BY SCOTT HUNTER HADDOW
It was Greater Sudbury that brought Chelsey
Wilson and her father, Ralph, closer together.
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Talented sprinter Chelsey Wilson's
dedication has impressed David Case, who has come out
of retirement from coaching to assist the teenager.
Wilson is one of the country's top young runners. |
Chelsey, a sprinter from Pictou, Nova Scotia,
was in Sudbury last summer competing in the Royal Canadian
Legion Track and Field Championships.
Chelsey, 18, and her coach ran into former
Olympic coach David Case in a local shopping mall.
The three talked about sports and running.
Chelsey got a pile of tips from Case, and then got his email
address so she could get further advice if she wanted.
Chelsey got back home, implemented Case's
tips into her techniques and saw an immediate
improvement.
Chelsey had always been a good runner in the
100-metre dash, but never really dominated.
It all changed with advice from Case.
"I only really started getting serious about
running after I met Dave," said Chelsey. "I got workouts from
Case and my times dropped dramatically. I always had good
coaching, but I just needed that extra step of intense
coaching."
The coaching tips from Case thousands of
kilometres away here in Sudbury, submitted through emails and
phone calls, made Chelsey go from a
good sprinter to being ranked number one in
Nova Scotia at the high school level.
Case, who has an impressive coaching resume,
was happily retired and said he enjoyed staying out of the
limelight.
Chelsey's eagerness to get more and more
advices eventually overwhelmed Case, who felt compelled to come
out of his self-imposed retirement. "I have coached many
people, but Chelsey has 'it'," said Case. "'It' is comprised of
many things, but if you don't have 'it', you will not succeed.
There's not a lot of people that want to commit like
Chelsey.
"I asked her to give me 40 push-ups and 80
crunches, both in a minute. Three weeks later she gave me 60
push-ups and 110 crunches in a minute for both. That told me I
was dealing with someone serious."
Realizing the coaching was paying off big
time, Chelsey stepped up her commitment to training, which
meant more hours at the track.
She also realized she needed someone to also
step up and help her with raining back home.
Enter Chelsey's dad, Ralph, who has since
dedicated all his free time to help with Chelsey's renewed
passion.
Chelsey and her father were in Sudbury this
past week for an intense coaching session with Case in order to
prepare for the Nova Scotia provincial
high school championships and the Canada
Games Trials.
Father and daughter are now traveling
side-by-side, spending every second together, and the
experience is forging a strong bond.
"It's a lot of work, but it's well worth it,"
said Ralph. "I didn't get to spend a lot of time with Chelsey
before, but now, with this, I do. We have a great working
relationship and it's just great to spend so much time with
Chelsey."
Chelsey's dominating performances of late,
including a second place finish in the 100 metres at the recent
Hamilton Spectator Indoor Games, one of the country's most
historic track meets, has her talents in high demand.
Chelsey is going to York University this fall
to study kinesiology and enhance her promising track
career.
Chelsey has her sights already set on the
Canada Games, and eventually the 2008 Olympics.
"My times have shown I am ready for this
challenge," said Chelsey. "I have been working hard at this for
over a year. It has been tough at times, getting coaching
through emails, but I am focused, know what to do, and I feel I
can make the Canada Games and then the Olympics. It's what I
want."
As for Case, even though he was happily
retired, he couldn't ignore Chelsey's drive to be the
best.
"When I met Chelsey, she was probably using
40 percent of her talent," said Case. "One of the reasons I
wanted to help her was because of her
tenacity. It's nice to coach someone again
that gets 'it'."
