The race is measured in seconds. The value in decades.
Rekortan is proud to support the amazing work of the coaches at the US Track and Field Olympic Trials.
Eugene, Oregon, also known as TrackTown USA, is no stranger to the heartbeat moments of track and field. The birthplace of Nike, home to the first ever US Athletics World Championships and current host of the US Track and Field Olympic Trials (to name just a few), it has a history of producing legendary performances.
But what is behind those legendary performances?
Talent and hard work, definitely. But behind every great athlete is also a great coach and we are honoured to be at Hayward Field recognizing the incredible work of the coaches as sponsor of their hospitality suite. As their athletes compete to secure their spots in Paris next month, Rekortan’s Tim Jordan is trackside with the men and women who have played a pivotal role in getting these athletes to this point. He takes the opportunity to celebrate the role of the coaches.
The importance of a coach
Bill Bowerman, co-founder of Nike and a legendary University of Oregon track and field coach famously said;
"The real purpose of running isn’t to win a race; it’s to test the limits of the human heart."
Sport is never just about sport and therefore a coaches’ role is never solely about what happens on the track. They create champions but, more importantly, in doing so, they create great humans. They teach lessons in life, instilling the values of hard work, determination, tenacity and belief.
Penn Relay record holder and co-founder of Texas’ Athletic Performance (AP) Ranch, Greg Sholars put it perfectly when he told us;
“Growing up, I was in a single-parent home – one mom and five kids, trying to figure it out – and there were so many coaches that stepped up in my personal life and showed me a path, a track.
As coaches, we’re put here to share and uplift and that’s our journey.”
Greg Sholars, co-founder of Texas’ Athletic Performance (AP) Ranch
AP Ranch
A history of supporting coaches
From our long-term partnership with the US Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) which aims to elevate the coaching profession primarily at a collegiate level, to our latest collaboration with AP Ranch, Rekortan has a proud history of supporting coaches.
When you understand the objectives of programmes like the one Greg has pioneered at AP Ranch it is easy to see why. As he explained;
“Our goal is to use athletics as a kind of means to an end. We teach work ethic, humility, how to live with success and failure and the habits that it takes to be successful through education and sports.”
“Some of the kids have gone on to compete at the Olympic level and have professional careers, but the ones we’re really excited about are the kids that learn how to overcome obstacles and be teammates.”
The stopwatch doesn’t measure determination, hard work and humility. Life does.
And when it comes to measuring the success of his programme, the stopwatch is the least important metric.
“Some of the kids have gone on to compete at the Olympic level and have professional careers, but the ones we're really excited about are the kids that learn how to overcome obstacles and be teammates.”
Helping coaches from the ground up
As a track brand we have a practical role to play in supporting coaches and athletes around the world – from the ground up. Our Gel Tracks have been the biggest innovation in the track world in the last two decades. Our R&D scientists have created a track system that balances the force reduction required for training with 58% energy return to the athlete so that they are fast without being so firm they increase the risk of injury.
From Adelaide to AP Ranch, the coaches have told us that this innovation has helped them get more athletes to the start line of competitions uninjured and running their best.
Less injuries. More PBs.
Debbie Meich, coach of the Impact Squad at Western Athletics Club in Adelaide has been training her athletes on Australia’s first Rekortan Gel Track for over a year and told us;
“There has been a massive reduction in hamstring injuries. My guys are running PBs and jumping really well. They are pulling up less sore which means we get more training out of them. It must have something to do with the track.”
Hear more from Debbie and her athletes - watch the video here.
Fit and Fast
Greg Sholars has seen the same benefits in his athletes;
“The new gel surface has been amazing at keeping our athletes healthy and also giving them one of the fastest surfaces in the world to train on.
Athletes such as Allyson Felix and Sha’Carri Richardson have run on it and done some of the fastest times in the world on this surface. The amazing absorption means we haven't seen as many injuries as we might expect through running on tracks repetitively, which is a great thing for the sport.”
The race ends. The values don’t.
Rekortan tracks are the most certified World Athletics tracks globally and our tracks have seen the most track and field Olympic records of all time.
We are a long-standing partner of the Penn Relays, and Polytan’s partnerships with Athletics Australia, England Athletics, Welsh Athletics and Scottish Athletics bring Rekortan track innovation to more athletes around the world. More US 100m records have been run on Rekortan tracks than any other track brand in the Diamond League. Track and Field is the number one sport at the Olympics where the US has such a proud tradition.
But as we stand here with the coaches in Eugene, watching their athletes qualify or not for Paris, as we continue our support for coaches around the world from grassroots volunteers to the elite – all of whom are at the heart of the sport - we are reminded that these numbers and facts are not the only measures of success. The value goes way beyond the track and the coaches are the real architects of this success.
Learn more about our coaching partnerships:
Track and field interview with Greg Sholars.
Meet Sam Seemes, CEO, US Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.
Rekortan is part of the world’s biggest installation network. Rekortan is available in North America and globally through our network of installation partners and via Polytan in EMEA and Asia Pacific.