I see the New Zealand Herald is reporting a spat between Dame Valerie Adams and some nobody TV reality actor called Louise Wallace. Their subject was female obesity. In a revelation that will surprise no one I agree with Adams. The Wallace defense is that she really believed the insults she made about women who wear clothes sized 16 plus. Of course, she did. Anyone educated in the closeted and privileged Epsom, St Cuthbert’s College, is taught that their opinions are superior. The hurt they inflict is deserved because, as St Cuthbert’s old girls, they know best. Their school motto of, “By Love, Serve” means little to Louise Wallace. St Cuthbert’s are even too embarrassed to include Wallace in their list of “Prominent Old Girls”. That’s odd, I would have thought Wallace represented the school’s values perfectly.   

Adam’s, as she always has, showed herself more than capable of holding her own. She suggested Wallace needed to be educated on the human body and realise the amount of damage she was doing by making comments like that on national television. “So, size 12 is normal but size 18 is not [punch emoji]. Uppercut yourself because what you’re saying is disgusting.”

Game set and match to the South Auckland Southern Cross Campus, me thinks.

No one can coach swimming around the world for forty years without coming across the occasional weight “problem”. Here are my three responses when weight becomes an issue.

• Check the Training

The weight issue may not be an athlete’s problem. Perhaps you, the coach, are the problem. Perhaps the training the swimmer is being given is not properly balanced for the stage of their preparation. Is the swimmer being provided with the correct mix of aerobic, anaerobic and speed training? A problem with the recipe can cause a badly baked cake.

• Check the Group

When I have decided to check a swimmer’s weight, I never pick on one swimmer alone. I select a group and say we (including me) are going to weigh ourselves twice a week to check that “we are not losing too much weight”. Excessive weight loss can be an indication of over-training and/or an early indication of poor health. With this as the reason, I have found swimmers happily weigh themselves, without any of the guilt that goes along with putting on weight.

Sure, I accept the reason is deceptive. But it is a harmless deception and avoids the guilt problems associated with picking one person out as a “Wallace inspired” fatty.

And best of all swimmers are not stupid. When the twice a week weight checks are showing a steady increase in weight, they will self-regulate their food. There has never been a need for me to comment.

• Turn it into a Game

On two occasions, with the right sort of personality, I have turned weight-loss into a competition between the swimmer and the coach. Could the swimmer beat me in getting down to pre-selected target weights? In both cases the swimmers could not wait to get training done to see whether their daily weight loss beat the coach. One of the swimmers was an Olympic Gold medallist who, I am sad to say, beat this coach out of sight in the weight-loss game. It did us both good. She even wrote the daily score on the team whiteboard. Soon others were joining in to see if they too could beat the coach. I had to control that a bit. Too much lost weight can be bad.

However, there was no guilt or shame associated with watching your weight. At least that was a positive.

And so, by employing these three techniques I have never encountered an overweight problem. I think it would be difficult to accuse any of my swimmers as being fat. When it mattered, Toni, Nichola, Jane, Alison and Rhi were never overweight. One Scottish international said he had seen, “more fat on a butcher’s pencil,” than Alison at her best. None of that result involved the blind, conceit or cruel guilt of Louise Wallace. “By Love Serve”? What a bitch. Dame Valerie Adams called Wallace’s opinions disgusting. Amen to that.    

 

Every evening at about 6.45 I watch the TV1 Sport’s News. Hayley Holt and Abby Wilson do a terrific job. They balance humour with news. They report serious issues without judgement. In my view, both are exceptional professionals.

I can’t say I feel the same about Andrew Saville. Tut, tut, tutting around the studio. He comes across as a pompous little prick. For example, last night he was clearly put out about the decision of Phil Mickelson and others to play golf in the Saudi-backed LIV league. Saville decided to promote this as an example of greed over principle. TV1 showed a clip of Mickelson being asked whether there was a country on earth that he would not play in, no matter what money was on offer.

Mickelson struggled to find an answer. So let me help him out. You see it would be hypocritical in the extreme for me to question the motives of these golfers. Not when I signed a contract with the Saudi government to coach swimming in Saudi Arabia for a year. I did exactly what Mickelson has done. The money may be different. The principle certainly is not.

So how do I justify what Mickelson and I have done?

The answer is two fundamental reasons.

• Show me a country that does not have corruption somewhere.  
• Perhaps we can bring about change.

Show me a country that does not have corruption somewhere

Good God, both Mickelson and I have been involved in professional sport in the United States. That’s the United States that shoots school children as a hobby. That’s the United States about to deny women the right to an abortion. That’s the United States that is stripping black voters of their franchise. That’s the United States that invaded Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, and half a dozen South American countries. That’s the United States that has more of its citizens in prison than any other country on earth. And that’s the United States that since the year 2000 has butchered 942 people with needles full of poison. Surely, we couldn’t play sport in a civil rights hellhole like that.

What about Israel. Oh no, of course not. Israel murders Al Jazeera journalists. Israel enforces a system of oppression and domination against Palestine. We couldn’t play sport there.

What about China? We all went there for the Olympic Games. China must be okay. But no China executes more people than the USA. China’s treatment of the Rohingya people is appalling. China has decimated democracy in Hong Kong. We can’t play sport there.

I’m sure we are all planning to go to Paris for the next Olympic Games. But what about France? Can we go there? France ranks a dismal 34^th on the United Nation’s “Human Freedom” list. That’s worse than Hong Kong, the United States, Taiwan, Chile and Slovenia. No, we can’t play there.

I’m certainly not trying to defend the human rights record of Saudi Arabia. It is unspeakably terrible. But we do need to recognise that according to the United Nations Saudi Arabia has a better human rights record than countries like China, Zimbabwe, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Turkey, UAE, Russia and India. And yet Andrew Saville is quite happy for us to play cricket, ski, swim, play soccer or play rugby in those nations without questioning our values or subjecting us to an uninformed Salem witch trial.

I’m sure you get the point. If we started being precious about the human rights record of countries where we played sport or exported milk products and meat, the list of eligible countries would be very small indeed. Being as New Zealand is second on the United Nation’s Human Right’s list, Switzerland is the only country we can play with in clear conscience. Or at least that’s the gospel according to St. Saville.

And just one last thought on hypocrisy. If Saville was offered $100million to go to Jeddah to report on the golf, he’d be on an Emirate’s A380 tonight.     

Perhaps we can bring about change

Very few of us leave our moral compass behind just because we are working in Saudi Arabia. Sure, I obeyed the rules. I didn’t demand women join the Saudi swim team or drive cars along the Jeddah waterfront. I didn’t sit on the beach drinking beer. But where I could, I pushed for change.

For example, Eyad and his brother Yamen are Syrian and were not allowed into the government’s state-run swimming pool. I spoke to the boss, Mr. Ali, and arranged permission for them to swim. I used the truthful argument that their talent would help the Saudi swimmers improve. When I returned to New Zealand Eyad came with me and next week, he swims for the Refugee Team at the FINA World Championships in Budapest. His progress will not have gone unnoticed in Saudi swimming circles.

I asked for and was given permission for Eyad and his brother to park their car in the pool carpark. Because they were Syrian their cars had previously been parked out on the road.

And respect is important. Saudi Swimming had an arrogant white South African working for them. In a superior South African manner, he clearly looked down on Saudis and Syrians. On one occasion a swimmer drove this guy to the supermarket to get some lunch. They had to go to a couple of shops to get what he wanted. They got back to the pool fifteen minutes late for work. That evening the South African’s daily report to the Saudi Swimming Head Office contained a slating condemnation of Saudi work habits.

I was incensed. The following morning, I met with the South African and the swimmer. I told the South African that sort of behaviour had no place in my pool. He was being helped and should be thankful. He must apologise immediately. Those sorts of whites do not apologise to Saudis or Syrians, but he did on that occasion.

In a minutely small way, I am hopeful tiny progress was made. Mickelson with his higher profile is capable of much more. Done well, his presence can only be good for the progress of Saudi human rights. And then I wonder what he can do about the gun lobby in his own country.

Twenty years ago, I began complaining about the policy direction of Swimming New Zealand (SNZ). I identified three features of SNZ’s plans that would not work.

• Abandoning democracy in favor of stacking the Board with Sport NZ appointees.
• Centralised training.
• A lack of trade union style athlete representation.

And then, for 20 years, I wrote over one million words pushing, shoving and pleading for anyone who would listen to understand why those issues were so important. Needless to say, my concern was not well received. One Chairman used the SNZ Annual Report to question my credibility. According to him my views were due no respect at all. And so, he continued spending $1.2 million every year for nothing. Another chairman told a New Zealand judicial Tribunal I had spent twenty years being critical of everything SNZ had done. That was a lie. Nothing written in the twenty years had changed. Every word addressed one of the three issues identified at the beginning of this post. The only change was the ever-increasing waste. In the end SNZ spent $32million on their fool’s errand.

Finally, Nick Tongue, someone who knew about swimming, took over the Board and change occurred. Centralised training was dropped. Democracy and a trade union still had to be addressed. But one reform achieved was an important step in the right direction.

They say good things take time, but who would ever have thought that meant twenty years, $32million and one million words.

What a difference that step has made. Someone in the mainstream media should investigate the transformation that has taken place at SNZ. It is a happier, more vibrant, more independent and more successful place. And that is with only one change. Imagine what the new day will bring when the democracy and trade union issues are also addressed.

Normally I would avoid rehashing all this history. However, it is relevant when good people involved in sport keep making the same mistakes. For example, on the Stuff website today Zoe George reports that, Canterbury-based former Cycling NZ board member Kevin Searle is calling for the resignation of the current Cycling NZ Board following the release of a review into the sport.

I do not know Kevin Searle, but he sounds like a pretty decent sort of bloke. He resigned from the Board of Cycling NZ after the first Heron Report achieved nothing. Now that the second Heron Report has confirmed the Boardroom neglect Searle wants the rest of the Board to follow his example and resign.

AND EVEN IF IT HAPPENED THAT WOULD ACHIVE NOTHING.

Sure, the Board are negligent, incompetent and dumb as a post. But getting rid of them will change nothing. Their replacements will be as bad. Three or four new Raelene Castle toadies will still run the show. While the lack of democracy continues Searle’s game of musical chairs will only succeed in replacing bad with bad. The constitution, the policy of Castle’s money buying Board room power has to change. Sport NZ and its leader are a scourge. While Castle has power, Searle’s plan is simply using a band aid to cure cancer.

Swimming, cycling and every other sport need to elect fully democratic Boards. Only when national sporting organisations have Boards that are democratically responsible to the members will the necessary care and responsibility materialise. If Board members are to care about the membership, they must owe their position to the membership. While the majority of each Board is appointed by the monstrosity of Sport NZ and Castle, expecting competent and compassionate leadership is a miserable fantasy. Surely I do not have to write another million words to make that point.

It was a Saturday 16 July 1977. Alison and I were having dinner with Dick Quax at the House on the Bridge in Eton. Ten days before, in Stockholm, Dick had broken the World Record for 5000m in a time of 13.12.9. I was feeling pleased with life. Earlier that afternoon I’d been for a run with Dick around Windsor Great Park. Forever I will tell the story of the day I kept up with the 5000m World Record holder.

After dinner Dick was puffing on a cigar and over a glass of port was telling us about his negotiations with track meet promoters. He said, “David, you must understand. It’s the golden rule. The man with the gold sets the rules.”

Dick was right. And in New Zealand today the woman with the gold is setting the rules. And they are rotten to the core. Only when we change that will sport improve. When we bring back elected representatives of the members setting the rules, only then will Olivia Podmore’s death be honorably addressed.    

Eyad has completed the Mare Nostrum series of meets and is now at the Swimming New Zealand (SNZ) training camp preparing for the World Championships. I was pleased with Eyad’s swims at Mare Nostrum. The table below shows his full Mare Nostrum results.

EVENT	PB	TIME	PB
Monaco 50 free	23.85	24.38	No
Monaco 50 fly	25.89	26.27	No
Monaco 100 fly	1.00.48	59.79	Yes
Barcelona 50 free	23.85	24.01	No
Barcelona 50 fly	25.89	25.95	No
Canet 50 free	23.85	24.31	No
Canet 50 fly	25.89	25.84	Yes

The most pleasing feature was his improvement in the 50m butterfly from 26.27 to 25.95 to a personal best 25.84. A progressive result like that is an important feature in a tour like the Mare Nostrum series. It is a strong indication of better things to come. Eyad’s 50m freestyle series was close to being just as successful – 24.38 to 24.01 to 24.31. His 100 butterfly time of 59.79 was a personal best but I’m sure does not yet reflect his potential in this event.

It is important to thank the North Shore Head Coach, Andy McMillan, for looking after Eyad’s training during the Mare Nostrum series. I have always been hugely protective of who helps “my” swimmers on occasions such as this. In forty years pretty much the only people I have trusted before this trip were, in athletics, Arch Jelley and in swimming Duncan Laing, Horst Miehe and Greg Meade. All four were excellent – not that they need my endorsement. Andy is number five. From what Eyad tells me Andy is the equal of his old coach, Duncan Laing. There is not much praise higher than that.   

As a result of the Mare Nostrum swims Eyad has been selected by FINA to swim in the 50m and 100m butterfly at the World Championships in Budapest. He will represent the World Refugee Olympic Program. His schedule will begin on Saturday, 18 June with the 50m butterfly.

In the meantime, Eyad is preparing with the SNZ team at the pre-championship’s Samorín, X-Bionic Sphere staging camp in Bratislava, Slovakia. Help with Eyad’s preparation has been taken over by the St. Pauls Head Coach, Graham Smith. Eyad reminded me that Graham interviewed me several years ago, when he was studying coaching at university, about the application of Lydiard/Jelley training principles in a swimming program. Thank you, Graham, for the help you have given Eyad this week. Eyad has been well cared for indeed. Also, congratulations on the terrific job Graham is doing at St. Pauls, especially with Laura Littlejohn. She’s a good one.

When you come into contact with the world class swim coaches New Zealand has, it makes you acutely aware of the ludicrous decades of centralised training the sport was forced to endure by Miskimmin and Cameron. Three words you could never say to them were, “Dumb it down.” What a stunning waste when dozens of young, talented coaches such as Andy, Graham, Gary, Jon and William were ready and available. The anchor of Sport NZ has gone. And from what I’ve seen New Zealand’s coaches are taking up the challenge in no small measure.  

And finally, well done SNZ on selecting the Samorín, X-Bionic Sphere facility. Eyad tells me the pool, the hotel and the food are first class. He can be pretty hard to please about these things. Getting Eyad’s approval means the camp must be doing things right.

You must acknowledge that ever since the new regime took over at SNZ these decisions are getting better and better. The days when a New Zealand international team was split into males and females because of a booking error are becoming a distant and dark memory. Gary Francis and the New Zealand based World Championship swimmers arrive at the camp tonight New Zealand time. Things in the sport of swimming are looking up.

The only suggestion I would have is that on a SNZ international trip such as Mare Nostrum, the World Championships and the Commonwealth Games, SNZ introduce an incentive scheme for personal best swims. It might start off at a modest $100 per PB. On this trip the total cost so far would be only $1800. Surely SNZ could afford that amount. As the years go by and swimming’s financial health improves the amount could increase. No one is saying money is necessary, but it is a nice gesture that focuses the athlete’s attention on what is important in the progress of their swimming careers.  

On behalf of Eyad and me, thank you Steve, Gary and Amanda. As Mohamed Ali said, “You done splendid.”

Words fail me. They really do. After spending half an hour last week promoting the idea of getting rid of the Queen as New Zealand’s Head of State, Du Plessis-Allan has turned her pathetic attention to New Zealand’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nanaia Mahuta. Du Plessis-Allan does not even know Mahuta’s title. She calls Mahuta “our Foreign Minister” – that will be a not so veiled insult, implying Mahuta is foreign – not really one of us. Truth is Mahuta is way more New Zealand than an import from white South Africa, who continues to promote “jaapie” poison.

The New Zealand Herald promotes Du Plessis-Allan’s views as, “opinions from our world-class journalists.” They must be taking the piss. World class journalist? You mean her that called the Pacific Islands leeches. World class clearly has a different meaning in Victoria St West.

Du Plessis-Allan has three problems with Nanaia Mahuta.

1. Mahuta does not travel enough, especially to the Pacific Islands.
2. Mahuta is neglecting her local government reforms.
3. Mahuta appointed family members to some government jobs.

Let’s look at each of these accusations.

Mahuta does not travel enough, especially to the Pacific Islands.

Du Plessis-Allan must be joking. Here she is telling us, “China’s move into the Pacific is a direct result of the West – including New Zealand – neglecting it.”It was only five minutes ago Du Plessis-Allan was hauled over the coals by the Broadcasting Standards Authority for referring to the Pacific Islands as, “It is not worth the expense of sending the PM to the Pacific Islands Forum in Nauru. The Pacific Islands wants money from us. The Pacific Islands are nothing but leeches on us”

Come-on, are the Pacific Island’s “not worth” visiting, or does Mahuta need to be, “fully focused on the rapidly changing Pacific situation.” Or is it that Mahuta has a better education than Du Plessis-Allan (MA, Hon) and is a Māori, Labour Minister of State. Perhaps qualities a far right and white South African would never credit as admirable? Her lot got out of South Africa for racist reasons. It looks like they are not going to change here.

Du Plessis-Allan spells out her double standard – in her own words. Is that what it takes to be “world class” at the New Zealand Herald.

Mahuta is neglecting her local government reforms.

You can bet your socks if Mahuta had been tripping up to the Pacific three times in the past month, Du Plessis-Allan would have had her “leeches” quotes at the ready. Mahuta would have been neglecting her work in New Zealand for islands that only “wanted our money”. Good God, even when Mahuta stays in New Zealand to work on the Three Waters reforms and the co-governance proposals, Mahuta is accused of neglecting both.

I notice Du Plessis-Allan calls the “co-governance proposals”, the “Māori co-governance proposals”. She does not understand that the word, “co” means two, Māori and Pakeha. But her view of life, some might call it racist, demands that anything involving a more democratic society is always down to the guys with the dark skins. Has South Africa’s shame has been exported here again?

Du Plessis-Allan goes on to assert that the Pacific, Three Waters and co-governance are causing the Prime Minister a problem. Why? Because, quote, “Mahuta has too much power. She is a kaumatua.” There it is again. Mahuta is brown and should be serving morning tea. You do wonder if Du Plessis-Allan is close to using her “leeches” quote as a description of the Māori caucus?

Mahuta appointed family members to some government jobs.

I want to get this exactly right.Here is Du Plessis-Allan’s quote from the New Zealand Herald.

“Then there’s the personal stuff. Act’s already raised questions in the House about the appointment of Mahuta’s family members to government jobs. At least one media outlet has run a story.”

We should all remember that this gem was written by Heather Du Plessis-Allan. That is the same Heather Du Plessis-Allan who is the third wife of Barry Soper. That is the same Barry Soper whose current job is political editor of the Newstalk ZB radio network. And we all know who’s got the prime evening slot on Newstalk ZB. Yes, it’s the same person that wrote, “Then there’s the personal stuff.” Well, Du Plessis-Allan certainly beats Mahuta in that game. She sleeps with one of her company’s bosses. The pot calling the kettle, “far right and white” perhaps?  

It would be wise for New Zealand to treat any utterance from Du Plessis-Allan with great caution. Her views are incoherent and have no place in the New Zealand we are trying to become. I’m not sure why people like Du Plessis-Allan are in New Zealand at all. Is South Africa one of those “leeches” places we’ve been told so much about?