Straight From the Top- From the World’s Best at Their Best

I spent some time at the 2006 World Championships collecting tips and advice from the world's best skaters while they're on top of their game. A big thank you to everyone who took their time to answer my questions and sharing their knowledge.

Kalon Dobbin on starting- Kalon Dobbin is from New Zealand. He won the 300-meter time trial on the track and medaled in a number of other races at the 2006 world championships.


It's sprint time for Kalon Dobbin
'The start is everything. For me, if you want to change how fast you go, it’s weight lifting. Because I’ve been running (skating) marathons all year, I’m happy with my speed. On the track, my opener is 9.41 seconds for the first 100-meters, which is second fastest. The only person faster than me in the opener is Gregory Duggento, who has the fastest opener in the world'.

Linda Wood- Linda was USA’s junior team coach at the 2006 world championships.


Linda Wood with Tyler Congdon
...on putting time into skating.

'It really starts for us at the local level. We start with dedicating our time to traveling and programming. Then it’s clinics. You get as many certifications as you can, like meet director, coaching, and referring. From there, if you’re good with paper work and you get along well with people, it’s a positive'.

...on running the US world team
'There are four of us on coaching staff this year and we all have different personalities. There are 32 skaters; people with unique personalities, and at the end, we all want the best for our kids. Sometimes how we get there is different'.

...on Communication
'You have to learn to communicate. If you can communicate with the athletes, you’re successful. If we communicate with officials in a quiet manner, then it is better. I pick my battles. Don’t be afraid to go up and talk with people, you know, say ‘hi, I am…’'.

Tyler Congdon on being a first time team manager- Tyler is from Calgary, Alberta, Canada. This was his first trip to world championships.


The nightmares of being a team manager- somehow, Tyler (and I) lost all of the race numbers the night before the first races at the opening ceremony. This picture is from the video that I took after we went back well after midnight to the arena where the opening ceremony took place. We were hoping the the numbers would be where we left them. This is the precise instant that Tyler and I realized that the numbers are really gone, not there, vanished...

Tyler Congdon and I were thrilled after getting the race numbers back the next morning, about 1/2 hour before the first races
'I have the opposite problem that Linda (Wood) has. It’s exciting. It’s kind of overwhelming because there’s so much to do and so much to learn. But there are people and countries that are willing to help, like the USA, Australia, Great Brittan, and New Zealand. They’ve all helped me a lot'.

Guido Ferraiuolo on the world’s press- Guido is from Argentina. His website www.patincarrera.com is world famous for brining live race results to the internet.


Guido updates results while Jesse Pauley looks on
'Covering worlds is hard'.

[pause…looks at someone else in the press section and says ‘What was his time? I think he is racing’ Guido then shifts his attention to his computer to update the results]

'Normally, there are problems with the internet connection or the judges. There are problems; sometimes they take a lot of time and they are confused with the results, so it takes a long time to get the official results. The location of the press center or press stand is sometimes difficult. I enjoy informing the people around the entire world about what is happening. Our sport does not have a lot of press, so it is cool they can see the results live'.

Jessica Smith on finishing- Jessica is one of the world’s fastest skaters. Along with World Inline Cup victories, she has earned many medals at the world championships including a gold medal in the women’s relay on the track.


Jessica Smith (left) with Brittany Bowe during the opening ceremony
'Being in the top few positions is important. It’s about being smart. In the relay, I was pleased with my finish (editor’s note: Jessica hawked Colombia’s Cecilia Baena at the finish to win the gold medal in the senior women’s relay on the track). I had major shin splints in the other races. The pressure from the long races is hard on the shins. When I race Cecila Baena, I have to race like Jessica Smith; race to win'.

Nicole Begg on strategy- Nicole comes from New Zealand. She has put a stellar season together both in the World Inline Cup and at the world championships. Skating with no team mates, Nicole managed to win the gold medal in 10km points/ elimination race as well as a bronze medal in the 1000-meter race on the track at the 2006 world championships.


Nicole Begg
'You can’t plan exactly what you’re going to do because it’s a race. For people who plan exactly, when the race goes wrong, it’s all over. In the 10k points elimination race that I won, I know I wanted to break, but I didn’t know when. I timed it right after Jessica Smith made a break and got points and I won'.

Greggory Duggento on national pride and breaking his 200-meter world record- Gregory is from Italy. He holds the world record in the 200-meter and 300-meter sprints.


Greggory Duggento with his medals and his world champion's jersey
'I don’t know if I’ll continue to skate because now in this moment, skating for me, I don’t have a sponsor. By December, I decide if I continue or not. After, I would love to race in the Olympic games. I don’t know if I can race in roller skating though. In these world championships, it was important to have a victory because the level is high. This medal (200-meters) is important for Italian skating because it’s only one gold medal so far in these world championships now. I hope other races, we win, like Max Presti in the marathon. It’s my 11th gold medal and my favourite number is 1, so it makes 1 and 1; it’s very good. After the race, I thought about my family, my girlfriend in Italy, and everyone who helped me this year'. [Note: Duggento could be seen in tears after his victory in the 200-meter sprint]

Paul DiJulio on wheel selection- Paul is on the technical committee & is the speed representative of MPC


Paul DiJulio with Italy's World Champion Patrizio Triberio, who raced on MPC wheels and was very pleased
'First, you have to figure out the track conditions because each track is different. Most tracks like in the USA, as it gets warmer, it gets slippery. In Anyang, it’s totally the opposite of what tracks normally are. As it gets hotter, it gets grippy. Humidity also affects it. As humidity comes in, it gets slippery, especially when it’s cold. So you’ve got all kinds of variables that come into play that athletes have to consider. Like does the track have debris on it? Look at the temperature, the surface of the track, is it concrete? Is it coated? And then you make a wheel selection based on your best guess. The wheels most selected at worlds are wheels that have grip but they also need to roll. I got here early and I had the opportunity to watch the New Zealand team testing wheels. Kalon Dobbin was here one month before and I actually came here three times to test wheels in different conditions. I was here in March, June, and July. So I got a chance to see different set-ups with different conditions. I was here when the track was being built, so we could base the composition of the wheel based on the track'.

Bill Begg on family in skating- Bill is the father of Nicole and Wayne who both skate for the New Zealand national team. Bill was the coach of the German team at the 2006 world championships.


Bill Begg with Kalon Dobbin during the openning ceremony
'It’s great that we can all do something we’re passionately in love with as a family. For Nicole to follow in her mom’s footsteps, you know, she’d her Mom, her best friend, her sister. We have to make sure we love Wayne as much as Nicole. For me & Cheryl, it’s a bit trying so we have to try to help Wayne out for what his misses on the other side. It’s frustrating because he’s got the skills and ability to be up there, he just doesn’t quite apply himself as he able. He can do things on skates people can only dream about'.

Joey Mantia on sportsmanship- Joey was the top senior skater at the 2006 world championships winning many gold medals for the USA .


Joey Mantia in the world champion's jersey- looks good
'It’s always important to skate fair and have good sportsmanship, whether you’ve been cheated or not. It’s always important to prove your worth with your actions and not your mouth'.

Sara Ferenshtian on her nation’s first trip to the world championships- Sara comes from Iran. She skated each distance in the senior women’s category except the 200 and 300-meter sprints.


Sara Ferenshtian (center) with two team mates
'It’s good here. It’s very beautiful and the racing is also beautiful. It’s a high level. Our sport is fast! After this race, we will come to other world races better than now. This race was an experience for our skaters. After this, we go to Taiwan for the 2006 Asian games'.

Gavin Pollock on the atmosphere and party- Gavin competed in the senior men’s races for Great Britain.


Gavin Pollock (left) and I in the cab
'The party atmosphere is the reason that most of the skaters who are not the most incredible skaters come to worlds' [quoted while in the back of a taxi cab going to the hotel from the after party]

Ceclia Baena on Colombia’s success- Ceclia was a member of Colombia’s national team at the 2006 world championships. Colombia placed first in the medal standings with 42 medals, 5 of which were won by Cecilia.


It might not be a gold, but it is two more medals for Colombia's red machine
'It’s the best feeling in the world because we train like the world’s best. At the world championships, we skate like the world’s best. Other countries want to beat Colombia because it is the best'.