bobsleigh

Here is a great plot for a sports adventure film - an athlete is training hard for winter Olympic glory - the games are a mere 7 months away. But then disaster strikes - he suffers a bad achilles rupture.  His only chance of recovering and competing in the timeframe is choosing pioneering surgery, (although no one is quite sure of the rehab protocols). The athlete takes a chance, gets to the games and his team finishes a respectable fifth. But wait there's always a twist! Two Russian teams are later disqualified for doping and five years later our hero is handed his rightful bronze medal. Far fetched? Not at all - this all happened to serving Royal Marine and former Team GB Bobsleigh pilot John Jackson.

John joins us in this incredible episode to talk us through his remarkable journey from his initial devastation at the thought his Olympic journey was over to choosing the surgery with Prof Mackay that was then in its infancy but potentially offered him his only chance of a return to fitness in the tight timeframe available. He also chats over his rehab and how he and his support team felt their way through his recovery.  

Much of bobsleigh training is about building explosive pushing power in athletes and John remembers that the signs of fatigue, in hindsight, were there the day of his injury. Prof Mackay explains more about the the achilles tendon, surgical options after injury, and how you can protect your own achilles health. 

We also have a very entertaining chat with John, who is still a serving Royal Marine, about what it takes to hurtle down an icy mountainside in a 'bathtub' at 90 miles an hour! Funnily enough, neither Jennifer or Prof Mackay fancy signing up any time soon even for the film version! 

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I am joined by GB Bobsleigh Pilot, Nikki McSweeney.
Nikki tells us about all sports she excelled in before finally pursuing bobsled.

Follow Nikki:
Instagram - @nikkimc17

USA! USA! USA!

We're back to let you know who won our Winter Olympic bracket. We discuss each match up in detail and mourn those we lost. Tangents include but aren't limited to: John Shuster, Aristotle Athari, and, our least favorite, Jared Leto (we hate Jared Leto).

Get psyched for Batman!!!!

When bobsledder Kaillie Humphries decided to leave a toxic team environment, it put her future as an Olympian in jeopardy. When is it acceptable for an athlete to leave one nation to compete for another? And is switching teams against the ideals of sportsmanship that the Olympics stand for? Or could it actually make those ideals even stronger? Hosted by Molly Bloom. Produced by FilmNation Entertainment in association with Gilded Audio.

Travelling 140km/h downhill head-first on ice is not for the faint-hearted, but Jackie Narracott is no shrinking violet. After her first attempt at the sport, she asked: how do I go faster?

Ahead of her second Winter Olympics, which starts in Beijing next week, Narracott talks to On Side about her switch from the track, what it’s like going head-first at 140km/h, her hopes for the upcoming Games, and her impressive family pedigree.

She is, after all, following in the footsteps of her famous uncle, Paul – the first Australian Olympian to compete at both Summer and Winter Games.

Fast forward 10 years and Narracott, who is based in the UK, became the first Australian to win a World Cup gold medal in skeleton when she broke the track record in Switzerland a couple of weeks ago.

That amazing run came in St Moritz, where she broke the track record with a time of 1:08.72 seconds to shock the field. “Everything came together, right time, right place,” she admits. “I’ve always known I can do it, now I’ve got that concrete evidence to say, ‘I’m not crazy, I can actually do it’, which his nice.”

Putting on the Australian jacket for the 2018 Games was “an absolute dream come true”, she says, however she feels she is “in a much better position to perform …. this time around I think it’s about achieving my potential”.

For his part, “Uncle Paul”, who once beat Carl Lewis over 60 metres, told On Side that he was thrilled his exploits “opened her eyes to the fact that there are sporting opportunities other than the mainstream sports”.

He encourages everyone to look beyond traditional sports - like Jackie did.

“It’s a 10-year journey and it’s only really the last 3-4 years where it’s really coming together [for Jackie],” he says. “I thinks she’s a real chance, she’s not a favourite, but she’s a realistic chance [in Beijing].”

We also talk to our most successful Winter Paralympian Michael Milton, who won six gold, three silver and two bronze medals.

“Snow, ice, it’s magical stuff as to how much fun you can have on it,” he says. “How high you can jump. How fast you can go. For me, everything around winter sports is based on snow and ice and it’s fantastic fun to do as an athlete.”

He also discusses our chances at the Paralympics, the impact of Covid-19 on the Games, and how Dylan Alcott is changing society’s perceptions of people with a disability.

“The more people with disabilities that we see in every different area of our lives, whether it be social, whether it be work, whether it be on television as elite athletes, the more we can include people with disabilities in every single area of our life the better off society will be, the better off those people with disabilities will be.”

Support the show: https://www.sportintegrity.gov.au/

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Nick Gleeson (GB Bobsleigh) discusses his athlete journey and striving to be the very best in what he does!
A two-time winter Olympian and Armed Forces supported athlete (3rd Battalion Parachute Regiment), Nick discusses the physical, psychological and social impact and requirements of competing on the world stage.

The Five W's Podcast

What Works for Who in What Context and Why

The podcast explores a biopsychosocial approach to athlete development, Each episode explores a unique perspective on the topic from the viewpoint of academia, athletes, coaches, practitioners, psychologists, researchers, S&C and sports scientists, and seeks to be relevant to anyone interested in athlete development. 

DEFINITION OF TERMS

(My current working definitions):

BioPsychoSocial:  A recognition that athletic and sporting performance depends on the interaction of a large number of interconnected factors; Bio (Physical), Psycho (Psychological) and Social (Socio-Environmental) and the practitioners deliberate planning, implementation, practice and reflection of all three aspects combining to provide optimised individual learning opportunities for athletes and coaches.  

Psychosocial:  The understanding and appreciation of how psychological (e.g., pedagogical / andragogical strategies, motivation, coach-athlete relationship) and socio-environmental (session design, social interaction, leadership) factors underpin physical (bio) performance

This podcast is a form of knowledge exchange for my Doctoral studies which I am currently undertaking at Leeds Beckett University, so I do want to highlight their contribution to my skills, knowledge and experience as well as a HUGE thank to my supervisory team Professor Kevin Till and Dr Tom Mitchell, as well as all the other lecturers within the Carnegie School of Sport that have and continue to support me on my research-practitioner journey.  

The podcast is brought to you in association with PlayerLayer.com

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Their products are simple, functional, no fast fashion, using Eco Friendly materials. 

Their Sport can drive change campaign is certainly one that sits well with Podium Performance Strength & Conditioning and The Five W’s podcast.

They create clothing to help connect athletes to their team and to build bonds between players, coaches, staff and supporters. They all Belong..

One Earth, One Team, Belong.

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I am joined by 4x Olympian and the Co-Founding member of the Jamaican Bobsleigh team, Dudley Stokes.
Dudley talks us through the story of how he became a bobsledder and just how his journey inspired Disney to create a movie about it.


You can buy/rent or watch Cool Runnings

Keep up to date with Dudley via his Instagram account: @talsto36live

Check out the website: www.hobbyofa.com

I am joined by current Jamaican Bobsleigh pilot, Shanwayne Stephens.
Shanwayne discusses his journey to discovering the sport of Bobsleigh and just where it is taking him.

You can keep up to date with Shanwayne by following him and the team on Instagram:
@jambobshan
@jbsfed

#002 - Lauryn Williams is a financial planner, author, podcaster, motivational speaker and volunteer. But that’s not why most people recognise her name. Over a period of twelve years, she competed at the elite level in two Olympic sports – Track and Field (Athletics) and Bobsleigh. In doing so, she became the first American woman to win medals at both a Summer and a Winter Olympic Games.

In this second of three launch day episodes to mark the arrival of Athletes: The Other Side, Ben speaks to the sheer force of positive personality that is Lauryn Williams about her impressive transformation from athlete to financial planner – and about how her drive to empower athletes to manage their finances better runs through everything she does. If you want a post-lockdown pick-me-up, that spurs you on to achieve and succeed in your life, then this is one not to miss.

If you'd like to get the links and show notes for this episode, head to:

http://bennichols.co.uk/making-transition-worth-it-with-lauryn-williams