Jessica Ennis-Hill: A Coach's Story

The moment of winning, glorious as it may be,

is only the final scene,

a snapshot to represent years of hard work.

The effort of a whole team grafting behind the scenes.

For 18 years, Tony Minichiello has coached Jessica Ennis-Hill

along every step of her journey.

Keep going, keep going, keep going, keep going. Then out.

From schoolgirl to golden girl.

COMMENTATOR: Jessica Ennis-Hill is the Olympic champion!

The past four years have been the most successful.

COMMENTATOR: Jessica Ennis-Hill is back on top of the world.

But also the most life-changing.

I definitely underestimated how hard it would be coming back

from having your first child.

A lot of times where I've just kind of said,

"I'm rubbish. I just can't do it."

And now, Tony is preparing Jess

to defend her Olympic heptathlon title in Rio this summer.

You're looking at somebody who's probably going to be the best

female track and field athlete Britain has ever produced.

She could create history.

This is a story about what it takes to coach a champion.

Work, work the floor.

I think we're on target to start the season where

we want to start the season.

As for Rio, then, hopefully, it should flow

because if we start the season in the right place and,

touch wood, we don't get any issues then it should fit the normal plan

because we've done this a few times before.

'Right, that was better, wasn't it? A little bit more chest on it then.'

So, you've just got to wait that fraction.

So, here, wait, stretch...

'This isn't her strongest event so this is one that isn't going

'to win the gold, but it could certainly lose the gold

'if she's in position.'

So, you know, it's important she's throwing somewhere between 45 and 50

and if she can do that, she's fine and dandy.

That's how many days to the Olympics.

Got a little counter. It's a bit sad really, I suppose.

Ready? Away you go.

How have I ended up coaching?

I ask myself that most days. Um... why am I here?

I did athletics. I did decathlon very badly.

I think it was pretty obvious to me

that I wasn't ever going to make a high-level athlete.

WHISTLE BLOWS

I suppose I live vicariously through the athletes.

So, they're doing things that I can't

based on age and the fact I'm not skilled or talented enough.

Tony has coached me since I was about 13.

So, yeah, a very long time. Now I'm 30.

Not many athletes and coaches stay together for that period of time.

I bet Rob a cup of coffee that you took in a 32.

You just said that to me before, so you planted it in my mind anyway.

Did I? Cheated!

I cheated? I cheated?!

Rob, I cheated.

Initially, she just wanted to be a sprinter,

but then she became very successful in the high jump.

Won English Schools medals for high jump.

So, therefore, you went, "OK, so we'll push you towards that."

But she's quite petite for a high jumper.

Would she really have made it at the higher levels?

But then she was quick at sprint.

So, having done multi-events, we then kind of stuck with it

and stuck with it and she made international teams as a junior,

fifth in the World Youth, eighth in the World Championships

and then won the European Championships.

I thought he was really scary, quite miserable.

I didn't really want to train with him.

He's very serious and, obviously, he was really serious about coaching

at that stage and, for me, athletics was just a hobby and it was fun.

As I grew older through the years, that did obviously change.

Same sort of time on Monday probably.

Hold on a minute, it's Bank Holiday Monday, isn't it?

I'll be down because I'm always down.

Dedication!

LAUGHTER

I think, quite often what happens in lots of sports,

people judge the aesthetic.

They look at you, judge your size, the size of your feet

and make a decision.

Yes, I was told she'd be too small, she'd never be able to throw far.

And I was like, "I get it, but look at the competitive nature."

They can run fast. You can teach throws.

Just... It goes early. Your snatching it a little early.

Instead of being in and on it, then it comes from behind,

there's just a tendency to... You're throwing.

I knew he had belief in me.

I knew he thought that I could achieve something good

within the sport.

And having that belief that he had in me,

then gave me the confidence to keep pushing on

and wanting to train a little bit harder and push myself.

That's better. That was nice.

That was nice. Well done! We obviously work well together.

We have banter. We annoy each other. He mainly annoys me, but...

Only joking!

Circuit work tomorrow?

Just a little one. 20/20. 15 exercises.

Just do some conditioning.

He's got some really great performances out of me

and, you know, brought me from a young child who didn't know

anything about athletics who just enjoyed being active

and running around, to Olympic and world champion.

So, yeah, he's definitely doing something right.

This time four years ago, Tony

and Jess were facing their first-ever Olympic games.

As the favourite to win the heptathlon

and the face of the games, nothing but a gold would do at London 2012.

I felt so much pressure going into London.

Everyone just expected me to win and it was just, yeah...

a crazy, crazy time.

Jess clearly had huge, huge expectation.

You're the poster girl. You're supposed to win.

The poster girl wins, that's the story.

Otherwise you're just a loser.

In front of an expectant home crowd, she started in spectacular style.

COMMENTATOR: Wow! The fastest time ever by a heptathlete.

Jess didn't look back,

producing two more personal bests, and going into her final event

the team knew the title was hers for the taking.

COMMENTATOR: Jessica Ennis-Hill is the Olympic champion.

That moment of crossing the line and just having my family there,

the crowd, and just knowing I'd put all those events together

and it had all gone right, it was pure excitement and shock

and relief and, yeah, an amazing feeling.

'What should happen after an Olympics is that somebody...'

You know, the end credits go up and you leave the cinema and,

"Yeah, that was a great movie".

But it isn't. Life continues.

You kind of go, "Now what?"

OK, she wants to go out and celebrate and you have to wait.

So, Tony waited.

And Jess returned to training.

Morning!

But the coach's craft of meticulous planning and routine

was about to be thrown out of the window.

Well, she didn't ask my permission first to get pregnant

so I was really disappointed.

HE LAUGHS

When I first told him that I was pregnant,

he was kind of like... "Uh!"

He was quite shocked.

So that was something that will always stay with me.

And then he was... "Oh, congratulations!"

I met her when she was nine,

I started coaching her when she was 12 or 13.

And I know she's a lot older than that now,

but, you know what? To a certain extent, in my head,

she's still the same person.

You know, like anybody would, when your child comes up to you,

when that day comes, and says, "Hi, Mum. Hi, Dad. I'm pregnant,"

it's going to be like, "Wow, when did you grow up?"

I was quite nervous about telling him

because it was obviously a big surprise and a big shock.

But then obviously he's got his little daughter, Bella,

and I think it was good timing because he'd been through

becoming a father for the first time and he'd kind of experienced

all the things you experience as a first-time parent.

When you are pregnant, until the little one really arrives,

the harsh reality of it doesn't hit you.

And that was the situation.

So, even though, before Reggie arrived, it was yes, I'm definitely

going to come back, in the back of my mind, I'm saying,

"Yeah, that's great.

"Now, let's wait and see when the little fellow arrives.

"Let's see what it does to your world."

In power-based athletes, there's very little written on

how we should rehabilitate her, how soon you get her lifting weights

and what kind of programme to follow.

Are you all right? No!

'He was actually really sympathetic. You know,

'when I came back to training, I definitely underestimated'

how long it would...well, just how hard it would be

coming back from having your first child.

Oh, God, that hurts!

'I remember doing lots of running sessions through the winter

'on the hills with the rest of the group'

and normally in those sessions

I'd be the top, out at the front and I was at the back of the group

and I was struggling and I just didn't have anything to give

and I was tired and, you know, really emotional,

'and it was just so hard.'

You have all those hormonal changes, your body changes, you know,

muscles stretch around your tummy cos they have to,

you're more lax in your ligaments.

Some of the structures that become lax, like tendons and stuff,

are the very structures that you jump off.

So, with these still being lax, you don't get...

It's like a soft spring, that's not productive

to what you want to try and do.

Tony's very thorough, he leaves no stone unturned.

He would turn up with papers saying, "Have you read this?

"Have you thought about that? Have you looked at this?"

What's your favourite nursery rhyme with Reggie?

Well, whenever I try and sing to him, he's just, "No, no!"

Is your voice that bad?

I had all this history, and I knew from the age of 13

how she reacts, what works for her, what doesn't work for her.

Then they give you a brand-new Jessica Ennis

and everything you had before goes out the window

cos you've got lax tendons, you've got childcare issues

to deal with, you've got sleep deprivation to deal with.

We had a lot of times where I just kind of said,

"I'm rubbish, I just can't do it,

"I can't run like I used to, I can't hurdle like I used to."

And he'd just say to me, you know, it's going to take time,

it's not going to happen straight away.

And he always said to me,

"Stop comparing yourself to who you were in 2012."

I made a conscious decision, when she came back from pregnancy

was saying, "You're a brand-new person. Everything is now at zero."

So her personal best for me in the 100 metre hurdles,

yes, it's 12.54, but actually,

her personal best following pregnancy is 12.79.

Tony is in charge of Jesse's training programme.

But he also coaches 14 other athletes.

Can you just line up, please?

Just line up and I want a picture. I'm not quite ready.

I'm not quite ready either!

It's not just Chel and Jess, there's a group

and an environment where she can just improve, and she loves it.

It's good for me to try and stay ahead of her in sessions.

I suppose it's good for her to try and catch me in sessions.

Here, come into the middle.

Hannah, could you just grab those?

Stand as if you're doing the standing throw.

OK, now turn your body.

Yeah.

Yeah? Go, go, go.

Keep going, keep going, keep going.

And then out. Yeah?

You don't really cos a lot of the time when you come in... Go again.

You're kind of here. Cos you go with this before this.

Even in training, I mean, we'll do a shot put session, for instance,

we'll do 20 throws, a 20-throw session,

and Tony will go, "Right, these last three are a comp."

And she can go from throwing

13 metres to 15 metres... at the drop of a hat.

Ohh!

Now's your chance to take advantage, John.

'As soon as you say there's a comp on, everything changes

'and tunnel vision and she's on it.'

Good, but no cigar. Did you actually beat me, then?

By about half a metre. Half a metre?! Yeah.

In my defence, my shot put's twice as heavy,

so I keep saying that to her, but she doesn't really listen or care.

I've seen that happen in Jess a lot.

She can deliver when she wants to,

when she sets her mind to it, that competitive nature.

Cos if you look at John, John had the last throw.

So even though he improved his throw,

he didn't improve and beat her.

A lot of people train and they're massive physical specimens.

But when there's pressure, some people can't do it,

some people just crumble and that, and I think...normal people do.

But she has that little button that she just... There you go.

In the spring of 2015, Jess stepped back onto the track

to compete for the first time since giving birth.

That summer held the possibility of competing

at the World Championships in Beijing.

But, for Tony, it was still unclear

whether she would return to form in time.

I think the fan base wanted...were really supportive of her coming back

and that sort of thing, but people in the know looked at it and went,

"I don't think so. That's a little bit difficult,

"that's too big a mountain to climb."

Which...red flag to a bull for me.

I'm going to go, "Yes, I see your perspective, but watch this."

In all honesty, I didn't think

I would be back on the world stage that year.

I just thought it was out of reach.

I thought, if I can get back into competing, but then obviously

things just came together really well towards the end of the year.

And me and Tony both felt that I was in a position

to be competitive out in Beijing and we just thought, you know,

let's just go and see what happens.

You've got to remember, her body was changing month-to-month,

and it was coming back and it was coming back.

And the World Championships was

just over a year after Reggie was born,

and your body takes a year.

So every month and every week

leading up to that particular point in time,

the body was changing, changing,

trying to come back to where it was.

But it wasn't until she competed in the Anniversary Games,

which was some six weeks before the World Champs,

that we actually went, actually, your performances here means

it's worth going to the World Champs.

Their expectation wasn't a gold medal,

but as the competition went on,

Jess showed nothing but consistency and determination.

She went into her final event with a significant lead.

Her comeback almost complete.

Jessica Ennis Hill is back on top of the world.

Absolutely brilliant.

Storybook athletics...

Definitely one of my proudest moments

standing on the podium in Beijing,

cos I mean, only myself and my family and people that are closest to me

saw how,

you know, emotionally stressful it was to kind of get back into training, you know,

very tired and missing my son...

It was just really up and down emotionally, and

then for it all to come together and to win it was just, yeah, just really unexpected.

If I quantify which medals mean the most to me,

I would have to say that this Beijing, coming back from pregnancy,

is probably the number one medal in my book.

It's kind of overcoming adversity, solving the problem,

succeeding against all odds, if you want to be that Hollywood about it.

With three months to go until the Olympics,

Tony and Jess are working towards Gotzis,

the most prestigious heptathlon meeting on the calendar.

It will be her first full heptathlon

since the World Championships,

and an important step on the road to Rio.

Good. I'm happier with this... OK?

She has an incredible amount of speed

but she doesn't jump as far as she should off of that speed.

Cos what she does is she rushes through the air, so

if you look at her arm position, they just whirl,

and as soon as they go past your head you're coming in,

and you land early, and she lands prematurely.

Watch it a couple of times at full speed...

You're supporting, it's a selfless thing,

but there is a selfish side, I want them to be successful, that's what I'm trying to do...

If you take off arms,

then as you sweep back and round to there...

Yeah, just keep that. Yeah?

I want to work with someone who's motivated,

wants to be successful

and wants to win, because, you know,

that to me is much more exciting because that's probably MY make-up.

If this is a GREAT one,

then you can stop. If it's good...

Me.

Cos I've got a badge that says "Awesome"!

I've got a badge that says "Awesome".

HE CHUCKLES

That was a great one.

You know what? You could have landed on your face,

you'd have still said it was great, wouldn't you?

Mmm... Great(!) SHE LAUGHS

It's not great!

There, arms slowly up...

Hold that, come on!

I'll do one more. One more. Take a rest, though, between 'em.

The heptathlon is the athletic equivalent

of finding the best all-round female athlete,

through running, jumping and throwing.

And it's done over two days.

So...the tough thing about heptathlon is the training for it.

You've got seven technical aspects to put in,

so running in different ways, running mechanics, hurdling -

all of those aspects. Then you've got the throwing and the actual jumping.

So it's how you get all that work in

and how you have the...the physical fitness to last two days.

So really what I'm looking at now

is a year plan that's pretty much the same as a...

a school timetable, really, so Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday,

Sunday and then the four-week block in this case,

and then each of the days written in a square

is roughly what she's doing on that day.

We've had days where Reggie's been really ill through the night,

I can't come training...

You know, and it's very difficult to turn around to her mum and say

"Somebody else needs so look after your child, not you." But internally, you go, "OK,

"can I catch that session up or do I just delete it

"and we go in a different direction?"

I want to try as hard as I can, but I want to be there for my son,

I don't want it to be at the expense of not being with my son.

I want to make sure that I'm the best mum

that I can be and that I'm with him as much as possible,

but that I'm also able to, you know, tie in training.

He's very, very good at planning,

programming, and getting you to peak for the right event.

He's very good at trying to get you to your peak for those two days.

This whole drill is about being quick over the top.

But to be honest, all you're doing is fitting three steps in and over, three steps...

Each one of the movements here

has to be incredibly vigorous - this bit in between doesn't have to be.

They started with two of them now and...

you look at the team that's around her

with agents and doctors and physios, masseurs, a few coaches -

the glue that holds it all together is Chel.

It's one of those things that works,

and it's fabulous. And it's nice to be a small part of that jigsaw.

I'm very focused and driven in what I do,

and I train hard and I make sure all those elements come together

but I wouldn't be able to do it by myself, I'd need a great coach.

It's definitely something that I wouldn't be able to do without Tony.

Can't believe I said that!

I've been fortunate, lucky,

that somebody like Jessica Ennis has come along.

There is that element that she has a series of God-given skills

that are down to her mum and dad and genetics -

what I've added to that is saying, "Right,

"let's harness those a little bit and push them in this direction

"and add this to it and see where it's weak, add this to it,"

but if she didn't have the raw materials, it would be difficult.

With just 100 days to go until the Games,

media interest and anticipation are growing.

But as Jess prepares to leave for international competition,

she suffers a major setback.

We'd started to build back up the running,

her running work, ready for 800 and 200 metres and sprinting.

And unfortunately her calf's got really tight

and she ended up getting another niggle,

and then for it to turn out to be

a grade 2 tear in her muscle is kind of like...ohhh.

I think because of this we've got to seriously consider

not going to Gotzis, and from my point of view

we won't go. Shouldn't take it well. You don't,

it's another setback and you think it's huge damage

and it's more weeks lost.

Dealing with an injury this close

to such an important event in her life is extremely difficult.

I think when you've worked with her long enough and worked with Tony long enough,

you kind of know how to take the rough with the smooth a little bit.

INTERVIEWER: When you find out that something's not OK with your body...

Yeah... what's your instant reaction to that?

Erm... To cry!

To be honest, when you sacrifice time and you train really hard

and your body breaks down and you pick up injuries,

it's just emotional and...

you know, I've been to Leeds for numerous scans and...

I've had those occasions, lots of occasions

driving back on the motorway, you know, just so emotional and upset

thinking, "I'm doing all I can, but things are still falling apart."

Then you have to pick yourself back up

and you have to surround yourself with your team, with your family,

and take their advice,

and then just keep pushing on.

This isn't the first time they have dealt with

an injury in the build-up to a Games.

In 2008, Jess was forced to pull out of the Beijing Olympics

due to a stress fracture in her foot.

It was an absolutely horrible injury.

I think because of the size of it and the timing of it

and the fact it was career-threatening, it was awful.

She, herself, says she's learnt a lot from that.

It was a really good opportunity to reflect.

I think if we hadn't have had that, maybe we...

I pretty much think we wouldn't have had the success that we had in 2012.

With Jess still recovering from her injury,

Tony and the medical team tread carefully

with the intensity of her training.

Presently she's running in her trainers. She's doing 31s, 32s.

As soon as she puts spikes on, she'll bring it down to the 29s

or even 28s, but she doesn't get the benefit of looking at a good time.

It is a softer track,

but if you put the trainers on, that makes it softer.

So there's a bit of cushioning,

so there's not so much damage going through the legs.

Just things we need to consider, really, where she's concerned.

She's moaning about spikes now. What, not wearing them?

Yeah. Or wanting to wear them, should I say?

I just said, "No, you're in flats."

"But it's June." "It's not, it's May."

The thing is, the times are crap, but I think the effort's going in.

We're competitive in different ways.

When it's being in charge, I'm more competitive.

Cos I am in charge.

OFF-SCREEN: What would she say to that?

She thinks she's in charge, but that's my success,

because I've made her believe that she's in charge

without realising that it's actually me.

She gets away with murder with him

and he gets away with murder with her,

cos they know each other so well.

But, I mean, they have fun, they have banter.

They have the odd argument here and there, but every coach does,

but you know on those two days where it matters,

then she'll listen to him and he'll listen to her.

Each of the events in a heptathlon is awarded points.

It's the total score that determines the winner.

Tony decides that competing in Ratingen in Germany

is the best way to assess Jess's form and condition ahead of Rio.

On average, 6,820 wins a global championship.

That's where we need to get back to.

A score above 6,500, around 6,600 is really what we're looking for,

but if it doesn't happen because of the weather, so be it.

I'd say it's a bit of a dress rehearsal for the Olympic Games,

seeing how she stands up to the rigours of heptathlon,

and then with six, seven weeks to go now to the Olympics,

we've got time to correct anything or deal with anything appropriately.

13.13.

It's over 13 seconds, so it's not a great start,

but you get what you get. It's soggy, not great.

Jess has finished the first day in first place,

which is nice - 3,990 points.

A little bit short of where I'd want her to be.

Happy with the way she ran the 200, cos that's the fastest she's run.

She's coming back from pregnancy,

it's the furthest she's thrown shot, pregnancy.

She was close in the high jump.

The hurdles, well, there was a little bit more work to do.

Yeah, good first day.

The second day of competition begins with the long jump.

It's an event the team

has been specifically targeting for some time.

This passes your toe end. Work it so it comes over.

Her all-time personal best is 6 metres 51.

APPLAUSE

Ratingen begins with an R, Rio begins with an R.

That's where the similarity ends, yeah? Keep learning, keep learning.

That's unbelievable what she's just done there. 6.63 is incredible.

That's a PB bar none. That's it.

That's her personal best in the long jump. That's her biggest ever jump.

It's the best score she's done since coming back. You know, 6,734.

Happy with that, coming in with 6,7. I'm chuffed with that.

There are some bits and pieces to work on, so...

Yeah, give her a few days off and then we'll work out what

we're doing for the next five weeks before Rio.

I always had in my head that as soon as I started athletics

that I wanted to get on the podium.

I just wanted to stand on the top of the podium.

I obviously knew about World Championships and the Olympics,

and I just wanted that feeling of being involved

in those amazing events.

Kids come to you as a coach

and they put their dreams and ambitions in your hand and say,

"Help me with this, please."

That's a huge responsibility as a coach.

This year, I just...I want to get to Rio.

I want to be on the start line,

ready for those two days knowing that I've done

all I can do training-wise, that I'm in reasonably good shape.

Obviously, I'd just love to get back on the podium.

I'd love to, you know, defend my title and be there

and come away with another medal.

This will be my last Olympics,

but I'm just going to give it everything.

I'd love to kind of come away from the sport this year

or next year on a massive high.

It is her last...last Olympic Games.

No British woman has ever retained an Olympic title.

Certainly not in track and field.

There's some historical opportunities here that,

you know, she could create history.

Come on! Come on! Come on!

Might be plus-two.

Right now, it feels horrible.

It'll feel better in a bit.

I'm just knackered. So tired.

I don't think my body is designed to do this any more.

Ah.

It is a strange feeling to think that, you know,

in the not-so-near future I'll be retiring

and things will change, I won't be training every day and competing.

It's going to be odd if she's not around,

cos she's been around for 18 years.

I was 32 when I started, I'm now 50.

You kind of go, somebody's not there...

For 40% of your life so far,

somebody's always been around.

It will be a bit strange, but I'm sure she won't miss me.