PTRA Calls Out Coaches

In their latest “Tribune” (newsletter) Lucas Nanchen, member of the PTRA board and a Swiss lawyer specialized in sports law, calls on coaches to step up their responsibility to their athletes and our sport:

Coaches have long been seen as mentors, tacticians, and motivators. But in modern trail running, especially when they recruit and manage athletes from developing countries, they carry a responsibility that goes far beyond training plans and race-day tactics. They become intermediaries between opportunity and exploitation – and, in some cases, between clean sport and doping.

This is a post clearly directed at the latest doping scandal from a few months ago. The findings resulted in a suspension of Joyline Chepngeno, but put her coach Julien Lyon, rightfully into the crosshairs. Especially since the coach is Swiss, the race the doping was caught was a Swiss race and Lucas is a Swiss lawyer, who also serves as the Legal Counsel of Sierre-Zinal and the International Ski Mountaineering Federation.

A clean future for trail running will not come from control alone, but from conscience – the conscience of those who guide, inspire, and protect the next generation of mountain runners.

We’ve seen now a few instances where coaches have moved themselves into the spotlight after an important win by an athlete. Let’s hope they aren’t just in for the glory, but also understand the bigger responsibility they carry, for their profession, their athletes, and our sport as a whole.