Olympic gold medalist Linford Christie interview: "I like Kapil Dev and Imran Khan"

The brand ambassador for the TCS 10k run in Bangalore this year is the sprinter who officially represented the UK but is a Jamaican at heart – Linford Christie. Christie is among the most ornamented British male athletes; he has won gold medals in the four major competitions – the Olympic Games, the Commonwealth Games, the European Championships and the World Championships. He holds the British record of completing 100m in less than 10 seconds, and is also the first European to do so. He has 10 gold medals along with 23 championship medals.

In 1993, Linford was bestowed with the ‘BBC Sports Personality of the Year’ and the ‘European Athlete of the Year’ awards. Linford’s success in athletics spanned over 17 years and has continued in the form of coaching young athletes to live their dream. He has coached several top British athletes to success, including Olympic gold medallists Katherine Merry and Darren Campbell. He currently coaches Britain’s leading athletes such as Olympic Champion Mark Lewis Francis, Commonwealth gold medallist Laura Turner and others.

Christie talked to us in a press conference about his experiences so far, and he has a special message for everyone.

Q. How have you found the atmosphere in Bangalore so far?

Christie: Bangalore has been great; I love being here and I am having a great time. I am very glad to be back here for the 10k run and I’m looking forward to some great performances.

Q. What about the 10k run appeals to you?

Christie: It’s good to see people coming out in large numbers to participate in the event. Sport is fun. People who take up sports are healthy, fit and active, which becomes a way of life eventually. More people should be encouraged to take up sport, especially children. I’m just here to spread the gospel.

Q. Do you think being voted as the BBC Sportsman of the Year in 1993 was validation for all your hard work?

Christie: Athletics is not easy; it takes years of practice, effort and discipline to do well in it. It is great to be recognized by your peers and others. You want to do well for yourself and not for others, but having said that, it is important for athletes to be recognized for the effort they put in. I guess that’s what happened with me being given that award, and it was a great feeling.

Q. Who do you expect to do well at the London Olympics in sprinting?

Christie: I think the Jamaicans. It is great to see the Jamaicans do so well despite it being such a small country. They are extremely dedicated athletes. I think the likes of Tyson Gay, Usain Bolt and Nesta Carter will be great. The trials are extremely challenging and the competition is cut-throat. The competition will definitely be between Jamaica and the USA.

I also think it is great to see a lot of Indian athletes qualifying for the London Olympics. India is a large country and has vast reserves of talent unexplored. It would be great to have more Indians qualifying for the Olympics and bringing back some medals.

Q. What motivated you to take up coaching?

Christie: I would say it was my undying love for the sport that motivated me to take up coaching. Having had a career spanning 17 years, I thought it was time I passed my knowledge and expertise onto another generation. Knowledge when kept to oneself hardly means anything; when shared, the value of it increases. I wanted to help youngsters live their dream. I thought I would be tired after having competed for so many years, but the passion and love for the sport was still alive in me, and so I took up coaching.

Q. How satisfied were you when your proteges Darren Campbell and Katherine Merry won Olympic medals?

Christie: Everyone wants to win an Olympic medal when they enter the event. I have been very fortunate to have done both – won an Olympic medal myself and coached athletes to win. It was a very satisfying feeling to have had Katherine and Darren win medals at the Olympics; it was validation that my knowledge was put to good use.

Q. How has athletics moulded you as a person?

Christie: That is a very good question. I think when one takes up sport, discipline becomes a major part of one’s routine; you have to be disciplined while training, be more attentive, develop greater focus. You learn so much every single day that it ultimately rubs on to your everyday life. You learn how to take in victory, how to remain composed in difficult times – sport teaches you so much that you can utilize in your day-to-day routine. I hope all that has made me a better person.

Q. Do you follow cricket?

Christie: Yes, there are quite a few players who I like in cricket. But I’m a bit old-school. I like Kapil Dev and Imran Khan and that generation of cricketers.

Q. Who’s your favourite West Indian cricketer?

Christie: To be honest, I have no idea who’s playing in the team right now. We’ve not been having a great run in the past few years. A lot of youngsters are taking up sports other than cricket. Hopefully, it’ll turn around soon.

Q. What has been your greatest accomplishment?

Christie: Having been able to live my dream and getting others to realize and live theirs are things that I greatly cherish. I never in my wildest dreams thought that I would get so far, but I’m grateful that I have. Having won gold at the World Championships is very special to me as those competitions are really tough; winning the Olympic medals was fantastic too. I guess ultimately, being able to do well in what I love is my biggest accomplishment.

Q. What message would you like to convey to your listeners before we wrap up?

Christie: I would like to see more people getting involved with sport. I think it is very important to encourage children from an early stage to be involved with some kind of sport. Sport is as big a career as say, that of a doctor, lawyer, engineer or anything for that matter. Kids always want what they see. If they are pushed in the right direction from a young age, it would do a lot of good for them.

Check out the 1992 Olympic final in Barcelona where he won gold -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5j0el1sJ5c&feature=related