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Old February 21st 06, 03:55 AM
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In article .com,
wrote:

It seems to me that the tried and true method of developing skiers in
North America and having them race in North America is not working... I
mean, France beat us!


France has some strong skiers, both in cross country and in biathlon.

How do we fix the problem?

Some ideas;

1) Have our athletes stay, train and race in Europe during the ski
season.


That's probably the surest way for athletes to reach the top levels
of the sport -- but it is quite hard, so it is easy to see why
comparatively few American skiers do so.

If this is too much of a burden for our athletes, then they
probably aren't committed to being the best anyway.


Most probably have lives outside skiing -- educational plans,
careers, relationships, etc. -- that make this difficult. Unless a
skier really reaches the top of the sport, he or she probably has fewer
career and educational options waiting in North America the longer he or
she continues racing and training in Europe. I suspect that European
skiers probably find it easier, for obvious reasons, to integrate the
rest of their lives with their sport.

Then, have the
National Championships in March when they come home from Europe.
Nationals should set the team for the following year except for those
who are in the Red Group and automatically qualify for expenses paid
etc.

2) Identify athletes who have no chance of placing better than 50th,
even 40th and leave them home.


That's pretty Draconian -- for example, Beckie Scott used to be that
far back in the pack, and it is not so evident (except in hindsight)
which of the skiers at that level might eventually be on the podium.

We can't waste valuable monetary
resources on skiers who just don't have it.


It's so hard, though, to see who "just doesn't have it." I have
heard stories from coaches in many different sports who thought that an
athlete was hopeless at some stage of his or her development, only to
see that athlete eventually develop into a great champion. Conversely,
some gifted prodigies burn out and never realize what appeared to
everyone to be obvious potential.

3) Focus on Sprint racing and Marathons. France had a guy named Herve
Balland who would ski Worldloppets and then join the French Team to ski
the 50K at the Olympics and World Championships. He won medals... A
skier like Carl Swenson fits that mold. Certain skiers would fit that
category. Sprinters like Christian Zorzi have proven very effective at
going 10K in a Relay. Lets develop speed first. Skiers like Andy Newell
and Torin Koos should ski everything up to 10K in distance.

4) Identify skiers with huge talent like Kris Freeman and devote those
limited resources to developing them.

Any comments or ideas?

J Tegeder
"Keep training, lycra never lies!" JT

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