebacks here. [32]

#8 – Kenny was the first German born rider to win the title

Kenny joins a short list of riders born outside of America to win the AMA Supercross title,[33] [34] and the first from Germany.[35] You could see the national pride trackside with German flags being waved by his avid supporters.

#9 – Gracious in defeat, humble in victory

I describe Kenny as a great competition – gracious in defeat, humble in victory. Yes there is more to competition than this, but he has titles in various dsiciplines so that’s proven.  What I look for also are the things that other racers and their support teams hope for – respect. If you give respect, you get it back. From the crowd, from your peers and their teams. I understand that we are in ‘interesting times’ where being an ass-hole is for some their unique marketing position. That’s not going to last into the next phase of generational led human history.  Being a great competitor, which is an extension of being a good person, will.

#10 – Kenny was kind to us during a pre-race visit

My son and I went to visit Kenny in a pre-race pit meet and greet in Portland Seattle in Round 12 of the 2019 AMA Supercross season.

Just as we got to the front of the line to meet Kenny his team called the session over. It was a long way to come to get so close to miss out. Kenny was my son’s MX idol and I know he would be disappointed if we just let this happen. I spoke to Kenny and I could see he was torn between meeting his fan’s needs and his own race preparation needs. He chose to stay and chat with my son. He had my respect at that moment.

Conclusion

Since the race on 9 May 2026 Kennys achievement has been the subject of very happy discussions in our house. We are all happy for Kenny! It’s been a long and challenging road. It could have been smoother, but at the same time he could have given up on his ambition of winning this title. He didn’t. And he now adds AMA Supercross Champion to his trophy cabinet. But more importantly he has been a role model to athletes that you can overcome adversity – age, injury, setback, health challenges – provided you apply the traits that Kenny has over the time period needed. In Kenny’s case, 13 years. So happy for you Kenny!

Image credit – Christopher Schmidt at Wikimedia Commons.

References

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_AMA_Supercross_Championship

[2] https://www.mxlarge.com/news/lawrence-out-three-months

[3] https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/eli-tomac-focusing-recovering-hip-204930362.html

[4] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_AMA_Supercross_Championship

[5] https://fthspatpress.com/35714/sports/roczen-becomes-oldest-monster-energy-ama-supercross-champion-in-series-history/

[6] https://www.supercrosslive.com/news/roczen-injured-in-hard-crash-at-anaheim-2/

[7] https://www.espn.com.au/racing/story/_/id/22024895/supercross-star-ken-roczen-makes-return-2018-season-one-year-11-surgeries-horrific-crash

[8] https://www.espn.com.au/racing/story/_/id/22024895/supercross-star-ken-roczen-makes-return-2018-season-one-year-11-surgeries-horrific-crash

[9] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ken_Roczen

[10] https://www.instagram.com/reel/DYPlVMpgrHw/

[11] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ken_Roczen

[12] https://pulpmx.com/2026/01/15/super-stats-supercross-is-trending-older/

[13] https://pulpmx.com/2026/01/15/super-stats-supercross-is-trending-older/

[14] https://fthspatpress.com/35714/sports/roczen-becomes-oldest-monster-energy-ama-supercross-champion-in-series-history/

[15] https://fthspatpress.com/35714/sports/roczen-becomes-oldest-monster-energy-ama-supercross-champion-in-series-history/

[16] https://racerxonline.com/2026/05/12/the-ways-ken-roczens-title-is-awesome

[17] https://racerxonline.com/2026/05/12/the-ways-ken-roczens-title-is-awesome

[18] https://mxnews-online.com/en/ken-roczen-nutzt-das-rennfreie-wochenende-zur-erholung/

[19] https://www.motoonline.com/au/fatigue-problem-reemerges-for-roczen-at-southwick/

[20] https://racerxonline.com/2020/08/10/450-words-ken-roczen-out-for-2020-ama-pro-motocross

[21] https://racerxonline.com/2023/01/07/between-the-motos-health-is-not-an-issue

[22] https://www.vurbmoto.com/mind-of-a-mechanic-ken-roczens-road-to-recovery/

[23] https://www.vitalmx.com/features/im-also-little-bit-afraid-retiring-ken-roczen-wsx-extending-his-career

[24] https://mxnews-online.com/en/ken-roczen-trotzt-gesundheitlichen-problemen/

[25] https://www.supercrosslive.com/news/roczen-pulls-out-of-2022-supercross-season/

[26] https://racerxonline.com/2025/02/04/metamorphosis-of-ken

[27] https://www.motoonline.com/us/why-the-signs-suggest-that-ken-roczen-wont-fade-in-2026/

[28] Google AI

[29] https://motocrossactionmag.com/who-is-really-the-winningest-brand-in-the-sport-all-the-winners-and-losers/

[30] https://gatedrop.com/roczen-explains-why-no-electric-start-yet-on-his-factory-suzuki/

[31] Google AI

[32] https://racerxonline.com/2026/04/24/all-time-supercross-title-comebacks

[33] https://mx1onboard.com/ama-supercross-foreign-riders-podiums-prado/

[34] https://racerxonline.com/2011/02/10/the-list-ten-best-imports

[35] https://www.redbull.com/int-en/ken-roczen-wins-ama-supercross-championship-2026

Ian King

The Wallabies Kiwi experiment

/by

In 2008 the Australian Rugby Union (ARU) employed a non-Australian to coach the national men’s team for the first time, making Australia possibly the first Tier 1 rugby nation in the professional era to do so.  This coach was Robbie Deans from New Zealand.   It was a move some called brave, but either way it raised eyebrows. Since then, the ARU has seen fit to engage two more foreign coaches, also from New Zealand. To date, our southern hemisphere rivals New Zealand and South Africa have not followed in this path.

Since 2008, New Zealand coaches have held Australian men’s national coaching positions for a combined eleven (11 years) of the last eighteen (18) years, or 61% of the years. Suffice to say they have been the dominant influence on the direction of the men’s national rugby team over the last two decades.

There is more than sufficient data to review the ARU’s decision to look overseas, and in particular to New Zealand, for coaching guidance.  Keep in mind that this decision has broader impacts than the scoreboard. It also reflects values around coach development and impacts opportunities for domestic coaches.

A statistical analysis of the Wallabies Kiwi coaches

The following is a statistical analysis of the Australian men’s national team coaches that hail from New Zealand.  The analysis focuses on

Robert Deans [1]

Robert Deans coached the Australian national men’s team during the period 2008 to 2013, or six (6) seasons. His win loss record with the Wallabies was 58.7%, making him the most successful of the three New Zealand coaches to coach Australia. [2] He also holds the record for the most tests coached by an Australin men’s national coach at 75 tests.

Against his former nation the All Blacks, Deans was 3 games out of 18 (17%).[3]

During his six-year tenure as the Wallabies national coach, Deans did not win a Bledisloe Cup during (0%), won one Rugby Championship (17%), and placed third in the only World Cup he presided over (0%).When Deans was appointed as the men’s national coach in December 2007, Australia’s international rugby ranking was 5th, and in the month of his resignation (July 2013) it was 3rd. [4]

Dave Rennie [5]

Dave Rennie coached the Australian national men’s team during the period 2020 to 2022, or three (3) seasons. His win loss record with the Wallabies was 36.4%, making him the least successful of the three New Zealand coaches to coach Australia. [6]

Against his former nation the All Blacks, Rennie was 1 game out of 7 (14%).[7]

During his three-year tenure as the Wallabies national coach, Rennie did not win a Bledisloe Cup during (0%), or Rugby Championship (0%), and did not preside over a World Cup (-%).When Rennie was appointed as the men’s national coach in November 2019 Australia’s international rugby ranking was 5th, and in the month of he left the role (January 2023) it was 6th. [8]

Joe Schmidt [9]

Joe Schmidt coached the Australian national men’s team during the period 2024 to 2025, or two (2) seasons. His win loss record with the Wallabies was 39.3%, making him the second least successful of the three New Zealand coaches to coach Australia.[10]

Against his former nation the All Blacks, Rennie was 0 game out of 4 (0%).[11]

During his two-year tenure as the Wallabies national coach, Schmidt did not win a Bledisloe Cup during (0%), or a Rugby Championship (0%), and did not preside over a World Cup (-%).

When Schmidt was appointed as the men’s national coach in January 2024 Australia’s international rugby ranking was 9th, and in the month of he left the role (mid 2026) it was 8th. [12]

Table 1 – Summary of success of the Australian Rugby’s New Zealand Coaches.

Coach

Win-Loss Record [13]

 Cup Results [14]

World Rugby Rank

# Yrs

 P W L D % Bled [15] RC RWC Start Finish Change

Dean

 6 75 44 29 2 58.7% 17% 1 0 5th 3rd

+2
Rennie

3

 33 12 18 3 36.4% 14% 0 n/a 5th 6th

-1
Schmidt *

2

 28 12 19 0 38.7% 0% 0 n/a 9th 8th

+1
AVERAGE *

3.7

 45 22 21 2 44.6% 10%

* Updated 31 July 2026

A statistical analysis of the Wallabies Australian coaches

The following table summarizes the win-loss record of the Wallabies Australian coaches during the ‘professional era’.[16]

Table 2 – A summary of the win-loss record of the Wallabies Australian coaches during the ‘professional era’. [17]

Years Wallaby Coach W-L %age
1997-2001 Rod Macqueen 79%
2001-2005 Eddie Jones 58%
2006-2007 John Connolly 64%
2013-2014 Ewen McKenzie 59%
2014-2019 Michael Cheika 50%
2023-2023 Eddie Jones 22%
Averages 55.3%

The average of the six (6) Australian coaches of the Wallabies during this period was 55.3%

A comparison between the Wallabies New Zealand and Australian Coaches

The following table compares the win-loss record of the Wallabies Australian coaches during the ‘professional era with the win-loss record of the Wallabies New Zealand coaches during the same era.

Table 3 – Comparison of the Wallabies Australian coaches during the ‘professional era with the win-loss record of the Wallabies New Zealand coaches during the ‘professional era’.

Origin of Coaches

 W-L %age

Wallabies New Zealand coaches

44.8%
Wallabies Australian coaches

55.3%

The verdict is in

With the completion of three coaching contracts in review, we have the results to form an comparative analysis of the decision by the Australian Rugby Union to select foreign coaches, and exclusively New Zealand coaches.

The New Zealand coaches average win-loss record is 44.6%, 11% lower than the 55.3% average for the Australian coaches.

A bigger picture look

To understand the role of the dominant New Zealand coaching influence in Australian national men’s coaching during the last twenty years, we can wider the lens and take a bigger picture look at the on-field results of the Wallabies since the game went ‘professional’ in 1996, thirty (30) years ago.

The following table and graph combine all Wallaby coaches’ performances during the professional era to date.

Table 4 – The combined chronological results of all Wallabies coaches during the ‘professional era’.

Years

Wallaby Coach

 W-L %age

1997-2001

Rod Macqueen

79%

2001-2005

 Eddie Jones

58%

2006-2007

 John Connolly

64%

2008-2013

 Robbie Deans

59%

2013-2014

 Ewen McKenzie

59%

2014-2019

 Michael Cheika

50%

2020-2023

 Dave Rennie 36%
2023-2023 Eddie Jones

22%
2024-2025 Joe Schmidt

39%

The data in this table is expressed in the graph below.

Figure 1 – The combined chronological results of all Wallabies coaches during the ‘professional era’.

 

It is reasonable to suggest there is a linear decline in win-loss records over the last thirty years, and origin of the coach does not appear to the cause of that trajectory.

Conclusion

The aim of this article is to compare the results achieved by foreign coaches hired by the Australian Rugby Union to the results achieved by domestic coaches.   The data suggests that the New Zealand coaches results are lower than the Australian coaches results, specifically in the win-loss record.

It is also important to note that the aim of this statistical analysis was to review the decision by the Australian Rugby Union to select foreign coaches, and exclusively New Zealand coaches. It is not to judge the coaching ability of the coaches involved, rather to look at the results during their time in Australia, in the Australian social, political and physical environment.

 

These coaches have all experienced greater success before arriving in Australia, and also afterward, for those coaches who have continued to coach.

The point was raised earlier that there may be broader implications for Australian rugby than the on-field results.  For example, the lost opportunities and lack of focus on domestic coaches and coaching development, to name one.

Since turning ‘professional’, Australian rugby during the last thirty years has slipped from number two (2nd) in international rankings to as low as tenth (10th), currently sitting in 8th. [18]

It is reasonable to conclude or suggest that the Australian Rugby Union has turned to arguably the greatest rugby nation in the world, New Zealand, for coaches in the hope to reverse this decline. It’s also reasonable to conclude is has not worked.

Some might say that the graph turning up recently is a positive sign. Getting excited about raising from 22% to 29% win-loss is questionable.

The question remains – if it’s not the coaches, what is the cause of this downward trajectory?

 

References

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robbie_Deans

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australia_national_rugby_union_team_coaches

[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bledisloe_Cup

[4] https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Data:Men%27s_World_Rugby_rankings.tab

[5] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dave_Rennie

[6] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australia_national_rugby_union_team_coaches

[7] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bledisloe_Cup

[8] https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Data:Men%27s_World_Rugby_rankings.tab

[9] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Schmidt_(rugby_union) 

[10] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Schmidt_(rugby_union)

[11] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bledisloe_Cup

[12] https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Data:Men%27s_World_Rugby_rankings.tab

[13] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australia_national_rugby_union_team_coaches

[14] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rugby_Championship

[15] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bledisloe_Cup

[16] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australia_national_rugby_union_team_coaches

[17] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australia_national_rugby_union_team_coaches

[18] https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Data:Men%27s_World_Rugby_rankings.tab

 

Ian King

I wonder if these coaches care

/by

I was in the equivalent of a Home Depot in Australia about a year ago. A chain of stores by the name Bunnings. I sought the assistance of one of the workers in the store. I noted his height and could not help myself – I asked him if he had used it in sport.

About an hour later we wrapped the conversation. I learnt a lot. I learnt he was a talent-identified athlete, selected in national junior squads, played overseas including the US – until his injuries forced very premature retirement. I was struck by one particular statement. He said during his short career he found himself asking the question:

I wonder if these coaches care whether I can bend over and pick up my kids when I get older… and now I can’t.

As anyone familiar with my work knows that statement is very close to home – you can this in Theory #11 and #117 in Legacy 2nd Ed Vol 1

And that’s because I want a long career in sport. I want you to LeBron James for 21 years. And that’s five Olympic cycles, 20 years. That’s at the top. That’s what I want. And then I still want you to be able to play with your kids 20 years later. That’s the difference. [1]

And now he was having kids and had concerns for them in sport….And, he struggles to bend over and pick them up…

I excitedly told him about all my learnings in this area and that I could give him access to some videos…

Then I felt the guilt. I had not done enough. I needed to be able to give him something more concise. This has burnt me for the last year, and now I am making amends.

I have worked to create and make available an educational program that I hope can help the parents and coaches of the young athletes that have a nagging feeling that is must be a better way – and are looking for guidance to find that way.

Do you have children or coach children in sport? If so, you may find value in this latest offering. If not, I understand. After all, according to Ben Sasse, former US Senator of the great state of Nebraska (2015-2023)… and (who is tragically battling late stage cancer)

One of the unexpected by-products of the digital age is Americans are “having less sex and making fewer babies.” [2]

Fortunately, my life’s work is not focused on what popular or trending. After all, I was focused on strength training in the 1980s when most athletes and coaches were led to believe it would make you muscle bound and injured.

In fact, history has shown that typically the topics I focus on lead a renaissance of interest…

What I took too long to say was I understand and apologize if I have taken up your time on a subject of no interest to you – the athlete preparation of the young athlete, 0-18 years of age.

I spent my first two professional decades, between 1980 and 1999, with an almost exclusive focus on the adult athlete.  Once we began to build a family, I realized the gap in my competency, and this was a failing to serve my children.  I had been moved by the saying:

The cobbler’s children have no shoes.[3]

I had seen it in too many other professionals’ lives and didn’t want to make that mistake. After all, what athlete deserved  more attention than my own children.

So, I set out as a serious student of the athlete preparation of the young athlete. I did have the benefit of my prior 20 years.

Firstly, I was exposed to the work Dr. Tudor Bompa, a Romanian who immigrated to Canada, and published what I still believe is the best book ever on the theory of athlete development, in his 1983 Theory and Methodology of Training. I read his books, attended his presentations, met personally for discussions, and even shared the stage in a speaking engagement. My appreciation of his contribution runs through all my published works.

I also was fortunate enough also to have spent 10 of those early years working and collaborating with a former Hungarian who emigrated to Canada by the name of Dr. István Balyi. When we first met in 1989 in Canada, I had not heard of him. By the turn of the century his reputation as a world leader in long-term athlete preparation was taking shape. By 2010, the acronym LTAD had become an industry buzzword, one of those must quote line where nothing changes, just your ability to say the words.

After two decades of adult coaching and one additional decade focused on research and application of training the young athlete, I began sharing what I had learnt in 2010 onwards.  As I explain in Theory #13  of my recent book Legacy 2nd Ed Vol 1 – – A decade of testing:

… the concepts that I typically developed over a decade and then shared with the world …. [4]

I do normally refine my concepts for about five to ten years before talking about them. So, I don’t rush them to the market. [5]

The pattern I have established is test and refine a training concept or innovation for about a decade before sharing it as a recommended way.[6]

From 2010 onwards I conducted a series of presentations in various countries, teaching parents, coaches of the young athlete, and the young athletes themselves, what I had leant. [7]  [8]  [9]  [10]  [11]  [12]  Whilst still continuing to apply and research in this area.

Now in 2026, over a quarter of a century after I set out on this journey, I believe I have earned the right to share what I have learnt.

For those who are genuinely interested in improving their ability to serve the young athlete – as a parent and or coach – I welcome you to share this journey as we formulate an online course like no other to serve this specific niche.

Why? Because as I explain in Theory #18 of Legacy 2nd Ed Vol 1….

I owe it to the athlete

To bring you into this…

We owe it to the athlete

This raises the question – where is the world going? If I was to predict the future based on the current plots on the graph – I would say we are heading into an undesirable direction.  I have seen nothing to date to suggest otherwise. 

This is bad news for some, good news for others. Those who stand to lose include the athletes and their families who are hurt by the lost opportunities of their sons and daughters, brothers and sisters.

Those who stand to gain include the injury treatment and rehabilitation sector (doctors, surgeons and physical therapists in particular).

Another party who will gain are those who master the KSI way. It’s getting increasingly easier to provide a superior alternative to the average. However, at what cost to the athlete?  This is a self-serving benefit from which I take no joy.[13] 

We do today what others will do tomorrow. Why? Because we innovate ruthlessly in pursuit of the answer to the question ‘What is the best way to train?….[14]

In creating this educational program, I am making amends to the athlete I spoke about above, who never got be play adult sport. And to all the other young athletes, parent and coaches who believe there is a better way but not sure what that is.  And I am reaching out to all current and future young athletes, their parents and their coaches.

The Child to Champion Course was built for you.

 

References

[1] King, I., 2025, Building a body that lasts, Kent UK, Wed 8 Oct 2025 (Seminar)

[2] https://abcnews.com/Politics/book-excerpt-ben-sasses-hate-heal/story?id=58506498

[3] This saying is explained by Google AI as a mid-16th century proverb indicating that a person with a specific skill or expertise often neglects to apply that skill for their own family or personal benefit. It highlights the irony where a professional is too busy serving others to take care of their own needs.

[4] King, I., 2013, Report #1: Keys to success in coaching athletes, King Sports International

[5] King, I., 2016, A coach’s guide to preventing, identifying, managing, and rehabilitating lower back injuries, SWIS Presentation, Canada

[6] King, I., 2025, What’s in a name? Pt 1 – The origin and intent of the term physical preparation coach, (Blog  www.kingsports.net), 16 May 2025

[7] King, I., 2011, Child to Champion, Brisbane, AUS, 14 March 2011 (Seminar/Video)

[8] King, I., 2011, Child to Champion, Brisbane, AUS, 14 March 2011 (Seminar/Video)

[9] King, I., 2014, Child to Champion, Barrie, Ontario, CAN,10 April 2014, (Seminar/Video)

[10] King, I., 2014, Child to Champion, Cape Cod MA USA,13 April 2014, (Seminar/Video)

[11] King, I., 2014, Child to Champion, Cape Cod MA USA, 21 November 2014 (Seminar/Video)

[12] King, I., 2017, Child to Champion Seminar, Cape Cod MA, USA Thu 9 Nov 2017 (Seminar/Video)

[13] King, I., 2011, KSI Coaching Program L1 Legacy Course, Ch. 34- Concerns for the world of physical preparation

[14] King, I., 2023, The Between Sets Newsletter The KSI Newsletter No 222 Dec 202-3Jan 2024

Ian King

An athlete called to say thanks

/by

Reflections on gratitude.

A few days ago, an athlete called me to say thank you. Unsolicited.  Not for the winning, which we did. But for the lessons shared.  You might ask ‘So what. There’s nothing special about a thank you.’ So, I will share this – the period of time the athlete was referring to occurred 30 years ago.

It is no coincidence that just a few weeks prior in a webinar with a global audience, I spoke about this:

And that’s just a little example of gratitude that it’s a lifelong gratitude from an athlete when you help them create a legacy and fulfil their potential.[1]

I say no coincidence because this expression of gratitude over this time frame is not an uncommon experience for me.

Those who spend a few days with me know it’s unlikely much time passes when a real athlete who I really helped win expresses their unsolicited gratitude. [2]

However, it still stands out.  For me, it speaks to the character of the athlete. I take as much pride in the person I have helped them become as in the sporting legacy.

I have encouraged this trait in writing:

Show gratitude. The human emotion of gratitude is one I value and teach in all aspects of living; however, in the context of the student, I strongly encourage you to use it. Whether the teaching is short or long, what you wanted to hear or not, express your gratitude. This rewards the teacher and encourages them to continue teaching – be it to you or subsequent students.[3]

The premium I place on culture is reflected by its presence in KSI’s 19 points of culture:

Gratitude … I am a truly grateful person. I say thank-you and show appreciation often and in many ways, so that all around me know how much I appreciate everything and everyone I have in my life. I celebrate my wins and the wins of my team and clients. I consistently catch myself and other people doing things right … [4]

Personal character traits, including gratitude, figure high in our athlete development message:

I don’t have an expectation for them, it’s their path in sport, but as far as behaviour and attitude, that’s not really negotiable. To do their best and be positive, show gratitude and be courteous, respectful. [5]

And it’s not just the athletes. As coach education is the almost-as-long-serving concurrent aspect or our combined service, we also receive similar in this genre – unsolicited, multi-decade later gratitude.

Ian,  your teaching has been something I have been using since we met over 20 years ago. One of the best decisions I made in my life.  It has helped me tremendously professionally  & personally. Just wanted to say thanks.—Miguel [6]

You might see others reach similar conclusions:

I think the same thing happens with relationships. Business, personal, family relationships, etc. They start off young and that’s when you can build almost a “relationship myelin” around them. You do that by being honest with people, by showing gratitude, by not overusing the connection, by treating it just right so it develops into something that can last a lifetime. If someone does something for you, show you are grateful.[7]

People often ask, ‘Who was your favorite athlete?’ To which I respectfully decline to answer, deflecting by saying something along the lines of ‘A parent should not have a favorite child’. Then I go on to say I can, however, tell you about those who make their mark by their character trait of consistent and long-term gratitude.

Such as the athlete whom I helped to a Silver Medal in the 1992 Auckland Commonwealth Games, who would send me an annual thank you card for years following…

Or the contact sport athlete who became the most capped in the world in his sport and reached out to me by phone annually for the year following…

Or the athlete who, 30 years later, gave me reason to share this.

 

References

[1] King, I., 2025, Optimal athletic performance, Kent, UK, Sat 11 Oct 2025 (Seminar/Video)

[2] King, I., 2019, How did you develop your approach to flexibility, Off the Record #50, 31 July 2019

[3] King, I., 2005, The way of the physical preparation coach, Ch 21 – Become a student

[4] King, I., 2009, KSI 18 Points of Culture

[5] King, I., 2014, Coaching Mastery, Cape Cod, 13-14 April 2014, USA (Seminar)

[6] King, I., 2025, Personal communication, Email received 25 March 2025

[7] Altucher, J., 2014, 10 Things I learnt when interviewing Tony Robbins about money, The Stanberry Digest,18 Nov 2014

Ian King

Care and what’s missing

/by

When a human is moving in a certain direction in life, it takes a specific amount of momentum to change direction. That may sound deep and cryptic, so let’s simplify it – until something significant (read catastrophic) happens, humans would prefer to conclude they are heading in the right direction.

Now, to relate that to sports and physical training, and competition.

How does an athlete know if their training is on track to achieve their goals? The scoreboard.

How does an individual training in what we call the general population space know if their training is on track? If it’s achieving their goals.

Before you conclude that the questions are asked and answered, allow me to dig deeper on this discussion.

In relation to the athlete, if you assume the primary driver is the scoreboard, then the feedback about the direction may be enough to redirect the training effort. However, that is a flawed assumption, for reasons I share below.

And when it comes to the general population, assumptions about their goals can also be misleading.

Case studies

Over the last five decades, I have been involved in numerous case studies of individuals, athletes, teams, sports coaches, and physical coaches. Here are a few of them.

The athlete said to me, “I have been on the World Cup circuit for 7 years now and never stood on the podium. If I don’t do that this year, I am going to quit racing.”

Hearing that clarity in metrics was music to my ears. We were on the podium in the first World Cup race of that next season.

Easy.

The athlete came to me as the two-time reigning gold medalist in their event. They knew their current trajectory was going to result in missing out on being selected for the next Olympics. They were taking action. We went to the next Olympics and got on the podium again.

That’s a relief because the stakes were so high.

The athlete came to me after making their decision to go to their third Olympics. They were so far off the pace that they would not even qualify. They had improved their Olympic result from Games one to Games two and wanted more. We went to the third Games and achieved the best results in not only their history, but their country’s history.

Tick.

The leadership group came to me and said, “We failed to make the playoffs last year and do not want to go there again. Can you help us?”

They were in the Grand finale the next year, and were back-to-back Champions two years later

Done.

The athlete came to me because an athlete I worked with suggested it. They were the reigning Gold Medalists and the first person from their country to hold that title in a country rich in that sport. They were struggling and even though the next Games were some years away, they may have been sensing the training direction was off track. I shared my thoughts, and they didn’t take them up.

The athlete never returned to the Olympics.

The athlete came to me because an athlete I had worked with suggested it. They had been selected to represent their country in their first Olympics the year before, but had been seriously injured in the lead up to the Games and were not able to go. I shared my thoughts, and they didn’t take them up.

A similar injury that prevented them from attending the prior Olympics has since occurred and we will have to wait and see what the future holds at the Olympic level.

The athlete came to me to qualify for their third Olympic Games after a long life happens layoff. Due to age and life odds were against them, and they recognized it. Not only did we qualify for the next Olympics, but the athlete set national records in the lead-up up to the Games, and the Games result was very encouraging.

After that Games, the athlete changed direction, failed to qualify for the next Games, and never returned to the Olympics.

The young would-be physical preparation coach asked me the question: “What’s missing? I can’t seem to attract athlete clients or teams?” I shared two key points – you have to pay your dues first, and in the meantime, gave them a strategy to put food on the table through general population clients.

They took action on the second part and rejected the first part, saying, “You think I’m being impatient. I believe I’m just driven.”

History shows they have general population clients; however, they have never achieved their once-written goal of working with elite athletes and teams. Or many athletes at all.

It was not the only time that I have seen instant gratification over-ride decision making in young want-to-be-significant-yesterday physical coaches, despite the obvious gap between their experience, competencies, and value in the marketplace, and who they believe they ‘deserve’ to be working with.

The two key variables – Care and what’s missing

I have come to conclude that there are two key variables in the path to sporting success. Caring enough to change direction and knowing what direction to pivot to.

Care is not as simple as it sounds. I could say an athlete who fails to successfully pivot and achieve at the level or fails to redirect to return to the highest level, doesn’t care. But that is potentially inaccurate. It’s more than ‘do they care’ – it’s what do they care about?

The initial assumption is often that they all care about the scoreboard and being the best that they can be at all stages of their career. I have learnt this is not so.

In the 1980s, I felt many of Australia’s Olympic athletes were just over the moon to get to the Olympics. Medaling was not high on their priority list, based on my observations. Alternatively, there was no individual or collective expectation that could or would occur.

And that observation is not restricted to the 1980s. I have and still this this in some athletes today.

Other factors that may be the self-selected dominant key performance indicators for elite athletes over and above the scoreboard may include:
• Pleasing their coach
• Gaining approval from stakeholders
• Getting noticed and getting attention’
• Looking good (e.g. what I call the ‘closet bodybuilder’)[1]

In my observations of the general population, factors that may be the self-selected dominant key performance indicators for the general population over and above their expressed goals may include:
• Just having the motivation to be consistent in training
• Feeling good about their training
• Feeling good about the short-term visual impact of their training

In summary, when I say whether an athlete cares, what I mean is whether the scoreboard is their dominant KPI. I am not judging them when it is not, however, I am going to call it ‘they don’t care’ (NB. About the scoreboard being the #1 KPI!)

Now let’s talk about what’s missing.

I don’t expect an athlete to know the answer to the question of what’s missing. Or more accurately, I appreciate their need for third-party guidance in seeking the answer to the question. I just hope the guidance they are given is optimal.

If I were to create general categories of athletes about the variables of care and what’s missing, this is what I would say:

Category

 Care What’s missing?

1

Don’t care

Don’t know

2

Care

Don’t know

3

Care

Know
4 Don’t care

Know

Let’s dive deeper into my experiences with each category.

Category 1 – Don’t care, don’t know

These athletes don’t care about their performance limitations or declines at the highest level because, in my opinion, that is not their KPI. As they don’t see a problem, they do not buy into the thought that something is missing.

There is no shortage of individuals who will put their hand up to train these athletes, as they have more than enough credibility to post on their social media accounts.[2]

They don’t need my help to underperform. They do just fine all by themselves.

Category 2 – Care, don’t know

These athletes care about their performance limitations or declines at the highest level because the scoreboard is their KPI. They care less about what they look like; in fact, ideally, they don’t care at all, provided what they look like is shaped by the optimal nature of their training.

They may have some idea or no idea what is missing – that is far less important than their willingness to seek answers.

There is nothing more impressive than the nation or world’s best athlete having the humility and the courage to acknowledge training is off track and seek guidance. I just hope the guidance they get more than rewards them for their willingness to seek guidance.

These are my kind of athletes.

Category 3 – Care, know

These athletes care about their performance limitations or declines at the highest level because the scoreboard is their KPI. However, they have the answers to what’s missing, or believe they do. Are they on track?

If the proposed answer is:
• From the same pool of thinking that created the performance decrement[3], or
• From a third party with a poor track record; [4] or
• From a third party with limited to no track record, let alone a track record of success.[5]

Then I have less optimism for a successful outcome.

Category 4 – Don’t care, know

These athletes don’t care about their performance limitations or declines at the highest level because, in my opinion, that is not their KPI. They know there is a problem, and any idea of what’s missing, they have had the potential to reverse the rot. But they don’t care as their KPI is to be able to remain a professional athlete for as long as possible, to keep getting the rewards of such – media, social recognition, and income.

Most coaches and trainers would give a body part to be seen as associated. I prefer to be the pig (committed to winning), not the chicken (associated with someone who was once a winner).[6]

Window of opportunity

I am going to contrast the window of opportunity to pivot and change direction in training between the athlete and general population.[7]

I sense that the general population may be happier to pivot or change later or slower. They have a lot of time on their hands, considering the rough life span estimate of 80 years.

Athletes, on the other hand, at the elite end, do not have that luxury. If an athlete makes a decade at the top level, they have done well, and two decades is excellent. I see more and more athletes blowing their chance because they failed to pivot or failed to do it in a timely manner. But then again, I am using the word ‘fail’ relative to the KPI of the scoreboard. If we recognise other more dominant goals, they didn’t fail at all.

Yes, as rewards grow in sports, athletes are hanging in there longer. However, the window issue still remains.

Conclusion

As an athlete or end user in the general population, I trust you have found value in the simple message, based on five decades of experience and built on the simplicity of two key variables – do you care, and do you know the answer to what’s missing?

Yes, care needs to be matched to true drivers and not judged as a failure or a success.

Other synonym includes information and action. There was a time pre-internet when an individual may have been willing to take action but could not find the information. Such as how could anyone around the world back in the 1960s and 1970s get their hands on the magazine articles written by the great former Mr Universe bodybuilder and actor Reg Park or how could one get their hands on West German training literature before the Berlin Wall came down in 1989? Or their hands on training literature from the former Soviet Union before the same year?

However, the question is now less about whether you can get the information.

The challenge is now, which information? You have so much offered up, especially on the internet, by so many, that the risk is who or what you choose to guide you, not the absence of information. It’s great to have freedom of expression and vehicles for such expression; however, if the criteria for expert status are a keyboard, an internet connection and the desire to be significant even in the absence of competence, it creates a challenge for the consumer.

I commend you if you care that something may be missing in your training. I am even more hopeful for you if you are seeking answers and solutions because you realise you may not have all the answers to what may be missing or off-track in your training.

I just hope the guidance you are given is optimal.

 

Footnotes

[1] This is a term I coined some decades ago to describe any athlete who is more concerned with how they look than how they perform in their sport. These athletes never fulfil their potential.

[2] Case in point–an athlete failed to make a certain Games due to injury and yet post the Games was marketed by a coach on the basis of their qualification, without any reference to the failure to fulfil their potential due to injury. The athlete did not return to their chosen sport, pivoting sports instead, and was ruled out of that second-choice sport with more injuries just a year or so later.

[3] Case in point–I helped an athlete prepare for their first Games, and despite the success of those Games(the color of the medal was favorable) I expressed my concerns for the future. The athlete was successful in returning many times to the Games and podiumed more than once subsequently. However, in my opinion, they underperformed on what was possible. The answer to what was missing was, history shows, off-track. Was it because the solution had been potentially sourced from within the same thought pool that created the problem in the first place? Or was it that the solutions obtained from outside of the stakeholders were off track?

[4] Case in point–a professional team were the reigning champions when they sought to do one better and set records as well as win the championship. They hired a coach who, in my opinion, had a track record of helping top-of-the-table teams decline down the ladder. The team didn’t have my intimacy with performance tracking on that individual and moved forward. I called a collapse before the end of the season, and that came within the last few games. The coach was cut after one season, but the damage was done.

[5] Case in point–A multiple-time Olympian and reigning national record holder moved to a coach with no prior experience in that sport at that level. They got what you would expect–no further involvement at the Olympic level.

[6] Case in point–A service provider promotes a meetup with a once high-profile ‘client’ athlete who, unbeknownst to the uniformed, had over the years slid to a ranking worse than 1,000. And a few weeks later, the athlete entered a top-level competition only to withdraw early due to injury. The athlete was squeezing the last out of a successful and profitable career, and at least they have earned that…

[7] My experience with the latter is limited, so anyone who wants to throw a rock at that, I will have to accept that. However, when it comes to my personal conclusions and observations about elite athletes, it is not so easy to dismiss.

 

© Ian King 2025. All rights reserved.

Ian King

What’s in a name? Pt 2 – Considering the bigger picture of physical preparation

/by

As I share earlier during the 1980 I faced the challenge of adopting a job title, in a role that did not exist in Australia. Australia at that time had begun to model the national coaching system of Canada, which in that decade was one of the most highly funded coaching programs in the Western world due to the government funding leading up to their two decades of Olympic Games – the Montreal Summer Olympics in 1976 and the Calgary Winter Olympics in 1988.

However, neither the Coaching Association of Canada or the Australian Coaching Council provided any clarity, recognition or specific education for the role of physical training of athletes.  The Canadians provided excellent education, including by their imported experts such as Hungarian Tudor Bompa, however to my knowledge there was no-one professionally physically training athletes in Canada or Australia in in 1980, so it was understandable that this gap in education and recognition existed.

I looked to dominant influences overseas and narrowed it down to two – the United States National Strength & Conditioning Association (NSCA) and an Eastern European perspective on athlete training by Tudor Bompa as outlined in his1983 book ‘The Theory and Methodology of Training’.

Ultimately, I chose the Eastern European approach as it resonated more with me than the American approach. However, it was not a simple add the word coach to the term ‘physical preparation’. I studied and reflected for years to develop my own approach to physical preparation.

I have consistently referenced the influence of Tudor Bompa.  This professional and ethical referencing appears to have lost favour in the post 2000 internet and social media world, where at best you can hope for is a single ‘credit’ given, and then it is open season on ones’ original publishing’s.

…raised by Tudor Bompa in his classic book Theory and Methodology of Training: The Key to Athletic Success  (first published 1983).  This is an excellent text and I believe it should be in every coach’s library.…[1] 

I have been influenced in how I define the physical qualities by the land-mark work of Tudor Bompa. His 1983 text Theory and Methodology of Training is a must-have in the professional library of every physical preparation coach. [2] [3]

My greatest influence in the area of structuring the physical qualities has been Tudor Bompa, and I encourage you all to purchase and study at least his 1983 (more recent editions) book, Theory and Methodology of Training.  You will note that unlike certain US ‘authors’ of the post 2000 period, I consistently and respectively (not to mention ethically) reference and credit my sources of influence.….Ki

Not only was Tudor’s book one of the most influential books I have read, but I have also met Tudor on several occasions and shared the speaking platform with him. My goal is to be professional, ethical, and respectful of those who came before. I also aim to be gain a mutual respect manifested in a warm greeting when we next meet in person, in this life or the next. [4]

The aim of this article is to share the influences and the rationale that lead to my conclusions about physical preparation in context – considering the bigger picture of athlete preparation.

The bigger picture of athlete preparation

Before drilling deeper into the term physical preparation, I took a step back and sought to understand the bigger picture or content and structure of physical preparation with athlete preparation. Keeping in mind that my career has been exclusively about training the athlete, and typically elite athletes.

There are a number of significant differences between what Tudor promoted in his book and what I have settled upon.

My greatest influence in the area of structuring the physical qualities has been Tudor Bompa…  However I didn’t leave my research at this. I have gone on and developed additional concepts, original definitions and new sub-qualities….Ki

Firstly, I noted that Tudor used the term ‘training factors’ to describe the components of ‘athletic performance’.  It is a minor point, however I have instead used the term ‘components’.

Secondly, I noted that Tudor preferred ‘athletic performance’, including in the sub-title of his 1983 book. I elected ‘athletic preparation’.  I have more focus on the process of preparation and belief performance is the product.

I believe the term ‘physical preparation’ is a better term.  Athletic preparation another.  [5]

These are arguable minor and subtle differences; however I believe it’s important to acknowledge the differences.

The third point of difference between what I have refined over the forty years since first being exposed to Tudor’s book is more significant – it is the ‘factors’ (Bompa’s word) or the ‘components’ (my preferred word) that contribute to athletic ‘performance’ (Bompa) or ‘preparation’ (King).

Here is the comparative list as published by Bompa and myself.

Table of respective ‘factors’ or ‘components’ used by Bompa and King

Bompa

King
Physical preparation Physical preparation
Technical preparation Technical preparation
Tactical preparation Tactical preparation
Theoretical preparation Psychological preparation

You will note that I used only three of Bompa’s four ‘factors’ and substituted ‘Theoretical’ for ‘Psychological’ in my four ‘components’.  I also note that Bompa dedicated much less text (approximately 25%) to his ‘Theoretical preparation’ compared to the text dedicated to each of his other three ‘factors’. Literally interpreted one could conclude that he placed lesser importance on this factor. This is not how I approach ‘Psychoological preparation’ in that I do not treat it as a lessor factor.

Which leads to the fourth point of difference, and I suggest this points of difference have progressed upwards in significance as we work through them, meaning this point is of great significance.

I now direct attention to relative importance. Now I acknowledge that this is in part inferences, rather than stated.  I say in part because Bompa did express his values in text:

“Physical preparation has to be considered as one of the most and in some cases the most important ingredient in training required to achieve high performance.” [6]

I take a literal interpretation that Bompa presented his four ‘factors’ in order of relative importance.  Bompa’s list or sequence is not alphabetical.

Generally speaking, I believe that one should either present content alphabetically, to remove inference of relative value, or in a sequence that represents one’s values.

In the original 1999 version of our online course titled ‘Foundations of Physical Preparation’ [7] and in the original edition of the 2000 book of the same name [8] I presented the components alphabetically.

2.4    Athletic Preparation

Physical Preparation

Psychological Preparation

Tactical Preparation

Technical Preparation[9]

 

However, when I present components of athletic preparation reflecting a value set, I present a sequence that is different to Bompa’s and reflect the values around these ‘factors’ or ‘components that I have developed during the last five decades.  We go into more depth about this in our the KSI Coach education program.[10]

There is one more sequence of the components of athletic preparation that I believe needs to be referenced here, and that is the individualized sequence of importance for any given athlete. The following is from my 2005 book ‘The Way of the Physical Preparation Coach’:

Following a review of all components that contribute to or influence success in athletic preparation, generally speaking we prioritize the training process to address the weakness ahead of the strength.

Once we know the needs of the sport, we review the abilities of the athlete/client in each of these athletic components (psychological, technical, tactical, and physical). Our physical preparation training program design will reflect the strengths and weakness we discover, by placing priority in training in the short term on the weakest component, provided we conclude that this is optimal in the long term planning of the athlete/client.[11]

Conclusion

In closing on this subject, I believe its warranted to add some additional caveats to this discussion.

The first caveat or footnote relates to the dangers of assuming or treating the athlete/client from a compartmentalized perspective. For example, a physical preparation coach seeking to optimize the performance outcomes through a narrow or predominant focus on physical preparation:

In general application, physical preparation is just one of many interconnected components of a human, and therefore all components should be recognized and addressed.

At the highest and most simplistic level, these include but are not limited to the mind, body and the spirit.  Training a person from this holistic approach is more optimal and effective then training the body in isolation. [12]

The second footnote rises from this reality, that there is a physical overlap or residual implications affecting recovery in athletes who train technically and tactically for their sport:

Athletic preparation has been described as including a number of factors, one of which is physical preparation.  Whilst training the physical qualities, it is important to remember that it is virtually impossible to separate the physical training from the other training qualities. Therefore the integration of the effect of the total training should always be considered when planning, conducting and evaluating the physical training. [13] [14]

The third footnote is that no-matter how much lip service[15] a physical coach may give to their ability to integrate all training, mastery of four components of athletic preparation is not achieved in a short period of time. It will take a lifelong approach to being a student combined with high volume of practical application with a large sample size of athletes in a multi-year approach to achieve mastery.

The physical preparation coach’s ability to effectively and optimally address physical preparation within the context of the total components of athletic preparation will be influenced by the coach’s mastery of each of these components. 

Greater results will be achieved in physical training if the physical preparation coach has a mastery of aspects as they relate to the mind, body and spirit of the athlete. [16]

The aim of this article was to provide historical and contextual background to my conclusion I reached about physical preparation within the context of the bigger picture of athlete preparation.   I acknowledge that for those working with general population, or those whose services are narrowed to less than the full components of athlete preparation, this information may have less meaning.

However, for those who seek to be the best they can be in service of the athlete, you may find more relevance in this discussion. What I cannot give you is the delayed gratification and the desire to remain a student (as opposed to seeking to be the teacher).

 

References

[1] King, I., 1997, Winning and Losing (Book)

[2] King, I., 2011, Legacy – Ian King’s Training Innovations (Course)

[3] King, I., 2013, Legacy – Ian King’s Training Innovations (Book)

Ki King, I., KSI Coaching Course, L1 Legacy (Course)

[4] I am not sure if the new age ‘author’ hiding behind the keyboard feels empowered to breach intellectual property because they don’t anticipate meeting the original author in person. Or is it a simple manner of a degradation of ethics and morality in this stage of history? Or perhaps it is the entitlement attitude of the younger generation – they believe they simply deserve to have the right to copy. And perhaps the desire to be perceived as signification, though more followers on social media is a factor Or perhaps it is a mix of all of the above.

Ki King, I., KSI Coaching Course, L1 Legacy (Course)

[5] King, I., 1997, Winning and Losing (book)

[6] Bompa, T., 1983, Theory and Methodology of Training (Book)

[7] King, I., 1999, Foundations of Physical Preparation (Course)

[8] King, I., 2000, Foundations of Physical Preparation (Book)

[9] King, I., 1999, Foundations of Physical Preparation (Course) – Lesson 2: Training Theory

[10] KSI Coach Education circa 1999 https://kingsports.net/courses/

[11] King, I., 2005, The Way of the Physical Preparation Coach, p. 29

[12] King, I., 2005, The Way of the Physical Preparation Coach, p. 29

[13] King, I., 1999, Foundations of physical preparation (Course)

[14] King, I., 2000, Foundations of physical preparation (book), p. 25

[15] Or social media posts

[16] King, I., 2005, The Way of the Physical Preparation Coach, p. 30-31

The power of a decade
Ian King

The power of a decade (or longer)

/by

I celebrate the outcomes possible when an athlete or team chooses to collaborate with us to achieve their sporting goals.

Why? Because I have found it to be a very effective period of time to work with an athlete or team.

This premise has been reinforced by many thought leaders in recorded Western civilization, in words to the effect.

We overestimate what we can achieve in a year and underestimate what we can achieve in a decade.

Can great things happen in shorter time frames? Yes. I have helped athletes podium at the Olympics in shorter time periods.

However, the rate of change achieved by the athlete will be determined by many factors, including the competence of the coach and the readiness of the athlete.

Is a decade the best time frame to plan and enact high-level sports preparation? Probably not. More likely, the quadrennial time period is more appropriate – a four-year period, coinciding with the time frame of the Olympic Games.

Most Olympic sport athletes measure their time and careers in Olympic or quadrennial cycles. My expectation for a long and fulfilled period of Olympic involvement is five Olympic cycles, which equates to two decades ore twenty years. A number of Australian Olympians have achieved that goal, including an athlete whom I worked with leading into his first Games in Clint Robinson.

A decade of time as it relates to an Olympic athlete will only span two and bit Olympic cycles. If an athlete can achieve this, I expect they would feel satisfied e.g. Brownyn Mayer, an Australian female water polo player who attended the Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004.

However, World Championships are typically annual and therefore a ten-year period does not fit mathematically into the ten-year or decade time frame.

Or at least, not normally, however in the period when the Winter Olymipcs switched from being parallel in year to the Summer Games to being in the alternate two years, three Olympic Games became a possibility. For example, Canadian Alpine skier Rob Boyd attended three Winter Games in a 10-year period – 1988, 1992, and 1994.

However, high-level non-Olympic athletes (or say professional athletes that competed in an annual competition and also are eligible to attend the Olympic Games) would lean towards or resonate with a decade or even a two decade period of time. For example, the 20-year milestone in professional basketball is noted and celebrated. In the US NBA, only 11 players have achieved this. I have not found the equivalent statistic for the Australian NBL, but I know it has been achieved, having helped legendary Brisbane Bullets and Australian Olympian ‘Leaping’ Leroy Loggins achieve the milestone.

There is, however, no argument for a shorter period of collaboration being more effective than a minimum of a decade.

And the superiority of this time frame has been supported by my personal experiences, with multiple teams and many individual sports athletes.

How many? As those who are more familiar with me,  I am not into counting. I have and continue to leave that self-aggrandizement to certain colleagues. A quarter of a century ago, this interviewer worked out this point of difference. Enough to qualify for a professional or expert opinion on it. And to support this, I have only named case studies of athletes in this article where I have had first-hand involvement.

Now at the same time, I need to share that there is also a time for a coach, more so of a team or squad than of an individual coach, to move on. Sometimes, overstaying that mark does not end well.

I have employed this value as well over the decades, and seen instances where perhaps other coaches should have given this more thought.

These considerations about working with an athlete over a decade or more come to mind for me as another KSI athlete moves past this milestone, in my 5th decade of helping athletes.

And the exciting reality is that no matter how the years pass in these long relationships, we both learn new things continually, which will help us improve our performance.

Take today for example, when I was working with the athlete who has achieved this milestone of a decade with me, when we learnt a certain aspect about his skills that we had not uncovered before. A certain thing that will unlock further possibilities on the upside.

And that’s one of the many benefits of that long relationship.

Ian King

Rhabdo – The New Black

/by

Mike would not be happy

In the late 1990’s a member of the Tufts University in Boston Massachusetts reached out to me. As a result of that initial email exchange, he first attended a live seminar with me in his home city in 2000,  and from there attended every professional development opportunity held in the US and some additional ones abroad. He was committed to this role, serving the athlete.

His name was Mike Pimentel.  Mike’s initial qualification was as an Athletic Trainer and he worked in the Tufts Athletic Training Department for about a decade, from memory. In the 1990s he was then approached to start up and run a new department at Tufts, their ‘strength & conditioning department’.

Faced with serving the entire athletic preparation at the university of over 700, Mike was no stranger to going the extra mile for his clients. Sleeping under the desk in his office due to working late and the long drive home and back for an early start, was just one example.

Being at the coal face, Mike felt pieces were missing and was looking for the answers, looking for a better way to prevent injuries and enhance performance.  That’s where I came in.

From about 2002 to 2018 I visited the university annually, providing guidance and learning more about the challenges faced.

One of the many innovations Mike put into place was a course that resulted in students with the qualifications to provide training supervision to their cohort.  Mike was a pioneer in solving the challenges faced by NCAA colleges, where the demand for athlete preparation services typically exceeded the budget.

I know I speak for all the students and alumni during Mike’s 30-year contribution at Tufts that all were blessed by his presence. It may have only been a Div. 3 college, but they received first-class service.

Just six years after Mike’s passing, his beloved Tutfs was home to the latest new-age equivalent of vomiting to prove how tough the training session was – heat induced near fatal rhabdomyolysis.

So what is rhabdomyolysis?

Rhabdomyolysis is a big word for saying that training was so intense, and the body temperature was so elevated, the muscles started breaking down, releasing their content into the bloodstream, and endangering organ status in doing so.

Rhabdo is the abbreviation.

What are some other variations?

Rhadbo symptoms can appear similar to heat-related illnesses and dehydration. It’s likely that athletes training in hotter environments show extreme symptoms of heat stroke first. The only way to determine if you have rhabdo is through testing.

How dangerous is it?

According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention it is “a serious medical condition that can lead to permanent disability or death.”

How common is it?

Rhabdo is fast becoming the gold standard of ‘conditioning training intensity’. Here are some other examples (this list is not exhaustive):

Year Institute Sport # affected Timing
2024 Tufts Univ. Boston[1] Men’s Lacrosse 12 out of 50

(25%) confirmed [2]

 Sep 16 2024
2023 Mid America Nazarene University in Kansas, American Football Pre-season football late July
2023 US Miltiary[3] Military training 52 – 40.5 cases per 100,000 person-years, the highest rate observed during this study’s 2019–2023 surveillance period.
2018-2022 Between 2018 and 2022, at least 11 football players in the US—at the student and professional level—have died of heat stroke. And the number of young athletes diagnosed with exertional heat illness has been increasing over the past decade or so…[4] [5] [6] [7]
2020 Manly-Warringah Rugby League Club, Sydney[8] Rugby League 1 death 23 Nov 2020; First training back in the off-season
2019 Manly-Warringah Rugby League Club, Sydney [9] Rugby League 1 near-death offseason conditioning
2012 Ohio State University[10] Women’s Lacrosse 6 athletes admitted to hospital March[11]
2011 University of Iowa [12] American Football 13 athletes admitted to hospital offseason conditioning, return from school break
2010 Oregon high school American Football Among 43 players, 22 (51%) experienced rhabdomyolysis; 22 patients had upper arm myalgia; 12 were hospitalized; 3 experienced triceps compartment syndrome. an upper arm exercise held in a non-air-conditioned wrestling room.

Conclusion

There was a time when getting an athlete to vomit during ‘conditioning’ training was a sign of how ‘tough’ the session was, perhaps a badge of honour for the trainer. Not that I agree with this approach but it cannot be denied as a phenomenon.  Now it appears the stakes have been raised. Vomiting is not good enough. Near-death or death appears to be the new gold standard in ‘that was a tough workout.

That’s not encouraging. It’s insane, but is it going to turn around? Based on the lack of accountability I see in the official who ran the programs highlighted above, I suspect the answer is no.  It is going to get worse.

What you and I can do, if you share my thoughts on this, is to ensure that no such situation or outcome occurs on our watch.

We are here for the athlete, and I cannot see now near-death or actual death experiences from off-season conditioning training is serving the athletes.

On its surface, a statement such as this should be redundant. But it isn’t, considering the trend.

I believe Mike would not be happy about the event that occurred at his beloved alma mater in 2024. And no one who puts the athlete first should be happy with this new ‘training trend’.

 

References

[1] https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/2024/09/23/tufts-university-lacrosse-players-rhabdo-training/75347715007/

[2] https://www.nbcboston.com/news/local/tufts-mens-lacrosse-players-hospitalized-following-workout-led-by-graduate-of-navy-seal-training-program/3494987/

[3]  https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11107841/ The 529 reported incident cases of exertional rhabdomyolysis among active component U.S. service members in 2023 represent an unadjusted annual incidence rate of 40.5 cases per 100,000 person-years, the highest rate observed during this study’s 2019–2023 surveillance period. This increase in crude incidence rates was most noticeable in the Marine Corps,

[4] https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2023/09/football-players-deaths-excessive-heat-coaching/

[5] https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/sep/24/football-player-heat-deaths-athlete

[6] https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2024/09/21/heat-kills-student-athletes-how-schools-can-help/74843984007/

[7] https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/aug/23/high-school-football-deaths-heat-stroke

[8] https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/may/03/nrl-player-keith-titmuss-died-after-inappropriate-training-session-coroner-finds

[9] https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nrl-premiership/nrl-2024-former-prop-lloyd-perrett-launching-legal-action-against-sea-eagles-heat-stroke-keith-titmuss-news-videos-highlights/news-story/f444cc32ea5ef9d968a7d5b899af09c8

[10] https://www.dispatch.com/story/lifestyle/health-fitness/2013/03/09/rhabdomyolysis-laid-low-6-athletes/23706206007/

[11] “In the Ohio State case, Kelly Becker told university officials that on March 6, 2012, the women lacrosse players performed a series of grueling upper-body workouts unlike anything they had done to that point in the season. The workout included pull-ups (she did 56), chin-ups and triceps-crunching dips without rest during a 20-minute workout. Two days later, they pushed football blocking sleds. The six players went to the hospital the next day.”

[12] https://www.espn.com/college-football/news/story?id=6061650