In 2021, Papua hosted Indonesia’s National Games—PON XX. For a few weeks, Papua possessed what appeared to be a magnificent new sporting landscape: an international-standard stadium, an aquatic centre, indoor arenas, shooting facilities, hockey pitches, cricket grounds and other specialist venues. Billions of rupiah had been invested. The facilities looked impressive, the opening ceremony was… Continue reading Build the Sport Before You Build the Stadium
Tag: writing
Can You Recognise a Champion the Moment They Walk into the Gym?
As a coach, I often told people that I could assess whether an athlete was likely to succeed from the first time they walked into the gym. At the time, I thought this was instinct—some mysterious coaching ability developed through years of experience. Looking back, I believe the explanation was much simpler. I was not… Continue reading Can You Recognise a Champion the Moment They Walk into the Gym?
Winning Everything, Losing What Matters
Tiger Woods conquered golf, accumulated wealth and became one of the most recognisable people on Earth. His decline raises an uncomfortable question: what happens when exceptional success begins to feel like exemption from ordinary rules? Tiger Woods has achieved almost everything that sport can offer. He has won 15 major championships and shares the record… Continue reading Winning Everything, Losing What Matters
Too Old for an Interview? The Experience We Choose to Waste
Organisations routinely praise experience, diversity and lifelong contribution. Yet many older applicants with directly relevant backgrounds are rejected without even a conversation. What does that reveal about the way we assess human value? I have recently applied for several positions for which I believed I possessed substantial and directly relevant experience. I was not offered… Continue reading Too Old for an Interview? The Experience We Choose to Waste
Does Sport Still Do What It Was Intended to Do?
Sport was once defended as a means of developing character, health and social responsibility. Today it is also entertainment, commerce, politics and global spectacle. Has sport lost its way—or are we expecting it to produce benefits it was never designed to guarantee? The question sounds simple, but it begins with a complication: sport has never… Continue reading Does Sport Still Do What It Was Intended to Do?
What is it with professional football?
Every week we are bombarded with news of managers being sacked and stories of their inability to control their dressing rooms. Perhaps the most disturbing, are the stories of managers/coaches who insist on playing a specific system, that either doesn’t suit the playing roster or the competition that they are playing in. Worse still, there… Continue reading What is it with professional football?
The Olympic Reality
Reprinted from Thoughts in Sport 2014. London 2012 is over and Rio 2016 approaches. More spectacular ceremonies and a parade of impressive record breaking sport performances are expected. But who will excel? Brian Minikin, Lecturer in Sport Management At the Athens Games in 2004, with around 301 Gold medals up for grabs, only 56 countries out of… Continue reading The Olympic Reality
