Head Coach of UK Athletics, Charles van Commenee has personally coached athletes to international medals, including Denise Lewis, Kelly Sotherton and Huang Zhihong, sportswoman of the year in China. He now offers organisations the chance share in over 30 years coaching experience and benefit from his outstanding record in getting the best out of individuals and teams.

He started his professional career as a technical director and national coach for the Netherlands and moved to take up similar roles for the British athletics team in 2001. Additionally, he has personally coached athletes of various nationalities to international medals, including Denise Lewis, Kelly Sotherton and Huang Zhihong.

Charles first became involved in coaching at the age of eighteen; he began teaching children while studying for a degree in physical education. After completing his military service in 1981 he dedicated himself to coaching full time and in 1987 he was appointed as the coach for the Dutch javelin team. Building upon this coaching success, in 1992 he was promoted to technical director of combined events and throws by the Dutch athletics federation. He took on other coaching responsibilities, including shot put thrower Huang Zhihong, a double world champion shot put. Charles felt that he was as much a mentor for Huang as he was a coach. She had moved away from home to attend a sports institute at the age of twelve and had not experienced life outside of the centre. Van Commenee had helped her adapt to living on her own and supporting herself in the western world, at the same time as he helped her to a World Championship medal.

In 1994 Charles started working withDenise Lewis. Impressed with his work, she moved to Amsterdam to train with Van Commenee in 1997. Lewis went on become champion at both the Commonwealth Games and European Championships in 1998 and won silver at the 1999 World Championships. At the 2000 Sydney. Games and after 6 successful years and despite the fact that she was injured she took gold to become Olympic Champion. She put much of her success and ‘drive to win’ down to the fact that Van Commenee had been so focussed.

As a coach, he is driven. Athletes, not least me, would really just to go on our merry way. He doesn’t let you. We’ve had a lot of difficulties in the years we’ve been together and he gets you right at the right time. My self-discipline is down to him.”

Olympic Gold medalist – Denise Lewis

Following his success with Lewis, in 2001 he was appointed by UK Athletics as the technical director for the jumps and combined events. As director he took on responsibilities for British athletes including Dean Macey, Ashia Hansen and Jonathan Edwards, though they all retained personal coaches.

In 2003 Kelly Sotherton joined his training group. Ranked 57th in the world for the heptathlon, she went onto to win the bronze medal at the 2004 Athens Olympics Charles was unhappy with Kelly feeling she could have won the silver. However Kelly went onto say “People have to remember that Charles was the one who got me in the position to be an Olympic medallist…I don’t think any other coach could have got me to where he did