Elitetrack: Sport Training & Conditioning

Baylor’s Hart Not Coaching Wariner in 2008

Legendary coach led former Bear to Olympic gold medal

WACO. Texas – Legendary Baylor track and field coach, Clyde Hart, announced today that he will no longer serve as the personal coach for Jeremy Wariner, the world’s number-one ranked 400-meter runner and defending Olympic Champion.

Hart, considered the world’s top 400-meter coach and the coach of the past three Olympic 400-meter champions, cited that the major reason for declining to coach Jeremy was a new contract proposal that represented significant changes from previous contracts.

“I have enjoyed the five years that I spent as Jeremy’s coach,” said Hart. In addition to the Olympic gold medal, Wariner won the gold medal at the 2005 and 2007 World Championships, setting a personal record each year. “I felt that he was on pace to break the world record last year. Although he didn’t achieve that goal, he still was able to run 43.45, the third fastest of all time,” Hart said. “I feel Jeremy will continue to be successful because he has a strong desire to excel and is blessed with tremendous athletic ability. I wish him the very best in his pursuit of Olympic gold,” said Hart.

Hart has also coached Sanya Richards since she turned pro after the 2004 Olympics. There was no World Championship in 2006, but Hart guided Wariner and Richards to undefeated seasons outdoors in the 400 meters that year, including an American record for Richards and a sweep of the IAFF Golden League meets for both athletes.

Hart will continue to coach Richards, the world’s top-ranked female runner over 400 meters the past three years, as well as continue his duties coaching Baylor’s 400-meter runners and 4x400-meter relays. Baylor’s men’s 4x400-meter relay won both the indoor and outdoor NCAA titles in 2007.

Baylor’s head coach for 42 years before moving to the Director of Track and Field in 2005, Hart has coached 32 national champions (15 individual and 17 relay) and 475 men’s All-America performances, including 188 women’s all-America performances. His men’s 4x400 meter relay teams earned outdoor All-America status for 28 consecutive years and captured 16 NCAA titles. Hart’s athletes turned in 10 World-Record performances (9 individual and 1 relay) and 9 NCAA record performances.

Hart has been named National Track and Field Coach of the Year eight times in the last 18 years. He was named NCAA Indoor Coach of the Year in1989 and 1996, and was named the Nike National Track and Field Coach of the Year by USA Track and Field in 1996, 2004 and 2006. Additionally, Hart received the United States Olympic Track and Field Coach of the Year award in 1996, 2004, and 2006. In the eleven years that this award has been given, no other coach has won it more than once.

From the AP:

Defending Olympic 400-meter champion Jeremy Wariner and his longtime coach have split over a contract dispute with the Beijing Games just seven months away.

Clyde Hart, who has coached Wariner for five years beginning with their days at Baylor University, said Tuesday that Wariner wanted to pay him less than his previous contracts.

Hart declined to say if Wariner has lined up a new coach. Wariner’s agent is world record holder Michael Johnson, another Hart protege.

Hart said his previous one-year contract paid him a percentage of Wariner’s earnings and that the runner offered him a new deal for less pay.

“The better he did, the better the coach would be compensated” under the old deal, Hart said. “If he didn’t do good, I would suffer also.”

In addition to the Olympic gold medal, Wariner won the gold medal at the 2005 and 2007 World Championships, setting a personal record each year under Hart’s tutoring. He’s favored to repeat his Olympic medal this year.

Hart deflected a question whether the dispute strained his relationship with Johnson and Wariner.

“It’s been a strange situation all the way around,” Hart said.

Johnson did not immediately respond to a telephone message seeking comment left with Wariner’s manager, Deon Minor. According to Wariner’s Web site, he’s scheduled to compete at the Sydney Grand Prix in Australia on Feb. 16.

Hart has long been considered a 400-meters guru with an international reputation for developing some of the biggest names in the track.

Hart is an eight-time National Track and Field Coach of the Year and received the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Coach of the Year award in 1996, 2004, and 2006.

Hart said he enjoyed coaching Wariner but made his decision based on the business of the sport.

“It was good money, and probably most people would jump at it in a heartbeat,” he said, without giving specifics. “I just felt that any type of cutback wasn’t justified.”

Hart said he will continue to coach Sanya Richards, the world’s top-ranked female runner over 400 meters the past three years.

“I feel Jeremy will continue to be successful because he has a strong desire to excel and is blessed with tremendous athletic ability. I wish him the very best in his pursuit of Olympic gold,” Hart said.

Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press

I didnt know Hart had so many awards/honors.  Those numbers are amazing.

Winnesota - 30 January 2008 02:34 AM

I didnt know Hart had so many awards/honors.  Those numbers are amazing.

Which is what makes this move all that much stranger...in an Olympic year too.

I agree. Any word on new coaches yet?

Michael Ford apparently.

http://sport.guardian.co.uk/breakingnews/feedstory/0,,-7268717,00.html

Wow, Hart’s assistant...sounds like there could be some drama

Ford has already stated that there was some tension but he wanted to do what was best for JW.

I know Hart uses the same template from year to year but as is the case with many great coaches, it’s not just what’s on the paper...it’s the micromanagement and minor modifications of those workouts that put people over the top.

Drama? Let’s hope not.  Sounds like JW will still be working at Baylor.  I wonder how much different the “minor modifications” will be.  Most of the material I’ve read/seen on this site regarding Hart’s training ideas seem to be on the higher volume/less intense workouts.  Do you think Ford is more of a short and fast guy?  Maybe stress more Max V.

As far as I’m aware Ford pretty much uses the Hart method for the 400m runners but uses more speed for the short sprinters.

More goals for Wariner from AP

Olympic and world 400-meter champion Jeremy Wariner still has some goals. Mostly he’s shooting to break the world record of 43.18 seconds set by his agent and fellow Baylor alum Michael Johnson.

“I want to defend my title this year, break the world record and be the first one to run 42 seconds,” Wariner said this week in Beijing. “And I want to keep my dominance and be No. 1 for the rest of my career.

The former Baylor all-American is opening his outdoor season in the next few weeks in Sydney and Melbourne in Australia, and he just fired longtime coach Clyde Hart, replacing him with Hart protege Michael Ford.

“We just thought it was the right time to do it,” Wariner said. “It wasn’t an inappropriate time. It was all my decision. Michael had nothing to do with it. I know some said Michael had a decision in it. It was all me. I felt like it was a good time to do and my training has been going great.”

Wariner said “money” was part of the problem, but not the entire reason for the split.

Michael Johnson: I didn’t come between Wariner and coach

11:13 PM CST on Thursday, February 14, 2008

By KATE HAIROPOULOS and ALBERT BREER / The Dallas Morning News

MCKINNEY – Michael Johnson, the five-time Olympic gold medalist, said Thursday he was not involved in the contract dispute that recently caused reigning 400-meter world and Olympic champion Jeremy Wariner to part ways with legendary Baylor coach Clyde Hart.

Johnson, who was coached by Hart, is now Wariner’s agent.

“To both those guys’ credit, they didn’t involve me in it, because it would’ve been difficult for me,” Johnson said during a media event at the Michael Johnson Performance Center. “Coach Hart is like a father to me. And Jeremy, certainly I have a great relationship with him.

The split came as a surprise with the Beijing Olympics approaching in August and Wariner’s recent times threatening Johnson’s world record of 43.18 seconds.

Johnson said Wariner, an Arlington Lamar graduate, should continue to thrive while training in Waco under new coach Michael Ford, a Baylor assistant and Hart protégé.

“He’s only 24 and he’s already running some incredibly fast times, and that’s not just because coach Hart is his coach or because I’m his agent,” said Johnson, a Dallas native. “It’s because he’s a great athlete, and he’s learned the event.”

Johnson said it is possible for Wariner to break his world record this year.

“You never know with records,” Johnson said. “I was a tenth of a second off the world record in 1995, and it was four years later before I actually broke it.

“He’s doing well. The thing that makes me confident he will break it is that he’s running so fast, so consistently at 24 years old.”