Planet Feature:

Ask Bill Begg
World-renowned coach will answer questions in weekly column

By Planet staff
Thursday, May 10, 2007

Got a question about inline speed skating, training or history?

Ask inline skating's most famous coach, Bill Begg.

The outspoken Kiwi will field questions in his weekly Q&A column "Ask the Coach" on the Inline Planet.

Bill's not shy — so feel free to ask him anything.

He's also one of the sport's great storytellers. So if you want to hear tales about the likes of Chad Hedrick and Derek Parra, fire away.

Ready to go? ... Ask Bill a question!

Highlights of Bill Begg's career:

• 1963: Starts skating (on quads) at 17 at roller rink in Timaru, New Zealand.
• 1970: Wins first New Zealand national championship (1000m road sprint).
• 1976: Sets multiple New Zealand speed records.
• 1978: Immigrates to Australia, where he wins two national road titles.
• 1979: Becomes coach-athlete of Australia's national team.
• 1981: Coaches Australia to two gold medals and a silver at the World Championships. These are the country's first medals.
• 1990: Becomes coach of the then-lackluster Colombian national team. Leads team to first place at World Championships.

Bill is still coaching. He is currently directing the Swiss Junior World Team and working as a staff member of Iguana Think Tank, organizer of the World Inline Cup.

When he isn't coaching skaters, he's producing them. He and his wife, former world champion Cheryl Begg (nee Millar), are the parents of two world-class skaters: Wayne and Nicole.

Nicole Begg, a world champion and top World Cup skater, raised eyebrows recently with some semi-nude photos in Sports Insider magazine. That may be another topic for "Ask the Coach."

Ask Bill a question!