Arthur Lydiard: Master Coach

Arthur Lydiard was the most successful and influential running coach of the last fifty years. He burst into prominence at the Rome Olympics in 1960 when two of his protgs, Peter Snell and Murray Halberg, won Olympic gold medals on the same day. His team of runners, trained to brilliance, went on to dominate international track and marathon running for two decades. During this time he developed and perfected his revolutionary endurance-based training system designed to help any athlete become a better runner. Worldwide adoption of his technique by other running coaches, and by many coaches in other sports, has seen Lydiard-conditioned athletes winning Olympic, international and national titles and breaking records by the score. Lydiard also made possibly the greatest individual contribution to world health and fitness in history: his promotion of jogging has influenced millions of people around the globe. In Arthur Lydiard: Master Coach, with his long-time friend and co-author Garth Gilmour, he tells the full story of his remarkable life, from his early years in New Zealand to his coaching experiences in Finland, Mexico, Venezuela and elsewhere around the world. One of just 20 holders of New Zealand's highest honour, the Order of New Zealand, he has also been awarded Finland's premier honour, the White Star. Arthur Lydiard passed away December 11, 2004.