Athletics: Willis proud to continue Kiwi 1500m success

Nick Willis is standing on the shoulders of giants. His bronze medal at the Beijing Olympics elevated him into some illustrious company. On a recent visit to Dunedin, Willis spoke to athletics writer Alistair McMurran.

The New Zealand medal tradition in the Olympic 1500m started with Jack Lovelock in 1936 and has continued with Peter Snell, John Davies, Rod Dixon, John Walker and now Nick Willis.

Willis first became aware of the tradition when he read Garth Gilmour's biography of Peter Snell No Bugles, No Drums.

He has read the book several times.

"That had an impact on me," Willis said.

"It taught me the significance of developing a strength base to utilise the natural speed I have been given. It helped my understanding of training."

He gained an insight into the mentality of the top New Zealand runners when he read Ivan Agnew's book Kiwis Can Fly that highlighted how Walker, Dixon and Dick Quax dominated racing in Europe in the 1970s and culminated in Walker becoming the first runner to break the 3min 50sec barrier for the mile in Gothenburg in 1975.

"It showed me how they dealt with success and failure on the European circuit," Willis said.

Willis spoke to Walker, Quax, Dixon and Snell to gain valuable insights into top level international racing.

"Each of them gave me tips and made me feel that it was my destiny to continue the New Zealand tradition," he said.

Willis hopes New Zealanders will be looking for the next runner to continue that tradition in five, 10 or 20 years time.

"There has got to be a another New Zealander because we have continued that tradition for the past 72 years," he said.

But it is not only the New Zealand greats that have influenced Willis.

English runners Steve Ovett, Steve Cram and Sebastian Coe also impressed him.

"I liked their attitude, charisma and the confidence they showed in the late 1970s and early 1980s," he said.

"They would still be great athletes today.

"The Africans come from a different cultural background and it is hard to replicate them."

Willis has watched the great 1500m races of the past on the Internet over the past two years.

"They ran fast 800m as well and I have followed their example. It has helped my racing," he said.

"It has made a difference in the sprint at the end of the race."

Willis resembles Lovelock by the thoughtful way he has approached his training.

"I have a piece of scrap paper with me every day and write down different training ideas that might work for me," he said.

"But I am not meticulous or disciplined about keeping a record after the training session. All my thought processes are about what I can do in the future.

"I haven't kept a training diary for five years. My brother, Steve, kept a record of this year's training , but I don't have a specific record logged down.

"When athletes do that they run the risk of becoming a slave to their training log rather than what they should be doing."

Willis does not use the Lydiard training method and has seldom run 160km in a week.

"Walker, Dixon and Quax said they used the Lydiard method," he said.

"But if you look at their training they might have had the odd week running 100 miles [160km], but slight niggles would come up and they would end up averaging 80 miles [128km] a week.

"I'm a great believer in holding a consistent 70 to 80 miles [112km to 128km] a week. I don't want to be a slave to the Sunday to Sunday type schedule."

Willis adjusts his training to how his body is feeling on the day and this enables him to maintain a consistent mileage.

If he feels tired he will do less.

Willis intends to race the 1500m at the London Olympics in 2012.

"It's my best chance of a gold medal," he said.

In Beijing, Willis ran the fastest time by any New Zealand 1500m Olympic medallist.

His 3min 34.16sec beat the times run by Lovelock, Snell and Walker when they won the gold medals.

"It meant a lot to me to run so well in a fast race. It was my third race and followed the heat and semifinals. It gave me a lot of confidence to know that I can still produce my best after three hard races."

Willis is a committed Christian and believes that his faith helped him to win the bronze medal in Beijing.

It was four years ago, just before the Athens Olympics, that Willis decided "to trust God.

His plan for my life was more important than what I desired".

The big difference between Willis and most of his opponents is his relaxed manner on the starting line.

His competitors have a grim look and fear in their eyes.

"I have a smile on my face and I'm really excited. I feel the freedom and don't have the bondage of pressure and expectation of my opponents," Willis said.

One of Willis' heroes is Scottish sprinter Eric Liddell, who refused to race in his specialist 200m on the Sunday due to his religious beliefs and won the gold medal in his non-specialist 400m at the 1924 Olympic Games in Paris.

Willis said one of the greatest temptations of being a professional athlete was to run for the glory, the fame and the money and be put on a pedestal as a celebrity.

"You might be able to buy a big house, fast car and a boat and live the celebrity lifestyle," Willis said.

"But I don't believe it ultimately brings joy. Look at all the depression and sadness you see in the tabloids about the celebrities.

"The ultimate satisfaction is to be content with what you have been given. You then get joy from God, your friends and your family."

Nick and Steve Willis are the only brothers in the history of New Zealand athletics who have both run sub-4min miles.