I challenge you to watch this video and not shed a tear:  Edited: Derek Redmond The Olympian who never gave up BBC News - YouTube The story of how Jim supported his son Derek in the most publicly moving way inspires because it includes such powerful motives: the desire to finish something you’ve started, bravery in the face of pain and failure, and of course the love of a father for his son.

In the video, Derek Redmond refers to the other thing he is famous for: being part of the gold medal winning 4x400m team at the World Championships in Barcelona. This is one of the most memorable bits of sport I have ever watched live (it’s a close-run thing with Super Saturday and the 2005 Ashes!). Going into the Championships, Britain had a good team: Roger Black in his pomp, and the highly talented (though injury prone) Derek Redmond had both done well in the individual event, with Roger Black getting the silver behind Roger Pettigrew of the USA. However, the other two runners, whilst good, were not sure bets. John Regis was a top class 200m runner, but not really a top flight 400m man, and Kris Akabusi was a 400m hurdler. The main problem of course was the USA team.  To say they had a track record would be an understatement; the USA had won the Olympic Gold in the event in 1988, 1984, 1976, 1968, 1964, 1960 and 1956! They were the reigning World Champions from 1989, and Pettigrew already seemed unbeatable at these championships.

One of the things I like so much about this story is that the British boys chose to do something brave. Everyone expected the 200m man, Regis, to take the first leg (he was in the team for his fast start), and Black to take the anchor leg. However, in a team meeting the day before, they decided to switch it up in an effort to unsettle the Americans. They decided to put their best man first to keep them in the race for as long as possible. The highlight of the race was seeing Akabusi sticking with Pettigrew, the World Champion and theoretically the much better runner, all the way round that final lap and then hitting the front as they came into the final straight. That took self-belief, and it took guts. I remember shouting myself hoarse as he hit the front coming off the final bend.

The other thing to learn from this is the obvious delight the team took in each other’s company and achievement; they were a great foursome who were very much greater than the sum of their parts. Teamwork matters, even in an event like the 4x400m. The following interview with the four guys is a wonderful six minutes if you have it to spare: TOKYO 1991 4X400m Relay memories - YouTube

But I will finish the last line from Roger Black in the interview: If you dare to win, and you’re brave enough to do something different and take a risk, you can achieve the ultimate. We can all learn from that.

Alistair Duncan
Interim Head