Athletics Insight: Accentuate the positive

Scott Newman aboard a train in Scotland on a well-earned break after a successful Commonwealth Games. Photo / Supplied

OPINION:
"Accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative."

As in the song, I said three weeks ago through this column that has been what I have attempted to achieve in Athletic Insight for the past 21 years.

After the Birmingham Commonwealth Games, I expressed my disappointment that there were many more column centimetres in the media and social media on who was not at the Games than about the success of the team in Birmingham.

Most of the criticism, as I said at the time, was made without clear knowledge of the selection criteria and an understanding that the final selection was made by the New Zealand Olympic Committee and the selection philosophy was theirs and the quota of athletes was set by the Birmingham organisers.

Athletics New Zealand had long recognised that selection for Birmingham would present problems. That is not to say that discussion and better communication are not necessary in hopefully producing a better outcome in the future. The fact that almost all our athletes firmly achieved their selection criteria could benefit such future discussion.

I was further saddened to read last weekend another article that once again targeted Athletics New Zealand. On this occasion, the target was former Whanganui athlete and former Athletics New Zealand CEO Scott Newman and Stephen Brown, the Black Singlet Convener of Selectors.

The article questioned the association, and I guess Newman and Brown's ethics, as it indicated that Newman, as the personal manager of two leading athletes, and as Brown and Newman have been business partners, had conflicted and vested interests.

I believe the sport was lucky to have someone of Newman's experience and calibre to take over as acting high-performance director when Scott Goodman, the previous high-performance director, returned to Australia earlier this year. Goodman's departure was after many successful years at the helm.

Five-time Olympian and double Olympic 1500m medal winner Nick Willis described Goodman as outstanding. Willis had worked with five high-performance directors in his long career. Willis also praised another former Whanganui athlete, Kat Austin, for her outstanding work as high-performance support manager.

Goodman, who was chief coach of the Australia team in Birmingham, was always going to be a hard act to follow, especially as the immediate period following his departure had New Zealand athletes competing at both the world championships and Commonwealth Games.

Goodman developed the selection policy for Birmingham to fit the NZOC philosophy and was also performance director when Brown was appointed. Athletics New Zealand was fortunate to be able to draw on Newman's experience and knowledge for a short period through the northern summer. Our team did well and team leader Newman must take a share of the credit.

As for Newman's, and by association Brown's, apparent conflict of interest with being personal manager of two international athletes, I note that one of the athletes, Tom Walsh, has won 10 global and Commonwealth medals, half of which were gold. Walsh would almost certainly be the first athlete on any selector's list. The other athlete is Eliza McCartney, who is injured and not competing.

I have not met Stephen Brown. I am aware of the thorough process of appointing selectors and also the importance of the convener's role. I also know that in a small country people who are passionate about the sport have coached athletes and many become selectors.

I am on the panel of selectors and have been convener of panels selecting junior teams and I coach athletes. I am aware that many, if not the majority of, selectors are in a similar position. I also know if there is a conflict of interest, we declare that interest and are not part of any vote on selection if there were a conflict of interest. This is clearly stated on our contract. I remember in one case, when convening a panel, there was a split vote between the other two selectors concerning an athlete I was coaching so an additional selector was approached to resolve the issue.

There are many good-news stories out there that sadly do not see the light of day and some of the more negative comments also lack substance. However, looking for the positive does not mean I have lost the ability to be critical or that I will put a positive spin where it is not deserved.

To accentuate the positive, former Whanganui athlete Geordie Beamish, who was sixth in the Commonwealth Games 5000m, achieved another sixth in the prestigious 5th Avenue Mile in New York. He ran 3 minutes 51.6 seconds and was just over a second behind the winner, world champion Jake Whiteman, of Scotland.