Arthur Lydiard is New Zealander of the Year for his book Run for your Life: Jogging with Arthur Lydiard.
He was an athletics coach without peer. The record of four gold medals for his proteges Snell and Halberg at the Rome and Tokyo Olympics speaks for itself.
With Lydiard in charge, New Zealand led the world in middle distance running and the Herald pointed out credit for the golden hour on the Olympic track in 1960 went to Snell, Halberg and Lydiard.
His book spread his ideas to ordinary people whose goals were not medals but good health and he is credited with boosting - if not inventing - the global passion for jogging.
