From Knox to Dyson: Coaching, Amateurism and British Athletics, 1912- 1947

Abstract

Coaching has a long history in athletics, dating back to the era of professional pedestrians such as Captain Barclay. By the early twentieth century, because of the dominance of the amateur hegemony, the notion of coaching in British athletics was in retreat. Governing bodies like the Amateur Athletics Association associated coaching with professionalism. However, due to the rise in international competition, especially the Olympic Games, this idea was reconsidered. As Britain began to slip from its place as the pre-eminent sporting nation, coaching took on a greater significance among the athletics hierarchy at least as far back as 1912. This article examines this process from 1912 to 1947, when criticism over Britain’s performance increasingly began to be thought of as a reflection of national prestige and the fitness of the nation. In addition, it locates coaching developments not only within the shifting nature of amateurism but argues that coaching itself had an important role in changing the subtle and complex meanings of amateurism.