Great Britain’s two-time Olympic decathlon gold medallist has plenty of strings to his bow but he has only ever coached two athletes, neither from his own country and both world champions
“Not a smidgeon,” Daley Thompson exclaims when asked if he ever felt any doubt while becoming arguably the greatest British athlete in history. Thompson was unbeaten in the decathlon for nine years, from 1978 to 1987, winning two Olympic gold medals, and at the age of 61 he still holds the British record. His 8,847 points, set in 1984, is a marker of Thompson’s brilliance and a measure of how far British men in the decathlon trail in his wake.
Sitting in his gym in Putney, looking amused, Thompson reiterates his belief which meant he also played professional football for Mansfield Town. “There was never a smidgeon of doubt. When I did my first decathlon I knew I was going to be good.”
Written by Donald McRae
This news first appeared on https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2020/feb/24/daley-thompson-help-british-athletes-two-time-olympic-decathlon-champion under the title “
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