The recent death of Arthur Lydiard has caused athletes and coaches around the world to remember and reflect on this man's great influence on the sport of distance running, as well as the training methods of almost every sport. While Arthur Lydiard published several books including Run for your Life, Running to the Top, and Running the Lydiard Way which all help to explain and promote this training philosophy, they do not include much personal information about his life and introduction into running. Garth Gilmour's new book Arthur Lydiard-Master Coach (SportsBooks Limited 2004, 17.99$) written with Lydiard, fills this role, providing insight into the life and experiences of this running legend.

The book begins with the story of Lydiard's difficult childhood in New Zealand. Gilmour describes Lydiard's childhood experiences as Lydiard's father leaves while Lydiard is still a teenager and as he is later forced to give up his dream of becoming an architect due to the Depression. Gilmour describes how Lydiard originally begins running as a means of training for rugby and then follows his early running career and introduction to coaching. Gilmour's description of how, through much of his coaching career, Lydiard must continue his jobs as a shoe factory overseer and milkman in order to make enough money to support himself and his family helps to demonstrate Lydiard's passion for the sport and for helping athletes to succeed.

The book describes how, throughout his entire career, Lydiard must battle the opponents to his training method. His method, advocating a gradual build up of long, slow, distance running accompanied by hill training in order to establish a strong aerobic base prior to any anaerobic work, was in direct opposition to the training methods of the time consisting primarily of short interval repetitions on the track. Lydiard insisted that the development of strength and endurance was necessary prior to any speed work, as he says "It was always my contention that any man can run a quartet of a mile in under a minute, but the test comes in doing four such quarters one after the other." His belief that it takes time, often years, to develop athletes was and still is met with opposition from coaches seeking immediate gains in their athletes' performances. His belief that one should train to a state of fatigue but not total exhaustion ran contrary to many of the practices of the time.

The book's examples of the successes of Lydiard athletes such as Peter Snell, Murray Halberg, Bill Baillie, Barry Magee, and John Davies at the international level serve to show the effectiveness of the Lydiard system. The book helps to illustrate Lydiard's faith in his system as he continues to spread his training philosophy not only to his native New Zealand but also all over the world as he travels to countries such as Mexico, Finland, and Venezuela, in spite of his frequently being ignored and denied the resources necessary to train his athletes. The fact that the Lydiard system of training has become the norm in training for distance running as well as many other sports serves as a testament to Lydiard's dedication and belief in his system.

The book does an excellent job bringing out Lydiard's personality both through his own words as well as through numerous anecdotes and letters from people who have known him. As Nobuya Hashizume writes about Lydiard, he "achieved greatness through common sense, hard work, and passion for the sport." What comes out repeatedly in the story is Lydiard's generosity and love of running and his belief in the need to give every athlete who asks for his help the same attention whether he is at the front or back of the pack. As Lydiard says, "There are champions everywhere. Every street's got them. All we need to do is train them properly." The stories of Lydiard doing everything from running along side of his runners to monitor their progress, to making their shoes, shows his commitment to helping each athlete succeed. This dedication to doing all he is capable of to help each athlete reach his full potential shows why Lydiard has become a model for coaches around the world. Lydiard states that "the best psychology a coach can use with an athlete is to explain exactly why the training is fashioned the way it is and why each day's training is important." Lydiard quotes such as these are scattered throughout the book and are relevant and helpful to any coach who wants to help his athletes to attain all that they are capable of.

A number of Lydiard's theories are outlined in the book and have important applications to running in America today. Lydiard's beliefs in the need for recovery, avoidance of over- racing, patience in developing athletes, fitting each athlete to the event he is best suited to, and focus on enjoying the sport and having it become a lifelong pursuit are important lessons. The book is interesting because it allows the reader to read about these ideas in the words of the person who first introduced many of them. This book is a great and motivational read for any runner, and is a timely read that will help the reader to understand the life and training principles of the man who introduced the concept of jogging to the world.

Editor note: Elaine Binkley is a sophomore at Denison University and is a two time NCAA Division III Cross Country All American. Elaine was All State in Cross Country and Track at Bishop Watterson High School.

The RUNOHIO's Book Review - A Closer Look at - various running books will be a regular column. To have your book considered for review, send a copy to: Matt McGowan, RUNOHIO, 330 Spellman Street, Granville, OH 43023 - questions email Matt McGowan at: runohio@ee.net