Jamaica Olympic legend Donald Quarrie began his sprint training sessions for Chinese coaches and athletes on Sunday at a National Training Camp in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province.
As one of Jamaica's most accomplished sprinters of all time, Quarrie won the Olympic gold in the 200 metres and the silver in the 100 metres at the Montreal Games in 1976 and led Jamaica's 4x100-metre relay team to a silver medal in the Los Angeles Olympics. He participated in as many as five Olympic Games and won medals in three consecutive editions - Montreal, Los Angeles and Moscow.
"It's my honour to have a chance to coach in China," he said. "I am here to pass on and share information with Chinese athletes and coaches. "China is a country with great potential. The talents are already there, and what they need most is some more development."
Unlike coaches who mainly stress physical exercise, Quarrie focused on the psychological and technical sides in his first training clinics in China.
"The two aspects are very important to athletes' further development," said Quarrie. "For me, I would tell my athletes to enjoy the sport rather than suffer from it. "As for the technique, I think it is the most basic element of sprint. No matter how excellent your body condition is, a sound technique will always give you a greater chance to win the game."
Quarrie was selected by Jamaica's Sports Administration to deliver lectures, which is seen as a first step in the development of a programme between Jamaica and China in the area of track and field. This is in keeping with a commitment made by Jamcaica's Prime Minister PJ Patterson to Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao during his official visit to China in June 2005.
sprinter n. 赛跑选手
psychological a. 心理学的
sound a. 合理的，有效彻底的
Jamaica n. 牙买加
consecutive a. 连续的，连贯的
Montreal n. （加拿大城市）蒙特利尔
