Outspoken Wright to bring diplomacy in return to Sports Institute as new triathlon head coach
- The 36-year-old has to change his role as a competitor – and critic – to working with all stakeholders to get the sport moving in coronavirus hiatus
- Hong Kong-born Wright, who helped triathlon retain elite status with a seventh position at 2010 Asian Games, plans to expand pool
Outspoken Andrew Wright will have to add ‘diplomacy’ to his skills after he returned to the Hong Kong Sports Institute this week as their new triathlon head coach.
The former athlete left the elite training centre when he helped the sport retain its tier A status by reaching the required performance benchmark with a seventh-place finish at the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou.
Since then, Wright, now 36, has been in competition and highly critical of the triathlon association and Institute, saying they failed to make the most of his efforts and raise standards in Hong Kong.
“Honestly, triathlon needed someone like me to push from outside,” he said. “The problem with triathlon in Hong Kong is there is no competitive environment. Basically, if you are part of the programme, there is not many people involved in the sport and you just move up year after year. It’s the same athletes as there is no competition for them.
