Lesson 11: Sports Writing - Interviewing
ASSIGNMENT ELEVEN: SPORTS WRITING – INTERVIEWING
QUESTION ONE: DWAIN CHAMBERS
Luke Richards
Word count: 300
1) Who would you like to interview in the world of sport? Pick a person and explain why
you want to interview them, how you would go about getting it and what kind of research you would do. (300 words)
The sports person I would like to interview is Dwain Chambers.
Chambers, 45, is a former European and Commonwealth 100m champion with a personal best of 9.97 seconds.
In the early 2000’s, Chambers was one of the fastest men on the planet with ambitions to win medals at the Olympics and World Championships.
However, in 2003 Chambers failed an out of competition drug test for the steroid tetrahydrogestrinone (THG).
A costly mistake that saw him banned from competition for two years.
Despite attempting several comebacks – including competing in the London 2012 Olympics – his reputation never recovered, and he is still best known as a drugs cheat.
Discussions surrounding doping in athletics have been widely reported. Particularly with the Russian doping scandal and the discourse surrounding Usain Bolt v Justin Gatlin.
What isn’t reported is how a drug cheat can turn their life around after being thrown out of sport.
In 2009, Chambers set up ‘Chambers for Sport,’ an academy for young athletes which focuses on sporting development and life coaching.
My research into Chambers will be conducted online where his academy’s website provides a trove of information into his present day.
It is here or via social media where I would make contact for an interview.
Chambers is a regular user of Instagram where he advertises public speaking events. Some of these events and podcasts can be found on YouTube or Spotify.
He comes across as a brutally honest individual but one who enjoys speaking about his life. It is why I believe it should be possible to secure an interview.
Finally, we also completed our level one football coaching course together and soon after I served him when working for Waterstones!
Whilst he won’t remember me 15 years on, it may be a fun way to start a conversation.
ASSIGNMENT ELEVEN: SPORTS WRITING – INTERVIEWING
QUESTION TWO: TEN QUESTIONS I WOULD ASK DWAIN CHAMBERS
(includes notes from research)
Luke Richards
2) Write out 10 questions you would want to ask him or her.
Introductions
- Thanks for agreeing to do the interview.
- Mention that we first met on a level one football course and served him once in Waterstones soon after. Purpose to build an early rapport and lead into first question. Try not make it sound like it’s about you!
1. Dwain, what I find interesting about you is that you have had interests in several sports and not just athletics. You don’t get that many professional sportsmen or women that have crossed over in their careers. Have you always had a vast interest in all sports?
- Coaching qualifications in several sports
- Trained at Warrington in the Rugby League for Warrington and won the World Bowl for Hamburg in NFL Europe.
2. What led you to athletics in early life – Why was it ultimately the sport that you made you name in?
- Early home life
- Identified as talented
- Ran competitively at school
- Won regularly
3. You were incredibly successful in the early years of your career, particularly the juniors, but found the transition into senior athletics difficult despite posting fast times. Why do you think this was?
- Won regularly as a junior, European and world champion
- Chosen to be part of the relay team at the World championships at 19.
- Stopped winning despite being competitive.
4. We often hear from athletes that have failed doping tests that they just wanted to win. Was your decision to take THG as simple as that? What was your thought process at that time?
-Winning a lot at an early life, started losing when got to the senior’s competition.
- Presumption that everyone else was doing it
-18 months on THG.
- Perception of being used with needles but this was administered with droplets under the tongue.
5. You were running fast times – 9.97 seconds PB at a young age and competing well against the elite. Did you not think that was progression? Do you feel you would have got to where you wanted to be without performance enhancers?
-Took shortcuts. Wanted it now?
6. The fallout from the media and British Athletics must have been difficult for you at the time. How did you initially react to the suspension?
- Best thing that ever happened to him. Needed to, to help turn his life around.
- Mental health issues
7. How long after were you able to rebuild your career?
- Return to athletics
- establishment of chambers for sport
8. In 2009, you set up ‘Chambers for Sport.’ Was this your way of giving back to athletics and sport?
-Wanted to stop young athletes from making the same mistakes he did.
-Guidance in other areas such as psychology, medical, technique, mental health, media?
9. You have competed and gained qualifications in various other sports. What can athletics learn from them?
- media
- prize money
10. I love Athletics; I will always sit and watch a major championship. Athletics will always be the blue-ribbon sport in the Olympics. There are always great feel-good stories that are relatable to the wider public.
However, if you read or watch a lot of discourse in this post-Bolt era, you would think that athletics is in a state of crisis. Is this true for those inside the sport and if so, how do you get it back to its golden age?
