USATF.
Frey knocked on the door and walked into the office of Williams, CEO of the Athletics Association.
"Mr. Williams, we have recently received several letters from some athletes and athletes' supporters questioning the fairness of our selection of Olympic athletes," Frey said.
"Are you going for Coach Li? This is also expected. After all, before this, we selected athletes in order according to the ranking of the trials results. In this case, if the athletes are not selected, it can only be because their skills are inferior to others. , they have nothing to complain about." Williams sighed, and then said: "But now, we have broken this rule, and it is normal for everyone to question it."
"But it also included three letters of complaint. The athletes who complained believed that the athletes selected by Dai Li were not as good as them in terms of strength. Their results in the trials were better, but they were not selected by Dai Li. Instead, some of them ranked first in the trials. Athletes who were eliminated in the first or second round entered the national team," Frey continued.
"I think if it were me, I would be unhappy if I was compared with athletes whose performance is not as good as mine. However, being eliminated in the first round of the selection does not mean that the strength is not good enough. The shortcomings of our selection system, You should also know very well." Williams smiled and continued;
"It's like Black Friday. You make a list of big purchases, and then you're in front of everyone else. You can rush into the mall first to buy what you want, but that doesn't mean you will be The biggest customer in the mall. Maybe some people come earlier than you, and won’t line up in advance like you, nor will they be the first to rush into the mall, but they will buy something worth 100,000 yuan at a time, while you will only buy If it costs several thousand yuan, then the mall will definitely give him more preferential treatment."
"Mr. Williams, I understand what you mean. But one of the complaint letters said that there was an athlete who had not participated in the previous Olympic trials at all, but was selected by Dai Li to join the national team. I think this is really a bit That's too much," Frey continued.
"There is such a thing." Williams frowned.
"I have learned some things privately. When Li Dai selects athletes, he does not refer to their results in the trials at all. He will go directly to a university, then directly find the coach or athlete of that university, and then tell them that he wants to was selected into the national team. With all due respect, this doesn't feel like selecting athletes at all. I can't see what criteria he uses to select athletes. I think he just relies on his own preferences. The person who selects people does not act like a coach, but like a talent scout! But we need excellent athletes, not stars." Frey said with a look of dissatisfaction.
"This sounds a bit unreliable, but we have given him the power to select athletes, so we should not interfere in how to select, what do you think?" Williams asked.
"But I'm worried that the media will make a big fuss out of this. This will have a very negative impact on us. The doping scandal has already embarrassed our athletics association, and we cannot afford a second scandal." Ray continued.
"The media is indeed a troublesome thing." Williams said this, but with a smile on his face, he continued: "Have you forgotten why we chose Li Dai, a Chinese coach? We just want him Let’s take responsibility and ask him to take the blame for us. So if the media really comes to us, just blame him directly.”
…
The third training camp of the U.S. National Track and Field Team.
There are many new faces in the locker room. They are all athletes who have just been recruited by Dai Li to the national team.
The new athletes are looking forward to this trip to the national team. They originally had no chance to participate in the Olympics, but now they are picked by Dai Li. They are as lucky as winning the lottery.
Other athletes, however, showed no optimism. After three training camps and three different head coaches, the veteran athletes will feel very uneasy, and a sense of panic is spreading among the athletes.
"In this training camp, we have a new head coach. I don't know how long this guy can last. I remember that Rivers last time couldn't last half way through the training camp. I heard that training The camp has not ended yet, so I submitted my resignation to the Athletics Association," one person said.
"I don't think this new head coach can last long. According to the news, he is Chinese, and he is also the first foreign head coach in the history of the U.S. track and field team. With the current situation of the U.S. team, so many American coaches are helpless. , let alone a foreign coach!" Another person said.
"It's impossible for me to trust a Chinese coach. Chinese can play table tennis, but do they do track and field? They are not qualified enough." The third person said.
"If everyone thinks like you, then this new coach really can't stay for long. Isn't that the case with the previous Rivers? He couldn't get the trust of the athletes, so he could only get out in despair! "The man from before said.
At this moment, another voice sounded from behind: "Devin, and Locke, I know you two guys are thorny and like to cause trouble, but I warn you, show respect to the new Coach Li. Some."
"Who is so bold and dares to speak to me like this!" The athlete named Devin was very unhappy. He turned around and saw Jimmy Irvine standing there, looking at him with a stern face.
"It's Jimmy!" Devin suddenly looked very fearful, and even lowered his posture a bit.
Although this athlete named Devin is a bit irritated, he also knows who is the boss in this American team.
"Jimmy, do you recognize the new coach?" Devin asked with a smile on his face. He wanted to break the awkward situation.
Alvin nodded with a nonchalant expression, and then said: "The new coach Li is my coach, so I hope that none of you will go to him to cause trouble. If you go to him to cause trouble, it is tantamount to You’re causing trouble for me.”
"Understood, we understand!" Devin nodded immediately. Even though he was dissatisfied at this time, he still showed obedience on the surface.
After giving a few warnings to the spikers, Alvin returned to his closet helplessly.
"The current U.S. team has already lost its people. Coach Li, there is only so much I can help you with."
…
Dai Li has never led a national team with more than 100 people.
But when he was in China, Dai Li had been in the national team and stayed with Xue Li for a long time. Although Xue Li was only the deputy head coach of the national team at the time, he was responsible for the daily operations and training of the national team. Therefore, Li Dai followed Xue Li and learned a lot of knowledge.
American athletes usually compete on their own, and the American national team is temporarily formed before the competition, so American athletes have very little time for training. Athletes who are slightly famous will purchase courses from well-known coaches individually, and top athletes will even directly hire a team to serve themselves.
Domestic athletes usually train collectively in training teams at all levels. Once selected for the national team, they will conduct collective training at the national team's training base. There are also regular group trainings, and some outstanding provincial teams will be recruited. Athletes participate, so almost all training of domestic athletes is completed in the context of intensive training.
Therefore, in terms of training experience alone, a hundred American coaches combined may not be able to match one Li Dai.
In terms of number of people, the U.S. track and field team is definitely the largest in the world. In the Olympics, other countries do not have so many athletes who can meet the Olympic A standard, and they do not have the ability to send so many participating athletes, so the commander-in-chief is so The participation of multiple athletes is actually a test for the head coach.
Dai Li is not worried about this, he is also very confident in himself. When they are in China, whether it is the national team or the provincial team, their total number of people is not inferior to the US track and field team at all. For example, the provincial youth team where Li Dai worked before had to recruit dozens of young athletes from local areas every year for the shot put event alone. A provincial track and field training team can have hundreds of people when it is crowded, making management difficult. of the entire U.S. Olympic team.
Moreover, Dai Li also has experience in participating in the Asian Games. In the Asian Games, the Chinese national track and field team can also send more than 100 people to participate, and the number of people is not much inferior to that of the American track and field team.
At this time, Dai Li was sitting alone in the office, holding an Olympic track and field competition form in his hand and considering it carefully.
"Based on my experience, I should have no problem coping with this training camp. The key is performance. Without good enough results, it will be useless no matter how good the head coach is. What's more, I am leading the US track and field team, which is the strongest in the world." I’m on the track and field team, so I have to get the best results in the world, otherwise it means failure.”
“In the last few Olympic Games, the United States has won around 10 gold medals, 10 silver medals and 10 bronze medals in track and field events. The results are relatively average, which also reflects the overall strength of the US team. The Olympic track and field competition, including relay races, has a total of 47 events, which means that 47 gold medals and 141 medals will be produced. Nearly a quarter of them were won by the United States team. The world's number one track and field power is indeed Well-deserved reputation.”
"But this time the U.S. team was affected by the doping scandal and lost more than half of its gold medal points. The number of gold medals and medals will be affected. Now there are only four events that are relatively certain to win the championship. Men's 400 meters, women's 400 meters, men's 4x400m relay and women's 4x400m relay. The 400m event is the most advantageous track and field event in the United States, and these four gold medals should be able to be retained."
"There are still 6 goals left to reach the goal of 10 gold medals. The world's number one flying star Gittel has retired. Although the sprint strength of the Jamaican team has declined somewhat, it still cannot be underestimated. In terms of men's sprint, Alexander's 100-meter sprint was lucky. If you have some, you can win a gold medal, and Sean Ford is also expected to win the gold in the 200 meters. As for the women's team, both Jamaican female flying women will compete in the Olympics. This is a double insurance purchased by the Jamaicans. The American team won the women's 100 meters. In the 200-meter and 200-meter events, I can only strive for a bronze medal at most."
"However, we can try to win the two gold medals in the 4x100m relay. Relays attach great importance to cooperation. One good cooperation when handing over the baton is enough to save 0.1 seconds. Three successful cooperations are enough to save 0.3 seconds. In this world In a top-level competition, 0.3 seconds is the key to deciding the outcome. I have the bonus of being called a chain link, so my coordination in the relay race should be better than other teams."
“In terms of men’s middle-distance running, African countries are obviously better in strength. Kenya, Algeria, and Morocco have obviously better middle-distance runners than other countries. In women’s middle-distance running, the Russians’ The strength should not be underestimated. The American team could have competed for medals, but due to the impact of the doping scandal, the top middle-distance runners were unable to participate, and middle-distance running was considered insignificant."
"Long-distance running and marathon have always been a competition between Africa and Africa. Ethiopians and Kenyans are expected to win all the medals. This major event can only focus on participation."
"In terms of hurdles and obstacle races, we can compete. After all, Ellis Mete in the 110-meter hurdles has A+ talent, but he is still far behind the Olympic champion. I must focus on him next. It just takes training.”
"Long jump and triple jump have always been the strengths of the U.S. team. Although some of the best athletes have also been implicated in doping scandals, the athletes who came on the bench are also very strong. If they train well, they can compete for gold medals. Strength."
"Although the American team is not weak in the high jump and pole vault, the Russians are obviously better. But this time I had an unexpected gain at the University of Oregon. Franz Muller, an S-level talented pole vaulter, It will definitely bring me an unexpected surprise, and I can at least steal a gold medal from the Russians."
"In the throwing category, Eastern European countries and Germany occupy an absolutely dominant position. Slavic ancestry is indeed unmatched in terms of strength, not even black people in the United States. However, there are several people with Slavic ancestry in the U.S. team. Athletes should also have the opportunity to compete for medals."
"Race walking events not only value athletes' personal abilities, but also attach great importance to tactical choices. The personal abilities of American athletes cannot be said. If you want to make a breakthrough in performance, the key is to rely on tactical choices. Before the competition, We need to study the issue of race walking tactics carefully."
"The men's decathlon and women's heptathlon are also events in which the American team has an advantage, but there are also many athletes from Western European countries engaged in these two events, especially the United Kingdom, which should become our strongest opponent. The all-around event Training is too complicated. Athletes rely more on daily accumulation, and it is too difficult to improve their performance in the short term. I don't have that much training time now, so it seems that these two projects can only be left to fate."
Dai Li did some analysis on each event, and then he discovered that it is not impossible to win 10 or more gold medals. The key is to provide athletes with some targeted training, and these trainings want to win 10 or more gold medals. To be effective, enough time must be given.
"What I need most now is time." Dai Li sighed softly.
There is still one month left before the opening of the Olympic Games, and Dai Li will use this month to transform the athletes.
"Time is too tight. Just relying on these few days of training is not enough. I have to extend the training time!"