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Road To 2012
Phil Dixon: Redefining Britain's Olympic Mountain Biking Landscape

Posted September 10 2010
Words And Photography By Luke Webber

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With the selection of riders to British Cycling's Performance Programs less than a month away, Olympic Mountain Bike Coach Phil Dixon runs through the 2010 season of the British Mountain Bike Team.

London 2012 is just two years away and as the Olympic mountain bike course nears completion, every week sees another landmark moment in the countdown to mountain biking's most prestigious race. And as Phil Dixon heads up British Cycling's mountain bike programme, the milestones reached since Beijing 2008 are no less historic.

A World Championship medal, World Cup podiums and the potential qualification of a female rider to the Olympics are three things which have undoubtedly pleased Dixon - along with the instalment of a free vending machine at British Cycling HQ.

A swirling brown-on-white serves to initiate the interview, but it's not the only Gold Blend on his mind.

"The British Cycling Mountain Bike Programme has progressed this year; our target is Olympic medals and two years out we are in a great position. It is exciting for mountain biking; but I will add there is a lot of hard work to do."

That hard work starts with qualifying riders into the race - because unlike BMX - there are no starting positions given to the host nation.

THE RACE BEFORE THE RACE
A revised criteria by the UCI means all countries have two years in which to accumulate points, with only the top 24 countries for men and top 18 countries for women lining up at the biggest mountain bike race in the world.

At Beijing there were two British places for men, but none for women and this is the most urgent point to address.

According to the Olympic Coach, in an ideal world when considering Olympic qualification Britain would have senior riders scoring Olympic points at UCI ranked events and development riders progressing their skills as bike races in development programmes; something which is currently the case for the men's programme.

However for women the picture is very different. With no Senior riders on the World Cup stage Dixon has fast tracked Annie Last and Lily Matthews - two riders on the British Cycling Olympic Academy. Both are scoring points to qualify places for the Games, despite being in the under-23 category and both still developing to the level of elite competition. But there are still positives to take, as the National Coach explains.

"Look back twelve months; we had no riders on the World scene and now we have several. We're also in a position to qualify two men and one woman to the 2012 Olympics based on the current standings."

Dixon loves these champagne moments, but Anne Last (right) is still a work in progress.

AN UNCERTAIN CLIMATE
Indeed, one year previous when Dixon reviewed the 2009 season, Britain's cross country mountain biking climate was looking uncertain. Liam Killeen - Britain's best hope of an Olympic medal since 2004 - was rumoured to be taking a season off and there was no obvious women's candidate for the 2012 race.

In twelve months the landscape has changed significantly however; Killeen completing a full season of races and the genuine chance of securing a place for women's representation in London - a momentum which was set following a winter of concerted training.

Liam Killeen - he raced a full schedule in 2010 despite the rumours

SEASON PREPARATION
That process came to a conclusion when in April the 2010 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup hit British shores for a series of firsts; the first cross country World Cup in England for a decade, the first Junior World Cup podium since 2007 and the first under-23 World Cup podium for a British woman - making for a delighted Dixon.

"That race set the momentum for the year. Going to the first big race of the season the nerves are there; riders question themselves. But all of those questions were answered with results."

Perhaps Dixon's biggest achievement however was the reinstatement of Liam Killeen into the World Cup ranks. The only mountain biker on British Cycling's Olympic Podium Programme, it was announced last year he would not ride at all - something which Dixon exclusively quashed in his 2009 season review. And something which was proved correct.

"His result at Dalby was great, not so much the position - obviously he wants to win - but the progression; this in itself can be seen as a massive success. That came about after buying into the support that British Cycling could offer - Liam is now very much part of the programme.

"In the winter he got himself up to Manchester to do the necessary work which allowed him to ride his bike, which allowed him to train, which allowed a good start to the season.

"It was essential to have British Cycling as a part of that providing a professional service. He rides the bike - don't get me wrong - but he also walked through the door and accessed a number of the support services, incorporating my coaching , British Cycling physiology support, medical staff, nutrition backup, the English Institute of Sport support and the lab support.

"These are services which mountain bikers supported by British Cycling have access to and I think it is important to note that these resources play an important part role in elite performance, which you can see in the results from this year. And when the goal is Olympic podiums you don't get there without a full team of support.

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
The proof behind that statement came at the World Championships in September, as Killeen rode to seventh place - his best result in two years and just three positions from his career-best, something Dixon believes will set him on course for 2012.

"Liam started the race with two problems; he was still recovering from a fractured heel cup and started in 36th position on the grid. Due to traffic - and that's the nature of mountain bike racing - he lost most of his two minutes to the winner in the first 18 minutes of the race. From there on he was on a par, and he was happy with that.

"More importantly, I think that result has given him good confidence to go into next season, I think it's great for Liam - I think he's in a good place. Top ten in the World Championships shows that."

Killeen - seventh at the 2010 World Championships (photo - Ian Potter)

SEASONS PLAN
Such performances at Mont Sainte Anne typified the year for British Cycling's mountain bike programme - personal best results developed from a season-long plan.

"We aimed to have a strong start and a strong finish and the plan worked 100% - and if you ask what made the difference this year, I think it was having a good support team around the athletes and good planning of the performance schedule for clear direction throughout the season."

Specifically, that direction meant recognising a heavy load of racing in the second half of the season, planning good rest around that, and in the second half of the season seeing another step up in performances.

Steve James - third at the opening Junior World Cup of 2010

And while every rider worked around this framework, the route to the World Championships was different for those on the Olympic Academy and Olympic Development Programmes, as Dixon forcefully points out.

"Apart from Liam, every rider is a development rider - that means there isn't a focus on individual results - but on progression. Dave Fletcher set the momentum for this back in 2007, finishing third Junior at the World Championships.

"Today, the average age of the British Cycling Mountain Bike Team is just 20, resulting in constant ups and downs. Sometimes there will be an explanation for these performances, sometimes there won't, because these are young riders still learning their trade."

For the Junior riders on the Olympic Development Plan, this resulted in missing the European Championships and instead racing a full calendar of World Cup events.

"The European Championships were in Israel and the specific nature of that event was extreme - an extreme course, location and environment. So we invested the funding in completing a full World Cup Series - something which paid off.

"For the development of a Junior, it's important they race often, on good courses in the right environment - and this year the World Cup Series not only provided this, but also gave the riders the opportunity to adjust to being away from home, changing environments, changing courses and the highest level of competition. There's also the chance to be part of a team - they are alongside Liam Killeen, Annie Last and Dave Fletcher, and they get to see how the Academy and Podium rider operates - you can't teach that experience.

"I think that rubs off on the riders well. I think seeing this also shows good pathways and gives the individual motivation to move onto that next level. What's more, racing internationally gives good incentive for the Juniors and Youths to make the step onto ODP.

"Essentially, it's given them the taster. And although we've had some great World Cup performances by the riders, you don't have to look at the results too much, because it's more about progressing the athlete. It's only when you get to an under-23 level that you give them structure."

And arguably it's at this level that the British Cycling Team has had its biggest success.

OLYMPIC ACADEMY
Dixon makes no secret that the Olympic Academy is where the real lifestyle of being a professional cyclist is born; his statement "I see the riders more than my kids," providing more insight to the full-time nature of the Olympic Academy and Dixon's hands-on coaching approach, than reflecting his approach to parenting.

With athletes selected onto the Academy spending the winter training period in Manchester without any education workload, there is for the first time and opportunity to develop a talented individual into a full time athlete.

Manchester; it's the place to be if you're to realise Olympic potential.

For Annie Last, it has been most obvious; moving from full-time education and fifth place in the World in her rookie under-23 year, to leading the World Championships until the final lap following ten months on the Academy.

This season the biggest achievements for the under-23 rider include the silver medal at the World Championships and third in the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup Series. And with two years still remaining until moving to the elite ranks, Last still has the time to develop into an age-group champion.

THE OLYMPIC DREAM
With two years still on the clock, the landmark results of the 2010 World Championships couldn't have arrived at a better time for the British Team. The best indicator of Olympic performance; a one-day, one-opportunity event has left Britain's Coach excited by the prospects of 2011 - the first sign of which will come in two weeks, when selections for the 2010/11 Performance Programmes are made.