The curious case of top coach Nic Bideau who’s treated like an outcast by Australian athletics officials

CATHY Freeman’s mastermind, Nic Bideau is one of Australia’s top athletics coaches but he’s persona non grata in official circles. Here’s why he’s not allowed inside the inner sanctum.

Nic Bideau with his star pupil Cathy Freeman.

NIC Bideau was the driving force behind Cathy Freeman’s famous Olympic gold, and has 13 athletes representing his exclusive Melbourne Track Club in Rio.

Yet Bideau, loved and revered by his athletes if clearly not others within the sport, wasn’t chosen for an official role on the team for the Games.

“Why isn’t he? It’s ridiculous,” says one of his former charges, Olympic medallist John Steffensen, who is a newly appointed member of the Athletics Australia board.

“It’s not hard to see he has 13 people on the team so he’s doing something right.”

“His record of getting people into the team stands for itself,” says Olympian and athletics commentator David Culbert.

“The capacity to get — and I’ll use this term endearingly so make sure you use it endearingly — average athletes to do well above average things is incredible.

“If there’s one weakness which he would admit himself is getting those athletes to perform on the big stage on the big day.”

Culbert lived with Bideau and Freeman in the early 1990s.

“She wouldn’t have won an Olympic gold, silver and world championships if it wasn’t for Nic. It wasn’t only him, because Raelene Boyle played a role for a while and Peter Fortune her coach certainly played a big role, but it wouldn’t have happened. He was having a significant say.”

There are a few reasons, I’m told, and always by people who don’t want their names on the record, why Bideau isn’t allowed into the inner sanctum of the team. The ultimate team player when it comes to MTC, it’s said he always puts their needs above those of the wider athletics community in Australia.

John Steffensen with coach Nic Bideau before the London Olympics.

But personality is the one everyone comes back to.

“He’d have more enemies in Australian athletics than most people,” says Culbert. “That’s because he tells it how it is and generally he’s right. People don’t like that.

“Sometimes it’s not the right thing. You’ve got to sometime be a team player as well but he’s fighting for what he thinks is best for his athletes. And if you are sticking up for your athletes you going to fight with some people.

“I don’t know why he’s not a team coach at the Olympics. When you’ve got that many people on the team why wouldn’t he be the distance coach?

“If you don’t have time to suffer fools then that’s a weakness. I’m very much the same. If someone’s a goose then you tell him they’re a goose. No one likes that.”

Steffensen accepts there could be could be “personality issues, past grudges” at play.

“Who knows?” says Steffensen. “But we need to stop all that and focus on our performance and work together as a community and a team.

“That comes from Nic’s side, my side. I’ve been banned by these people. I had to put my guns down.”

Bideau is pragmatic.

“Athletics Australia named a team and I’m not one of the coaches,“ he says. “I don’t know why that is. I don’t really want to be in the Australian team and have the tracksuit, I just want the access to be able to do my job. If I’m spending months to get them right I don’t want to hand them over to someone else in the last two weeks.

“You wouldn’t see Alastair Clarkson, two weeks before the grand final saying to another guy, here you take over now.

“I’m not really surprised. Because I don’t spend my time playing the game to make sure I am on the team. I spend my time trying to get athletes on the team. There’s other coaches who spend a lot of time lobbying to make sure they get a track suit. That’s not my go. I know I’m going to be there — so whether I get told I’m on the team or not I’ll still turn up and do my job.”

Nic Bideau with Cathy Freeman in 1996.

Steffensen knows Bideau well and adds: “I don’t know any human being who doesn’t like being appreciated. But there might be an element there that’s driving him to be the best and there will be an element there that feels disrespected and an element that understands ‘I am different and it comes with the territory’. He’s a smart man.”

He’s also a great coach and friend for those he connects with.

Bideau started Melbourne Track Club back in 1996, leaving the Herald Sun where he was a track and field journalist for 10 years, to manage Freeman. They would later marry and then end up in court.

“It started with Cathy,” says Bideau. “All the things were put in place to make her the champion she was. Nike were keen to support her (but) I said if we just throw everything at Cathy Freeman, when she’s finished there’ll be nothing left.”

He developed a system where experienced runners would help younger ones coming through. The closeness of the club forged a spirit that helped athletes perform better than they might have otherwise.

“Nic is unique man,” says MTC star Genevieve LaCaze. “People on the outside, who don’t know him, think he’s just a tough guy and other athletes probably think he’s brutal on us.

“We all have to thank him for our success. He helps out people more than they realise. He is a tough person but when I approached him and asked ‘what’s the payment like’, he said, ‘I don’t want anything from you until we get results’.

“He does this with people all over the word. He’s not just a good coach, he’s a good manager with connections with some of the biggest meets across the world. Running isn’t a glamorous sport and you live on a shoestring and he does all he can to help.”

“There’s a lot of tough love — no bullshit — with him that some people don’t like,” says Culbert. “But there’s also a lot of cuddling goes on as well with athletes who have fragile egos.

“This is what Nic is like. He had a house in Richmond. I was out at Ringwood driving an hour to training and back twice a day and study and work and I was looking for a place in town and he basically gave me a room for free.

Genevieve LaCaze says Nic Bideau is a unique character.

“Recently I saw him walking around the streets of Glen Iris with his dog and this Japanese steeplechaser. They’re out there walking in the rain and this guy’s just arrived from wherever and he’s staying at Nic’s joint.

“All of his athletes would say how much he’s done for them.”

And he’s very selective with MTC.

“We don’t always have superstars but we have good runners who are competitive at the top level,” says Bideau. “They have to be the right fit. You’ve got to have the right attitude and be able to add something to the structure we’ve got.

“It’s a philosophy and desire to get Australian athletes among the best in the world and competitive. We always had someone on the team. Not always the super stars but if we keep producing maybe we can get another one with a medal, maybe even this year.”

As an athlete, journo, manager and coach, he’s devoted his life to this game.

“I like the sport. There’s no way around it — you’ve got to work hard and you’ve got to be disciplined and strong mentally to succeed. Talent alone won’t help you. When you get to the top level everyone is tough. You can show no weakness if you want to be a top performer in this game.

“If you have grit, determination and do the work you will succeed. You might not be a superstar but you will have success.

”I enjoy watching people get to a level where they surprise themselves and their lives change. It’s amazing to see the buzz the guys get when they make it.

“It’s a result business but what lasts longer is relationships. I get a really big thrill out of having the capacity to influence people’s lives to the extent I can help them achieve great things.

“As long as I think I can do that I think I’ll keep doing this.”

In a green or gold tracksuit, or not.

Originally published as The curious case of top coach Nic Bideau who’s treated like an outcast by Australian athletics officials