Dai Greene's manager Jamie Baulch tells Sky Sports what makes the world champion so special.
We get a behind the scenes insight into world champion Dai Greene from his manager Jamie Baulch
Jamie Baulch, the Olympic medallist and now manager of London 2012 medal favourite Dai Greene, told
Sky Sports that his man fully deserves to be GB captain for the Olympics after such a memorable couple of years.
Baulch claimed Olympic silver in Atlanta as part of the 4x400m relay team, but nowadays he is guiding the careers of today's crop of British athletes, and world 400m champion Greene is the top man in his stable.
Always a colourful character on the track, Baulch is taking his own unique approach into athlete management and his relaxed style obviously clicks with fellow Welshman Greene, who heads to London looking to complete the full set of major titles.
Baulch has trained with and been coached by some of the great names in athletics, so the glowing praise he has for Greene has added weight to it - and after he was announced as the GB athletics team skipper for London 2012, we caught up with Baulch to get an insight into an athlete who could steal the show.
"It's funny really, Dai Greene has just been announced as captain of the GB team and here's me doing this in the rain," Baulch told
Sky Sports as he took part in the Nature Valley Olympics in a rainy London.
Honours
"Over the last two years, he's won the Euro champs , world champs, Commonwealth Games, Continental Cup, he should be made a Sir, leave the OBE, MBE lets go straight to Sir!
"It's an honorary position to be captain, where he has to do a speech to all the team, he's done one before and he's brilliant, the team thought he was funny, he says it how it is - and to do it at a home Olympics is mind blowing.
"He genuinely deserves it, there are athletes out there who are good at their events but what Dai's got is that special something."
Greene cuts an ultra-confident figure at times, as most top athletes have done in the past, but Baulch says this is merely a supreme belief in his ability and a mentality that has eclipsed many of the great British athletes in the years gone by.
"The thing with Dai Greene is - I used to train with Linford Christie, Colin Jackson, Frankie Fredericks, Darren Campbell, just to mention a few - and out of all those people I've mentioned Dai is another level, maybe not in physical talent but what he's got above and beyond every other athlete I've met is that mental edge.
Relaxed
"We went for a coffee together ahead of the Daegu final and he was so relaxed, he just didn't care. If you asked him about pressure he'd say no way, why feel pressure when it's what you want.
"Another thing Dai's got over every other athlete in his event is consistency, if he's fit he'll run the same every day of the week, where his competitors are inconsistent, like Bershawn Jackson, all of that hoo-hah about him and he didn't even make the Olympic team.
"The whole aim of it is consistency and Dai's got that more than everyone else, he's also just got this sheer belief in himself.
"He'll say to me, genuinely, the day before a race, 'I'm going to come second in this one, I just don't feel great', but then I'll ask him the day before another race and he'll say ' yeah, I'm going to win this one, I'll see you later'.
"It's just because he knows about himself and athletics is ultimately all about yourself, so if he knows he can run 47.8 then unless someone runs a blinder he should win. That's what he's got above anyone else."
Career change
Baulch himself has made the smooth transition from athlete to manager, and he believes his own style from his running days has helped him become a big asset for his team - especially Greene who is arguably Britain's best bet for a track medal.
"During my career I did things a bit differently with some different types of sponsorship deals and things so I try and do that for my athletes now, getting different types of things for them - and being a former athletes definitely helps.
"Especially with Dai, we're both similar characters and get one well - last year at Daegu we had a bit of a Jerry Maguire moment when Dai crossed the line when we just pointed at each other, and he was soon telling me to show him the money!
"But we're still competitive, I'm doing this Nature Valley Olympics with Roger Black, we're both Olympic medallists running around in a field in the rain over all these obstacles dressed as farmers but we're still both trying to win, although Roger's definitely more competitive than I am, he's been pulling us all up on the rules and all sorts!
"It's so funny though as it's how it works these days but I'm stood here in the rain doing this as Dai Greene's being named captain of the Olympic athletics team- times have changed!"
Jamie Baulch helped Nature Valley - official supplier and sponsor of the London 2012 Olympic Games - bring the country to the capital with the Nature Valley games. To watch all the action from the day visit www.facebook.com/naturevalleyuk
