Coach Interview: Ben Liddy

Coach Interview: Ben Liddy

Who is the coach behind the incredible progression last season by steeplechaser Georgia Winkcup? That was Ben Liddy who is just five years into an already successful coaching career. In this interview, Liddy speaks about how he moved into coaching to help a training partner and what motivates him to spend dozens of hours each week preparing programs and at the track with his athletes. As a leading Australian team physiotherapist, he also explains the benefits to his coaching that he draws from his profession.

Thanks Ben for your valued contribution to coaching in NSW, where you have taken talent to the international stage and brought back success and love of the sport to some who have battled injury.

How did you become involved in coaching? What triggered it? At what age? As an athlete were you considering moving into coaching?

Soon after leaving school I completed my coaching qualifications and went back to coach at my old high school. At that stage coaching was something I did casually but even in those early days I really enjoyed working with athletes and sharing in their excitement when they achieved a great performance.

I completed further coaching qualifications and began coaching seriously in 2015 aged 34 when I started working with Mason Cohen. We had been training partners under the guidance of John Atterton and then went on to form an athlete/coach relationship.

I always knew I wanted to get into coaching more seriously after I finished competing on the track. I had always enjoyed having discussions with coaches on programming and was interested to incorporate my own ideas as well. The opportunity to work with a talented athlete like Mason made the decision to scale back my own running and focus on coaching an easy one.

What events do you coach? Where do you coach? A squad profile?

Our squad is called Central Performance Track and we are based out of Rotary Athletic Field in Lane Cove. We have athletes training for events from the 400 through to the 5k. We have a couple of junior athletes but the squad is predominantly senior based athletes.

Tell us about some of the athletes in your squad and any special moments, highlights or stories?

I’m lucky to work with a group of very talented athletes and have shared many special moments. Some of my fondest include

• Watching Mason win the bronze medal in the 800m at the 2016 Australian Track and Field Championships in our first season together and then going on to repeat this performance in 2019
• Lachlan Raper winning the Australian Under 20 800m title in 2018 and qualifying for the World Under 20 Track and Field Championships
• Georgia Winkcup running a 30 second PB in the 3k steeplechase at the Oceania Track and Field Championships, forming a springboard for her ultimate selection to represent Australia at the World Track and Field Championships in 2019
• Nicola Hogg winning the 800/1500m double in the Under 18 Australian Track and Field Championships in 2019
• Sean Fitzsimmons making his first ever senior 400m final in 2019 after having knee surgery the previous year and missing 12 months of training
• Jye Perrot running a big breakthrough performance of 1.47 in the B final of the 2018 Commonwealth Games Trials
• The selection of Mason, Jye Perrott and Sean into the World University Games team in 2019

Equally as special has been watching some athletes overcome adversity and get back to close to their best. Seeing Kate Spencer compete so well last season and win a bronze medal in the NSW 5k Championships was very special. Watching Allie Bartholomew get a bronze medal in the women’s 400m at last years NSW Championships was such a surprise and shocked us both. Both of these girls have suffered so many setbacks with injuries and to watch them claw themselves back to top level performance has been very special.

Why coach?

When I was competing nothing beat the feeling of achieving a personal best. It left you on such a high and motivated to achieve more. Through coaching I’ve found I experience these same emotions to an even greater extent. It is so special to share in the excitement with your athletes when they achieve a breakthrough performance.

I love the challenge of coaching. It’s inevitable athletes will go through periods where performance and motivation fluctuate. Taking responsibility and helping an athlete to overcome this is something I really enjoy. To see them bounce back from poor performances and to go on to exceed their own expectations is very rewarding.

Enjoyable aspects of coaching

Without a doubt the relationships I’ve formed with the athletes in the group and the relationships they’ve formed with each other are what make coaching so enjoyable for me. I’m very proud of how our training environment has fostered such close relationships within the group, relationships which I suspect will last a lifetime.

I also really enjoy the challenge of programming for athletes across different events. The successes and failures each of your athletes experiences makes you always question ways of doing it better. You’re constantly looking to correct mistakes you’ve made in the past and better understand the reasons behind the successes they’ve had. When it all comes together on race day it’s a great feeling.

Coaching Philosophy/ advice to other coaches?

-If in doubt do less with your athletes. An athlete at 95% is better than an athlete striving for 100% who ends up injured

-Make sure athletes understand the purpose of the training session they are doing so they can execute it correctly

-Train athletes to the level they are on the day. You can’t be in PB shape everyday so adjusting target times/distances or recovery times for sessions is important so the athlete is still achieving the purpose of the session

-In 800m running it doesn’t matter how fit you are if you can’t go through the first lap comfortably. Always be working on an athlete’s speed

-Individualise training. Just because program x works for one athlete doesn’t mean it will work for every athlete.

-Train your athletes to their strengths not their weaknesses. Aim to improve the weaknesses but never get too far away from what made them a great athlete in the first place

-Work on all elements of race performance from early stages in the preparation. It’s easier to maintain a quality than it is to build a new quality up

Who have been your coaching mentors?

My first ever coach Clive Cokayne probably had the biggest influence on my coaching career. I learnt so much from him about programming and the importance of training all elements of race performance year round.

John Atterton also had an enormous impact on me. Everyone who trained with John loved him and wanted to run well for him as a result. John understood how to train athletes across every event but what I took most from John was the importance of the athlete/coach relationship and to make sure the athletes you work with enjoy the process. Fostering a strong squad dynamic is essential for long term success of the training group.

From Dean Gleeson I learnt the importance of recovery and tapering in an athlete’s program. He taught me how to become confident in incorporating more rest into an athlete’s program and the significant impact it can have on performance. This can often be the hardest thing to do for highly motivated athletes.

In recent years Paul Laurendet has been a great mentor for me. Paul has such a wealth of knowledge and experience with elite athletes in the events I coach. He’s provided great advice to me with questions I’ve had regarding certain athletes.

Background (work/study,family)

After finishing high school I completed an Exercise and Sports Science degree through Sydney University and went on to complete a Masters of Physiotherapy at the University of Canberra. I’m currently one of the directors and partners at Central Performance, a Physiotherapy and Exercise Physiology clinic in Surry Hills where I work full time. I’ve found the physiotherapy background really beneficial in understanding load management in athletes and what practices to put in place to minimise the injury risk associated with training and competing at a high level.

In addition to this I was very keen to continue upskilling my coaching abilities and in 2018 completed my Level 4 IAAF coaching qualification in Middle and Long Distance running.

I’m married to my beautiful wife Renee and we have just welcomed Lucy, our 5-month-old daughter into the world.

Your own athletics career highlights

It’s hard to go past the days of CAS athletics and competing in front of all your best mates. I have very fond memories of those days. A special moment was winning the NSW All Schools 800m in the 17 years competition and breaking the meet record.

As a senior athlete I was most proud of making two National finals over 800m and one over 1500m.

David Tarbotton for Athletics NSW

Images: Ben Liddy and his squad