Loris Bertolacci

In this podcast I am chatting with Nathan Stockley. Nathan is currently in China working with Chinese Weightlifting in the build up to the Tokyo Olympics. We chat about his experiences there and also simply working in China. Nathan has a Masters qualification in Strength and Conditioning from the University of Edinburgh and has extensive experience in team sports in the UK. We explore topics such as using the Olympic lifts in training athletes and how to introduce the Olympic lifts to the developing athlete. We chat about the debate over whether the Olympic lifts are worth the investment in time in elite and junior settings. Nathan has had an amazing experience working with the best weightlifters in the world in the past 3 years. 

Brentan Parsons is the current Strength and Conditioning Manager for the Shanghai Institute of Sport in China. Till late 2019 he held dual roles with this and as head S&C lead for the Chinese National Sprint Cycling team. His first role in China was with the Chinese National Basketball team in 2010. This evolved into his High Performance Management role with the Shanghai Institute where he combined hands on S&C with many sports such as Volleyball and managing staff and facilities. He spent 10 years prior to that with 3 AFL clubs in Australia in a variety of roles. Before that he worked with the Victorian Institute of Sport assisting sports such as hockey and cycling. He was a Rugby Union player as an athlete and represented Victoria. In this podcast we discuss his journey in Strength and Conditioning. We also then discuss some very practical aspects of S&C for sprint cycling. Brentan provides some basic benchmarks and clarity on the needs of preparing sprint cyclists. Brentan has had a fascinating career as hands on S&C with intermittent team sports and cycling and also as a High Performance Manager in China. 

Todays podcast is with Chris Dennis. Currently chris is the strength and conditioning manager with the Geelong Cats AFL team. Chris started at the Cats in 2002 as an unpaid intern. This evolved into a full time role at Geelong in 2005. He then worked at the Queensland Reds for a few years with Eddie Jones. This progressed to stints with Leinster Rugby union and Paris La Stade before returning to geelong in 2012. His determination to get a start in AFL is well documented and humorous in this podcast. It was obvious to me with his work ethic and smarts he would progress in this industry. We chat about his development, AFL, Union and many other current topics in the AFL landscape. We chat about when in Paris he was sought after by Essendon Football club prior to the ASADA saga their but remained in Paris. Chis is not one to self promote but has had a wonderful career in preparing AFL and Rugby Union teams and is a world class practitioner. 

Grace Giles was part of the highly successful Victorian Roller Derby team and a pioneer in the sport in Australia from 2007. In this podcast we discuss her evolution from working in a coffee shop to fund her sport to owning an F45 franchise in New York. Grace embraced Strength and Conditioning in 2011 at Advanced Athletes Performance. She then completed her personal training certificates before transitioning to an Exercise Science Degree. Grace was a highly motivated athlete and has used this this work ethic and passion to transition to owning an F45 franchise in New York. Fantastic chat discussing the sport of Roller Derby, her career development and an insight into the competitive PT scene in New York. It also highlights the different pathways in the S&C/fitness industry. Grace talks about the passion needed to progress in the industry and this is a huge takeaway from this podcast. A fascinating journey. 

This podcast is with Jo-Anne Karaitiana. Playing junior ITF she also won 2 doubles national titles and semi finalist in singles nationals. At US College played in team that won 2 conference USA titles. Women's WTA ranking in singles and doubles and top 50 in Australia. Now Director Tennis Box Hill Senior College. Physical preparation and Tennis coach National Academy Tennis Australia and diverse roles in strength and conditioning with sports like football and netball. Qualified in Exercise Science, fully accredited as a Tennis coach and doing her Masters in Strength of Conditioning at Edith Cowan University. She talks about her career development and meshing tennis coaching with strength & conditioning. Backdrop is an insight into a young player who had to work part time in menial jobs as a junior, did school full time, getting to training by public transport. As a tour player to make ends meet she coached and worked varied jobs. We discuss her struggles with knee injury which curtailed her tennis career and lessons learnt from that for young players. All these experiences so valuable in her development as a coach. Plus talk tennis and junior development.

Adam Centofanti is Head of Academy Strength & Conditioning at Houston Dynamo. Prior to this he was Head of Academy Sports Science at Melbourne City and underpinned the W League program. In the next few months given the situation with Covid19 the theme of my podcasts will be a mix of career development and topics relevant to the sport involved, Football (Soccer) in this case. I first met Adam in 2008 before he went overseas with an Academy to Italy for a to play football. He returned 2011 and I started helping him with fitness and mentoring. He then started with a Certificate 3 in fitness which over 9 years progressed to his current position and a Masters in Football Science. The key point is 9 years. Seems like yesterday but career development takes a while. Adam has grasped every opportunity but had to earn money at times in areas outside football. Before leaving Australia he was also still playing NPL football. So 9 years from now is 2029! Plan long term and short term and stay positive.

Michael Dugina is the Strength and Conditioning Co-ordinator at Collingwood Football Club in the Australian Football League. His story is inspirational. He started at the club as the Boxing Coach in 1994. Before that he grew up in St Albans in Melbourne. A “sink or swim” part of Melbourne. After competing in Martial Arts and Kickboxing he worked as a pool attendant and gym instructor. Without formal education he gained an Exercise Science Degree and MBA. His story should provide inspiration and hope for those in our industry starting off now given the implications of Covid19. Just shows the value of persistence, hard work and grabbing your opportunity. 

No edits. Just a quick chat on why the only way to “flatten the curve” and get on top of coronavirus is to not only cancel gatherings but for organisations like the AFL and Coaches to show leadership and cut the season. Hopefully this podcast is irrelevant within 24 hours and common sense prevails with AFL, broadcasters making compensations etc. 

This podcast is about applying a multifactorial approach to hamstring injury prevention in AFL. I provide some history, some background from my experiences and then chat about some of the factors that are most discussed in 2020 for hamstring injury prevention in AFL. The basis of the chat is the interaction between all the factors in a multifactorial model. 

Discussing Endurance in the context of training and developing young players for Australian Rules Football with Gaetano Faranda. Gaetano is the High Performance Manager for Williamstown in the VFL. Gaetano has a Masters degree in High Performance Sport from ACU and has a wealth of experience with the developing athlete.

Today's podcast is with Jarrod Egan. He has worked in many roles in AFL and other elite sports. Jarrod was a sprinter when young and since then he has had a wealth of experience in Elite Sport and Australian Rules Football in Speed Development. This chat is about developing speed and acceleration in the context of all the fitness attributes required to play Australian Rules Football. 

I am chatting with Sean Potter, the High Performance Manager at Calder Cannons which is an Under 18 Australian Rules club. We chat about topics such as maturation, draft age, private schools and other developmental needs for AFL. 

I am chatting with Paul Bacash who is the fitness adviser for the West Preston Lakeside Football Club, a local club in the Northern League in Melbourne. They have won the last 2 premierships and this chat explores the realities of fitness preparation for a team at local semi professional level.

Lauren Spark plays in the AFLW Australian Rules Football National Competition. She was an elite Beach Volleyball Player before playing AFLW. She also is a teacher. I wanted to get an insight into Women's Australian Rules Football, in particular about the fitness, conditioning and injury prevention aspects. 

The AFL Draft is open to players after they have played in an Under 18 competition. Modelled off the US NBA & NFL drafts but obviously there majority of players are in their 20's, mature and proven. This podcast discusses the maturational issues, training needs and even social aspects of a young AFL draft. It is my opinion this causes a “trickle down” effect on development, especially after Under 14 where talent ID seems to really start.