Poaching Athletes my Response

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Poaching Athletes my Response

Coach Matt Foreman wrote an article for Catalyst Athletics addressing the newfound phenomenon of athlete poaching. I guess that it’s not really new, but it’s becoming more prevalent. It happened at an incredible rate at this year’s past Senior World Championships. This is where I find in absurd. I mean here we are all the coaches from the United States that have produced the ten best men and ten best women in the country. That means our athletes are at the absolute top in America. Every coach there has done his or her job preparing these athletes. You would think that these coaches would be safe from poaching, but that wasn’t the case.

Most of the time it’s a new coach trying to make a name in the sport. Most of them don’t even realize that poaching is unethical.  Here’s the actual language  (taken from Matt Foreman’s article on Catalyst):

Failure of a receiving coach to consult with and fully inform the coach of record, and/or an athlete’s parents (if the athlete is less than eighteen (18) years of age) about ongoing discussion with an athlete about switching coach of record, a change of team of record, or of enrollment in a USAW/USOC sponsored facility or program.

Enticing an athlete to change the coach or team of record for monetary or in-kind incentives.

I find it sad that we can’t respect each other enough to at least communicate with one another. In the past two years, I’ve had athletes contact me from multiple other clubs, and in each instance I contacted their coaches right away. Personally if an athlete is making progress with a coach, I don’t want that athlete. Obviously that coach has that athlete figured out, so I don’t want to come in and mess that up.

There’s something else that young coaches need to understand, and that is this sport is small internally. You will see the same coaches year in and year out. Those coaches will either give you the shirt off of their back, or they’ll swallow you whole. My fellow coaches in USA Weightlifting have helped me so much. Guys like Sean Waxman, Dave Spitz, Kevin Doherty, Spencer Arnold, and Kevin Simons just to name a few have helped me coach my athletes, make decisions for my athletes, and sometimes in managing my club. There are plenty of others that have helped as well, but I don’t want this to look like a genealogy chapter in the Bible.

I hope to pass on that kindness to them and also to the new coaches in USA Weightlifting. If we want the sport to grow, we have to encourage our new coaches. Coaches educate the public about the sport. They’re also the ones that teach the sport, and the ones that supply the gyms to the athletes.

So far, I have pretty much reiterated the exact same thing that Matt said for Catalyst, but I want to give you the other side. I want all of you to know what poaching isn’t. Nothing makes me madder than being accused of poaching. So now let’s talk about what poaching isn’t.

If an athlete leaves you for over a year, trains at a local Lifetime Fitness alone, and then shows up at a coach’s gym about 1,000 miles away, that isn’t poaching. I was accused for the longest time of poaching Nathan Damron. I didn’t call Nathan. I didn’t email Nathan. I sure didn’t slide in his DMs. He showed up with Dylan Cooper, and he stayed. Now I grew to love this athlete. We’ve been through a lot of good times and a few bad times. When he came to me, I could out front squat his back squat. Now he’s known to possess more absolute strength than just about any weightlifter in the country with a 320kg back squat.

Nathan left his old coach for personal reasons. I am not going to list these reasons. If you want to know, you can ask Nathan. Yet I heard about this for several years after he moved to my gym. Too many coaches would rather blame another coach than look in the mirror and ask some hard questions like:

·      What could I have done better?

·      Was my club a fit?

·      Is the new club a better fit?

Dylan Cooper left my club about two years ago to join Cal Strength. Dave Spitz kept me in the loop, and then Dylan let me know. He was worried that I would be upset, but instead he found that I was happy for him. Cal Strength was a better fit. Some things had happened at our club, and it was just good timing for Dylan. Dave and I became the best of friends through all of this.

Here’s something to remember for all of you:

We don’t own these athletes. If one of my athletes wants to go to another club, then they should go. Our coach to athlete trust is already compromised, so it’s best to move on. The only thing that makes me mad is when things happen behind my back. If my athlete isn’t improving, they have every right to consider other options. Heck, as an athlete I would have looked elsewhere if I weren’t moving in the right direction.

It’s not only improvement that matters. Is the culture a fit? That’s a big one to consider. You might be killing it, but you still have to fit the culture or the rest of the team will suffer. Coach Sean Waxman taught me that one, and he was dead on. In the last two years, coaches like Spencer Arnold and Dave Spitz have alerted me immediately if one of my athletes or their parents reached out to them. I have done the same thing for Dave Spitz and Sean Rigsby. Here’s a notice to all athletes that reach out to me. I will immediately contact your coach, so be aware.

What else is not poaching? If an athlete moves and finds themselves in the backyard of another coach and team, it only makes sense for that athlete to change teams and coach. I had one of my athletes move to California, and they wanted to train with Coach Kevin Doherty’s Team Hassle Free. Of course he joined their team. Why would they remain connected to my team and to me as a coach? If Cam Newton started playing for the Patriots, would he still be a Panther? Absolutely not!

There are two deadly epidemics going on in USA Weightlifting that we can easily fix. What are the epidemics? Let’s look:

1.  Yes Poaching is a problem!

2.  However Possessive Coaches is another problem!

We can cure the poaching problem by simply sticking to solid ethics. Let’s just be up front with each other, and this will go away quickly. Honesty and Integrity are requirements if you want to make a name in this industry. It’s amazing at the bond that can be formed by being totally honest with one another. Coach Spitz and I are the best of friends simply because we are up front with each other. We both understand that the real team is Team USA. We want the best for our athletes not the best for our personal brand.

We can cure the problem with ‘possessive coaches’ by putting the athlete first. I want what is best for my athletes. I love Dylan Cooper just as much now as I did before he left. He visits every time that he comes home. I message him periodically to make sure he’s ok. He’s matured not only as an athlete, but also as a person while in California.

Our athletes are not pieces of equipment that we own. They are simply on loan to us. I will help each and every one of my athletes while they are with me. That’s my mission. I do it because I enjoy the happiness expressed on their faces when they do well. I love being a small part of their journeys. I love moments like when Hunter hit her lifetime best Clean & Jerk on the platform to make the Team USA World Team. She was jumping up and down, and I was crying. Does that mean I own her for life? No way! I want what is best for Hunter at all times. As long as I keep that attitude, I will do the right thing.

I hope that this article clarifies what poaching is and what it isn’t. It boils down to respect. If we respect each other as coaches, we won’t poach. If we respect our athletes as individuals that we are helping, then we will always want what is best for them. Here are some more words of advice for all of you coaches. None of us can do anything about the actions of others. All that we can control is our own actions. Instead of asking, “why did they do that to me?” You could ask, “What could I have done better in that situation?” That is the only question to ask if growth is the goal.

All of this is something to consider as we approach 2019. Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and Happy New Years to all of you! I look forward to serving you all in the coming year.

Coach Travis Mash 

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