Athletics: Performance vs Potential

Here is an extract from a BBC website interview with former GB Athlete Kriss Akabusi on the current state of British Athletics. I'm really impressed with his no nonsense answer.

If you could make one change to improve the performance of our athletes what would it be?

I would reward performance not potential. If you perform, you will get money. If you get money you can prepare for next year. And guess what? If you don't perform next year, tough luck.

We have been looking at potential and setting certain criteria as to how people should be performing and where they've got to go training, and that's rubbish.

Some of the current crop got paid too much too soon. You've got to keep them lean and hungry and ready to die for the shirt. You've got to get people that are ready to step in and step up because they love the sport. And then you pay them because they're delivering.