Koreans join hunt for J’can track coach

Howard Walker

Monday, February 06, 2012

THE expertise of Jamaican track and field coaches continues to be in high demand by other countries envious of Jamaica’s athletics successes.

In the latest push to lure local coaches to foreign lands, a team of South Koreans is currently in the island on a fact-finding mission with the hope of securing the services of a Jamaican.

The three-member team is headed by the Sports Promotion Section Chief from Gyeongsan-City, Ho-Won Jang, who took along with him two South Korean journalists.

The group was at the Gatorade Youngster Goldsmith meet as guest of the Jamaica Athletic Administrative Association (JAAA).

Ahra Yu, the translator for the South Koreans, said they are here to acquire a coach.

“We have a good relationship since 2011 (the World Championship in Daegu), and we are here to contract a coach,” she told the Observer on Saturday.

“For now we want one coach and maybe some more later. We are also here to see what track and field is like in Jamaica and expand our relationship,” she revealed.

“Following that, we might have some form of exchange programme,” Yu added.

Meanwhile, JAAA’s president Dr Warren Blake, said this is an opportunity for Jamaica's coaches to export their skills, but was a bit sceptical about the idea.

“I would think that it would be better served if the people from abroad come to Jamaica where they would be better able to train using our facilities and amongst our competitions so they could lift their games,” he said.

“It would be an inspiration for their athletes to come into an environment where people are training and working hard and getting good results,” he noted.

However, Dr Blake, who took over the reins from Howard Aris who died in November, said the coach has been identified and discussions are ongoing.

“It is a different lifestyle, different cultural norms, different language, climate as the temperature they left was (-16) and that is extremely cold in any language,” said Dr Blake.

Recently, Jamaica have exported two coaches — Jerry Holness and Dwayne Jarrett — to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and young Judyth Kitson-Aberg is in Sweden doing her thing plus a host of coaches are in the American college systems guiding some of the finest athletes around.

“People have recognised quality and expertise when they see it and I must say our coaches are among the best in the world and they have shown it based on the results we have gotten,” said Dr Blake.