About
In October 1978 a then 19-year-old county-standard athlete reluctantly raised his hand at the annual general meeting of the Blackheath Harriers, and was duly elected as the Young Athletes Team Manager for the club for the ensuing year. The club's youth sides had decayed over recent seasons and currently lay in the depths of a lower division of the Young Athletes National League. His first training session the following week would see all of four youngsters turn up.
Yet this marked the start of a revolution in youth athletics in the south east, and the birth of a coaching regime that would progress to the international and world stage. A massive recruitment drive supported by a robust coaching structure turned the club's fortunes on their head, and the birth of his own coaching group marked the start of what was to become 'Trackspeed1'.
Initially known as 'The John Powell Sprints Squad' (JPSS) made up mostly of Blackheath young athletes, his teams went from strength to strength, qualifying time and again for national finals, ultimately winning five consecutive national titles. The squad was getting steadily stronger, and many stars emerging on the international scene emanated from the Blackheath scheme, several from JPSS.
The defining moment in the group's development was, ironically, linked to the parting of company between John Powell and Blackheath Harriers. It led to a meeting with Sir Eddie Kulukundis OBE who himself admitted that he had "been admiring from a distance" the progress of both Blackheath's youth sides and the John Powell squad.
Yet this marked the start of a revolution in youth athletics in the south east, and the birth of a coaching regime that would progress to the international and world stage. A massive recruitment drive supported by a robust coaching structure turned the club's fortunes on their head, and the birth of his own coaching group marked the start of what was to become 'Trackspeed1'.
Initially known as 'The John Powell Sprints Squad' (JPSS) made up mostly of Blackheath young athletes, his teams went from strength to strength, qualifying time and again for national finals, ultimately winning five consecutive national titles. The squad was getting steadily stronger, and many stars emerging on the international scene emanated from the Blackheath scheme, several from JPSS.
The defining moment in the group's development was, ironically, linked to the parting of company between John Powell and Blackheath Harriers. It led to a meeting with Sir Eddie Kulukundis OBE who himself admitted that he had "been admiring from a distance" the progress of both Blackheath's youth sides and the John Powell squad.
Sir Eddie's support in not only affording JPSS athletes the benefits of annual warm weather training, and various kit and equipment deals, but giving their coach various development opportunities at home and abroad, saw JPSS kick into overdrive. Some of the top young prospects in the country all of a sudden began emerging on the international and world scene, and barely a year passed without at least one of their number appearing at the European or World Junior Championships. Management of new club Belgrave Harriers at youth and under-20 level brought more silverware, and hoards more talented young athletes into the sport. Immediately, the club gained promotion and went straight into a national final - the first club ever to achieve such a feat, and in 2000 they became national junior champions.
Eyeing progression to the senior scene though, JPSS was eventually reborn 'Trackspeed1' amid a throng of talent crashing in on the international scene. Phillips Idowu began life with the group before moving to John Herbert (with 6th place in the Olympics and a Commonwealth title to come). And enter stage left, one Chris Lambert who had been in JPSS since the mid-nineties. Following his initiation on the world scene at Annecy (World Juniors) in 1998, he became Trackspeed1's most successful athlete of all time as he worked through numerous national titles to World Students champion over 100m, European under-23 200m champion and record holder, and the squad's first qualifier for the Olympic Games in 2004.
Set that against a background of British Internationals Timothy Abeyie, Dwayne Grant, James Ellington, Michael Parper, and numerous others all spending their developmental years with Trackspeed1, and one of the most successful squads in terms of nurturing grass roots talent and bringing it through to international and world level, had been firmly established at its training base in south east London, the spiritual home of track and field in the UK - Crystal Palace.
Today, the group has moved on at a pace. The vast majority of athletes are seniors and all operating at national level if they haven't actually earned international vests yet, but a small number of 'development' athletes keep the coach's feet firmly on the ground. When life eventually evens out for him sometime around 2012/13, John Powell hopes to offer coaching to aspiring young athletes in a Trackspeed1 "Academy" set-up, drawing on any untapped local talent in schools.
All in all, Trackspeed1 is a squad for any athlete looking for self improvement in the sprints field. Its motto epitomises the unique spirit and camaraderie in the group - "achieving excellence by endeavour"! It is certainly one of the strongest - and most successful sprint groups in the UK, and probably Europe too, and with the coach now able to focus even more on work trackside, it can only be reasonable to expect yet greater successes in the future at all levels.
Any good standard sprinter interested in finding out more about Trackspeed1 should initially email the chief coach, John Powell, at trackspeed1@hotmail.com
