I had a chance to briefly speak with David about his decision to apply to be the USA’s next eventing coach this morning. David told me that he had informed the Canadian staff and riders of his decision over the past few days and that he would be handing in his application to the USEF at the Federation’s annual meeting in Lexington this week.
David is submitting an application to serve both the Technical Advisor and Chef responsibilities, but he stressed that building a winning program will be very much a team effort, with the USEF Eventing Director, the Chair of the High Performance Committee, and Chair of the Selection Committee all playing integral roles in building the US program. David said that he was applying for both the Chef and Technical Advisor responsibilities because, as he said, “I think there has to be one voice of communication to the riders.”
David has had extraordinary success with the Canadian Team, but the US and Canadian programs are very different, and I asked him about how he would approach coaching the US riders. David said:
“I think the role of the US coach has to be one of guiding the riders’ technical excellence. I really believe this means in many cases guiding through their own personal coaches at home, and that much of the Team coaching is about creating a plan for the top riders. The training sessions really then are about monitoring the progress and making adjustments if needed, and ensuring the riders are pushed beyond their comfort zone to do what is possible, not just what the level is at that moment.“
David’s decision to apply for the job is welcome news for the US, but it isn’t any surprise for those close to him. As David said, “I have been preparing for this my whole life.” Get excited USA and go eventing.
