{"id":67580,"date":"2014-04-25T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2014-04-25T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.arenaswim.com\/uncategorized\/chad-le-clos-talks-relationships\/"},"modified":"2014-04-25T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2014-04-25T00:00:00","slug":"chad-le-clos-talks-relationships","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.arenaswim.com\/en\/elite-team\/chad-le-clos-talks-relationships\/","title":{"rendered":"Chad le Clos talks relationships"},"content":{"rendered":"

Chad le Clos talks about his relationships with the water, his family, coach and fans.<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

OVERVIEW<\/strong><\/p>\n

Chad Le Clos<\/strong><\/a> seared himself on to the consciousness of sports fans across the world when he beat his idol Michael Phelps in his final 200m butterfly race at the 2012 Olympics.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Le Clos inflicted the first defeat on Phelps over the distance at Olympic or world level since Sydney 2000 when he out-touched the American by 0.05 seconds.<\/p>\n

Last year the Graham Hill-trained swimmer won two gold medals at the World Championships in Barcelona, determined to forge his own identity rather than be known as the man who beat Phelps.<\/p>\n

On the horizon are the Commonwealth Games with the World Championships in Kazan in 2015 before all eyes turn to Rio de Janeiro the following year.<\/p>\n

Here Chad talks about the relationships that are so important in his life: with the water, his coach, his family and his fans.<\/p>\n

He charts his journey from a precociously talented if shy child through the devastation of his mother\u2019s battle with breast cancer to the steely, determined Olympic and world champion who is resolute as a role model.<\/p>\n

WATER<\/h2>\n

\"Chad<\/p>\n

Chad was introduced to the water by his father Bert as a very young child in Durban.<\/p>\n

The youngster took to it immediately and so a water baby was born.<\/p>\n

Football was Chad\u2019s first love but such was his talent in the water that in 2000 \u2013 having just turned eight – he joined Seagulls Swimming Club to train under Graham Hill.<\/p>\n

That same year one of Hill\u2019s charges Terence Parkin won the silver medal in the 200m breaststroke at the Sydney Olympics, a feat all the more notable given the swimmer\u2019s deafness.<\/p>\n

Chad was in his own words \u201ca really shy, very shy boy\u201d and one who went to pieces when tasked with delivering a report as swimming captain in front of his primary school.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember standing up for the first time and I thought to myself \u2018I can do this!\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I was like \u2018G-g-g-g-o-o-o-d-d-d m-m-m-m-o-o-o-o-r-r-r-r-n-n-n-n morn, morning,\u2019 \u2013 I just crumbled.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt took me a while to get better. I wasn\u2019t so shy as to not speak to people \u2013 if they spoke to me I would speak back – but I wouldn\u2019t lead conversations.\u201d<\/p>\n

His prowess meant he would race boys at least two years his senior meaning Chad was constantly the youngest in his training group.<\/p>\n

Always the junior and shy to boot, did the water offer any protection?<\/p>\n

\u201cI had to try and get used to being the youngest in the group, that was how it had always been.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I made the senior Olympic squad I was only 14, 15 and I was training with all the Olympians and world champions.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was always the youngest: I guess I was a little bit intimidated.<\/p>\n

\u201cI always had to go up (to older age groups) so sure you could say it was a place of refuge because I was always in control of everything I did.<\/p>\n

\u201cI could decide how fast I was going to go that day, I didn\u2019t have to rely on anyone else.\u201d<\/p>\n

Growing up by the Indian Ocean, Chad joined Durban Surf Lifesaving Club at the age of 11.<\/p>\n

However, any thoughts of a sea-racing career were quickly dispelled after he replaced an injured friend in a race in Cape Town.<\/p>\n

Chad came 20th<\/sup>. Out of 20.<\/p>\n

If he is found in the sea, it will be on a surf board.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am a little afraid of the sea to be honest. I am just a bit scared of the big waves, I don\u2019t like to be held under the water.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s big surf in Durban and I feel a lot safer having a board.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t like to not be in control and in the sea you\u2019re not \u2013 you\u2019re not even in control of yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Instead, the pool has become a second home and a place where he can be found every day.<\/p>\n

For Chad, such dedication is imperative or else he loses his feel for the water.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is probably one of the most important things.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is almost the way that you hold the water, you catch the water.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you pull through at the top, the first inch of your hand, and you feel the water, the way you pull it past your body. That is what they mean by feel for the water.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s like when you have a feel for your surroundings \u2013 you can pick up from a very young age if someone naturally has a feel for the water and through training it gets better.\u201d<\/p>\n

HIS COACH<\/h2>\n

\"Chad<\/p>\n

Chad\u2019s potential was identified by teacher Lindsay Manthey at Penzance Primary School who suggested to his father the boy be given professional coaching.<\/p>\n

So began the partnership with Hill.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been great. We have achieved great things together: he has formed me as a swimmer.\u201d<\/p>\n

What is the key to their relationship?<\/p>\n

\u201cYou have to trust your coach, everything else is secondary. If you can trust your coach on what he is giving you and what he is telling you to do, the battle is half won.<\/p>\n

\u201cGraham is really good one on one. I think that is what makes him really great.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are realistic with one another.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of coaches, especially in South Africa, have a tendency to give swimmers false hope of where they can go, who they can beat, what they can do.<\/p>\n

\u201cGraham was always realistic in goals he set and up until now you can say it has gone according to plan.<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously there are some exceptions: some victories we didn\u2019t expect to happen so soon – maybe the Commonwealths in 2010. Everything otherwise has been spot on.\u201d<\/p>\n

While he has had invitations to train in the United States, loyalty, proximity to his family and the success he has already enjoyed with his current set-up means he will not be enticed away.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere has to be that sense of loyalty. For me there is also the saying \u2018don\u2019t fix what\u2019s not broken\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe loyalty aspect comes into it but with Graham \u2013 why would I want to change a winning formula?\u201d<\/p>\n

HIS FAMILY<\/h2>\n

\"Chad<\/p>\n

Chad comes from a close-knit family and is one of four children, with an older sister and brother as well as 15-year-old Jordan, another swimmer who is aiming for the 2020 Olympics.<\/p>\n

As many as 60 family and friends are planning to support him at the national championships just as they did at the 2012 Olympic trials when they occupied a quarter of a stand.<\/p>\n

He recognises the importance of such backing, saying: \u201cIt\u2019s amazing to have that support. You don\u2019t realise how much that actually plays a role until you get older.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I was a kid I always took it for granted that my parents were always there watching and now I realise how important it is having them there.\u201d<\/p>\n

There were dark days for the family though in March 2010 when his mother Geraldine was diagnosed with breast cancer.<\/p>\n

Instantly calling to mind the date of the diagnosis, Chad\u2019s parents kept the news from him for over a fortnight because of the upcoming Commonwealth trials as well as school demands.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wasn\u2019t happy they kept it from me but they didn\u2019t want to shift my focus.<\/p>\n

\u201cI knew something was up: I didn\u2019t know what it was but when they told me I was just really upset, really upset.<\/p>\n

\u201cThankfully my mum pulled through.\u201d<\/p>\n

Geraldine accompanied Chad to the Youth Olympics in Singapore that summer just before chemotherapy.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was great because I won my first international gold medal there: she was there in the stands so it was really cool.\u201d<\/p>\n

Chad is now involved with cancer awareness campaigns.<\/p>\n

Jordan \u2013 he of the \u2018My Brother the Phelps Slayer\u2019 T-shirt \u2013 also trains under Hill and the pair have a close relationship.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really hope he can improve and do what he wants to achieve.<\/p>\n

\u201cSwimming is such a cruel sport: 100th<\/sup> of a second can make the biggest difference, I know that beating Phelps.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe has got to decide what he wants to do. It can\u2019t be my dream for him to make the Olympics – it has to be his dream, not anyone else\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n

FANS<\/h2>\n
\"The<\/pre>\n
Chad\u2019s 2012 Olympic success saw him garner attention more akin to a pop star.<\/p>\n
He accompanied Melanie Olhaus to her high school dance prompting even more female attention, notably on Twitter.<\/p>\n
And so Chad\u2019s Ladies \u2013 Twitter handle @ChadCougars \u2013 and the Official Chadettes came into being.<\/p>\n
Four of Chad\u2019s Ladies from across the world \u2013 and whose only link is an interest in Chad \u2013 all flew to support him in Barcelona last year.<\/p>\n
Chad says: \u201cEvery year for my birthday they send me gifts: usually a T-shirt saying something like Cougar Power or Cougars Love Me. This time it was Cougar Candy.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey are really cool.\u201d<\/p>\n
While such attention is fun, Chad recognises the importance of using his profile in a positive way.<\/p>\n
Citing Phelps, Muhammad Ali and Parkin as his inspirations, he says: \u201cI think it\u2019s really important: especially because I know what it feels like to be a fan of someone.<\/p>\n
\u201cI guess you could say I have been let down before by some big guys in South Africa \u2013 I won\u2019t mention names.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn South Africa I think we are lacking in role models or inspiration.<\/p>\n
\u201cHopefully with me and Cameron (van der Burgh) winning at the Olympics there is some inspiration for people like my brother or youngsters in South Africa.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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