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A BID TO ADDRESS WHAT WENT WRONG IN SYDNEYFeb 27 2001By Jim Kernaghan -- London Free Press Brent McFarlane has completed 10 chapters of what promises to be an explosive look at Canada's track and field misadventures in the Sydney Olympics, but he's worried. There's been a glitch in the head coach's laptop computer and he's hoping a techie can retrieve all his work. Too hot for the equipment? When Standing Alone gets published, count on some bottoms being burned within Athletics Canada and beyond. The title sums up how McFarlane felt at Canada's controversial performance in Sydney, the first Olympics since 1972 in which track and field wound up without a medal. The fall guy in some eyes for the lack of success, McFarlane calls himself "an outcast." McFarlane, who brought the University of Waterloo's track team in for the Western Open last week, says lack of support by Athletics Canada, personal agendas by various coaches and egotism all played a role in the disappointing performance. "Some of my best support came from an American coach -- Dan Pfaff," he said yesterday. Some of the funding was American, too, but more on that in a minute. Pfaff coaches elite Canadian sprinter Donovan Bailey and Bruny Surin, Glenroy Gilbert and Mark Boswell. Among a slew of track and field controversies, the one surrounding world record-holding sprinter Bailey was one of the most resounding. A virus had impaired Bailey's attempt to match his 1996 Olympic gold medal with another one. When he was spotted late one night at a Darling Harbour bistro in the days leading up to the men's 4X100 metres, it looked bad. "He was on an (intravenous feed)," McFarlane said. "We took it off and my wife and I drove him down for a meeting. He'd lost 10 pounds. We had to walk a half-mile after parking and he didn't get there until 11:30 p.m." Surin didn't run the relay, either. McFarlane suggested his hamstring problem was aggravated when a pain-killing injection hit a nerve. "The medical staff was pretty good but some didn't do their jobs. The leadership was weak." McFarlane claims Bailey sought medical help and was told by a staff member: "I have more important things to do than run after you," to which Bailey asked him whether he thought he was there for a vacation. One of the more astonishing aspects of Canadian team funding, McFarlane says, is that some of it came from an American individual. The Canadian team had a budget of $100,000. McFarlane, a highly regarded tutor in all areas of physical fitness, was running a dry-land training camp in Chicago. Mark McIllvane, the father of an elite 14-year-old hockey player, anted up $30,000 to help out. Public indifference prior to the Olympics was never clearer, McFarlane said, than the result of a sale of his self-published The Science of Hurdling and Speed. He sent out 2,000 in an attempt to raise funds. He got $600 back. McFarlane says there was considerable back-biting within the coaching ranks over the presence of non-staff coaches. Despite obvious benefits, that's nothing new in the sometimes-obtuse world of athletics. "I thought personal coaches like John Allen should be there," he said. "Some of the staff were upset." Interestingly, Jason Tunks, whom Allen discovered at Banting secondary school, shot himself into the elite of discus-throwing with a sixth-place finish as Allen looked on. The entire track and field experience was almost like one of those disastrous military expeditions -- from botched training camp preparations to wildly diverse agendas. Fortunately, McFarlane's detailed diary of Sydney's crises is designed to produce a book that recommends solutions. Check out the Jumpstart Athletics Canadian National Throws Rankings for complete rankings in the throws. If you have news, results or info please let us know by using our submission form or emailing Larry Steinke [ MEET INFORMATION ] [ ANALYSIS & TIPS ] [ THROWS ARTICLES ] [ INTERVIEWS ] [ RECORDS ] [ RESULTS ] [ CLASSIFIEDS ] [ HOT LINK ARCHIVE ] [ DISCUSSION FORUM ] [ SUBMISSIONS ] [ THROWERS QUIZ ] [ GUESTBOOK ] | ||