TenForce – Pragmatic Project Management

Third! How does a country like Belgium with about 10 million inhabitants and a very limited track record become 3rd in the 4×100 Meters Relay?

Patrick Himschoot, one of the coaches of the team, explains in De Standaard how they did it. We at TenForce think everybody can learn from his approach and that it shows a focused and pragmatic approach.

So what’s their secret?

• No ego
  Countries like the USA, Russia, Jamaica and France beat Belgium when it comes to individual sprinting talent. But it takes more than lining up the best sprinters. You have to line up the best sprinters with a small ego and get them to train together several times a year. The Belgian team is a team of friends. The Belgian team was the only team that warmed up collectively during the series. This season the team gathered 15 times.
• The right person on the right place
  The 4×100 Meters Relay is not 4 times 100 meters. It takes different types of sprinters for the different parts of the 4×100. And 200 meters runners are better than 100 meters runners for this race. Somebody has to start and take the first turn. This is not self evident. The second runner has to be able to accelerate after the exchange. The third runner has to hand over the stick to the fourth runner. The final runner has to explode and finish the race.
• It takes time
  6 years! They started to train together 6 years ago.

Belgium will never be able to beat the USA, probably. But according to the coach this approach can be continued for the next coming years.