Almighty Coach

In Asian countries, if track and field events can enter the Olympic B standard, it means that they can represent the country to participate in the Olympic Games, while some European, African and South American countries that are not very strong in sports can also participate in the Olympic Games if they reach the Olympic A standard.

Only the United States, as the world's number one track and field power, has the Olympic A standard as the lowest entry threshold. In any track and field event, there are too many athletes who can reach the Olympic A standard.

Dai Li also came to the scene of the Olympic trials not long ago. At that time, he witnessed with his own eyes that many outstanding athletes were eliminated because they did not enter the top three. Poor and eliminated. Under Dai Li's detection, he even discovered that athletes with A+ talent were eliminated in the first round of the selection competition. You must know that A+ talents can safely become a world champion, but they encountered Waterloo in the first round of the selection competition.

The American athlete selection system is like this. Winning or losing is determined by a battle, no matter how talented you are, how capable you are, how famous you are, and what honors you have won, even if you are a world record holder. As long as you can't qualify from the trials, you won't be able to participate in the Olympics.

Although this selection mechanism is fair, it also makes many outstanding athletes miss the opportunity to participate in the Olympic Games.

During the trials, when Dai Li had nothing to do, he detected almost every athlete, and he also found a lot of "leftover pearls". Some failed to qualify due to poor performance, some failed to show their best strength due to training problems, and some did encounter stronger opponents and were eliminated.

In Li Dai's view, such athletes are really a pity. If they were not in the United States, they would definitely have the opportunity to be on the Olympic stage. However, Dai Li didn't intend to help them, after all, he wasn't the athlete he trained himself.

But it's different now. If Dai Li wants to become the head coach of the US track and field team, those "legacy gems" that Dai Li discovered at the beginning will become important. For example, the athlete with A+ talent who was eliminated in the first round of the selection competition, if Li Dai was allowed to train well, he would definitely be able to win the Olympic champion.

Therefore, Dai Li asked Williams to select the athletes himself. The purpose was to recruit all the athletes who had the opportunity to achieve good results in the Olympics to the team. This was also Dai Li's honor to take over the mess.

If any other coach took over the current U.S. track and field team, it would be doomed to a failure. A smart woman can’t live without rice. No matter how good the coach is, it’s useless if the athletes are not strong enough.

However, Li Dai is able to find some athletes who have been buried but are very strong. If these athletes successfully join the US team, the overall strength of the US team will not drop too much.

Li Dai actually came prepared.

...

After listening to Dai Li's request, Williams did not immediately agree, but fell into thinking.

It is quite normal in any country for the head coach to select athletes, but the United States is different. The right to participate in the individual events of the US team is basically determined by trials. This rule has lasted for decades.

Now Li Dai proposes to select the participating athletes by himself, which undoubtedly breaks the tradition of the US team and also violates the rules of the US team that have lasted for decades. Of course, Williams couldn't agree easily, and he even resisted Dai Li's request deep in his heart.

Breaking with tradition is no easy feat, and Williams has more to consider. Williams was very worried. Once he agreed to Li Dai's request, the future head coach of the national team would also make the same request.

After thinking for a long time, Williams finally said, "Coach Li, the US team has always relied on trials to determine the participating athletes. It has been the case for decades. Your request does not comply with our rules."

The implication of Williams' words was that he did not intend to agree to Dai Li's request.

Dai Li spoke persuasively: "Mr. Williams, I have no intention of violating your rules or provoking your traditions, but the primary problem we face now is that we don't even have enough athletes to participate. The problem to be solved first. Isn’t it the reason why you hired me as the head coach to solve the problem?”

"The so-called extraordinary time should use extraordinary methods. Now there is only more than one week left before the registration deadline given by the International Olympic Organizing Committee. If we follow the original selection procedures step by step, the time will be too late, and I also need Time to train and integrate the team. If I can't even do this, it will be difficult for me to guarantee the results of the players."

Williams frowned and thought for a while, and finally nodded: "Okay, Coach Li, you convinced me, but I hope you can submit the list of participating athletes three days before the deadline of the International Olympic Committee." Come up."

"No problem." Dai Li nodded in agreement.

...

Watching Dai Li's figure fade away, Frey asked in a low voice, "Mr. Williams, do you really plan to let that Dai Li select athletes by himself?"

"I've already promised him, so why don't I go back on my word!" Williams said.

"But we have never had such a precedent. In the past, we used trials to determine the athletes." Frey continued.

"It's now at this time, is it possible that we have to hold a trial again?" Williams showed an old fox-like smile, and then said: "I know what you want to express, do you think I gave it to you?" That Li Dai has too much power, right?"

"I have this idea." Frey admitted without hesitation.

"Don't forget, what is the reason why we deliberately hired a Chinese as the head coach? We just need a suitable scapegoat, so it doesn't matter to give him a little bit of power. Besides, the selection of athletes, you really think it's a power?"

Without waiting for Frey to answer, Williams asked himself and said: "In my opinion, this is not a power, but a hard job. It's only a little over a week, but you have to make up sixty or seventy. Athletes, this task is very difficult. I was still having a headache about this matter, but now, someone helped us solve the trouble."

"When it comes to the Olympics, if the results of the US track and field team are not good enough, we have all the more reason to shift the responsibility to Li Dai. He is the head coach, and he personally selected the sports, but the results are very bad, so the failure The responsibility should rest on him!"