Preston Athletics Club and Sunday Morning Training
I was at my old club on Sunday 21 October and Jeff Hawkins was coaching his large squad. Melissa Drew, a sprinter, is seen jumping over hurdles at Edwardes Lake Athletics Track in Reservoir.
He successfully coaches all events and is an example of the talented coaches in sport who do so much for no financial return and actually provide elite coaching. In fact I have been involved with team sports at the professional level for 20 years and to be honest a coach like Jeff does it better than some I know on 1/2 million dollars or more. My brother in law ( Gus Puopolo) also provides a world class service to athletes at Ringwood and charges nothing and gets results. In all sports not just athletics. The contrast in coaching abilities with some ( not all!) of the people I have worked with is amazing when one compares the work ethic and ability of guys like these. But of course AFL and Rugby and all the other PRO sports get lots of exposure, so if a coach is involved with a winning team then instant guru status ensues. And that is the way it is. C’est la vie. Perception often becomes reality.
I started at Preston in 1967 and my dad coached me till the 70’s. I won the Nationals in 1980 training at Preston then went to the AIS in 1981.
Jeff is seen coaching Melissa Drew ( white shirt) who has run 12.2 electronic and also Olivia Natoli ( blue shirt) who has just started athletics and has run 13.6.
He can be seen giving advice to distance runners one minute and then conducting a plyometric session. Pretty impressive.
Melissa Drew seems to me to be a real hard working athlete who has ability.
Good luck to Jeff, Melissa, Olivia and the rest of the squad for the season.
loris bertolacci 