• Home
  • SOCRATES’ THINKING
    • News and comment
    • Editorial
  • About
  • US
    • Sportsocratic team
    • Contributors
  • Reviews
    • Adventures
    • Books
    • Places
  • Contributions
  • Advertise
  • Contact

Sportsocratic

Thoughts, ideas, opinions and postulations on sport and adventuring

  • Sport & society
    • Ethics & Values
    • History
    • Favourite photos
    • Cultural and social issues
    • Politics
    • Big questions
    • Sport fashion
      • Sartorialism and style
  • Wild sports
  • Silly stuff
  • Sports science
    • Research
    • Coaching
    • Innovation
    • HEALTH
  • The things that made me
  • Stories
    • General sporting stories
    • Waves of Pain
      • No Respect!
      • Death Wish at Fairy Bower
      • Fried nuts
      • The ocean is a trickster… especially Hawaii’s North Shore – Gas chambers bites the unwary!
      • Titus Kinimaka’s nightmare Christmas
      • Dix dumped – the trials of a self-confessed elite body surfer
      • The little surf that nearly ruined a promising career…
      • Rabbit killer – a master takes a caning at pipeline!
      • Death Wish at Fairy Bower
      • Easternmost memory – surfing in the wild at the end of the continent
      • Nothing ruins a good surf like a couple of blokes with automatic assault rifles…
      • Agony for Miki Dora
      • Smashed at Gas Chambers
      • Who was Europe’s first surfing woman? Introducing the wonderful Witch of Newbury.
      • A bad day at Palmy – surfies and clubbies at war!
      • When being a proven waterman is not enough!
      • The highs and lows of surfing Sunset Beach while competing at the Duke Kahanamoku Invitational
      • An American midnight surf – that goes very wrong!
  • What does it mean?
    • What is a snake?
    • What does “shag” mean?
    • What does “Freddy Jones” mean?
    • What does “hook and ladder” mean?
    • What does back walk-over mean?
  • Philosophers Sport Bar
    • Socrates and Aristotle debate football defence
    • Michel de Montaigne on coaching sports
    • Ancient philosophers discuss what makes the beautiful game beautiful! Laozi and Socrates get technical.
  • Travel

The things that made me… Jana Pittman

August 2, 2016 By SOCRATES Leave a Comment Filed Under: The things that made me

Two times world champion, four times Commonwealth champion, in the sport of athletics, Jana Pittman swapped the track for the ice, joining the Australian Women’s bobsleigh team, to become the first women to represent Australia in both a Summer and Winter Olympic games.

Jana is one of only nine international athletic champions (along with the likes of Valerie Adams and Usain Bolt) who have won world championships at youth, junior and open athletic events.

Jana is now studying a Bachelor of Medicine & Surgery at the Western Sydney University. She is mum to 8-year-old Cornelis and little sister Emily, born last year in April. She also runs her own health, fitness and motivational speaking business.

Along with her studies, parenting a-d working on her business Jana is now training hard to qualify for the upcoming Rio Olympics.

Here Jana Pittman describes some of the influences that have brought her to where she is today.

Jana... multiple roles these days
Jana… multiple roles these days

MY FATHER, BRIAN PITTMAN

I owe so much to my mother for the thousands of hours driving me around to training and events and just sitting around waiting, waiting, waiting for me all the time… but my Dad and his extraordinary work ethic have had a huge influence on my life. Dad was so committed to hard work. He would leave for work at four in the morning and get home just in time to tuck us in bed at night. The only days I can recall him having off were the couple of days a year he took off to see me compete in state or national championships. It was Dad who initially encouraged me to be an athlete and it was his commitment to ridiculously hard work and single minded determination that influenced the kind of athlete that I became.

jana and phil
Jana working out with Phil King

TWO COACHES… JACKIE BYRNES AND PHIL KING

I have had around eight coaches in my athletics career but two stand out as being especially influential. I can’t pick between the two of them as to which is most important to me.

Jackie Byrnes coached me to a junior world title back in 1999 (U18) and she did for me something that few other coaches can do. If you ask most athletes whether they like training they will tell you that they hate it and it hurts. Jackie taught me to absolutely love my sport and that even if you are training your heart out you can still have fun. She was always able to create an environment that enabled me to feel as good as I could feel.

Phil King must be one of the greatest coaches ever. He only coached two people… Debbie Flintoff-King and myself. One, a World Champion and the other, an Olympic Champion. That’s not a bad C.V. I am not an easy person to coach. I tend to over think things. I can get grumpy and frustrated. He just knew what it would take to turn that around. Phil was always one hundred percent dedicated to my goals. I could rely on him. Every day he came prepared with important messages that he thought would mean something to me. It seems he just knew the ways to get the very best out of me.

Even now, if I have a problem or a question Phil is the first person I will text or call if I need help.

THE ROCKY MOVIES – ALL OF THEM!

Yeah… I know it’s such a cliché. An athlete who loves motivational sports movies! I can’t help it. I just love them. I love the story behind the Rocky character. I love the pump up. I love the adrenaline. I love the message about hard work. It’s all so “old school” but it means something to me and I truly love it.

I wouldn’t consider preparing for a major athletics event without watching a Rocky film as an important part of my prep.

The beats that drive me on... Safri Duo
The beats that drive me on… Safri Duo

SAFRI DUO – “PLAYED-A-LIVE”

I first heard the Played-A-Live track when my fellow athletes in the 400 m hurdles final at the World Championships in Paris in 2003 and I were entering the stadium. Those mad bongos banged out continuously as we walked onto the track and kept on banging right up until the point when the stadium announcer said “In lane 5, Jan Pittman… from Australia.” Moments later I went on to win my first world championship!

Now I play it to myself before any race… or whenever I am injured and feeling down… or when the voice inside my head is saying “go on… retire… you don’t need this”. This dance track by an obscure Danish percussion duo can instantly transport me back to that time and place when I was the very best in the world. If I need a reminder of what I am capable of and if I need to lift my mood so I can keep working towards where I need to be, Played-A-Live is just the thing to do it for me.

MY KIDS, CORNELIS AND EMILY

Well Cornelis and Emily have pretty much changed fundamentally how I feel about myself, about how I perceived the media saw me and about how I felt about pretty much everything I was doing. All these changes started when Cornelis came along, of course, and now I have Emily as well and she is just so amazing. It can’t get more basic than that. That have influenced me in every way!

Jana and Doctor Blumenthal
Jana and Doctor Blumenthal

Dr. NORMAN BLUMENTHAL

Dr. Norman Blumenthal was the obstetrician that delivered my son Cornelis. From the first day I met him he has had a big impact upon me. Even as a young child I had had an ambition to practice medicine because my Dad had been forced out of medical studies because of a serious accident. It was Dr. Blumenthal who not only encouraged me to think that becoming a doctor was possible but he also influenced me to want to practice obstetrics like him. I just love kids and the thought of helping women to achieve their motherhood goals is something I am working towards.

I know that it is strange that a committed athlete and parent would see getting a medical degree as an important priority but I actually think that working on my medical studies has made me a better athlete. So many young sports people who live a life one hundred percent commitment to their sport live in fear for their future. I love my kids, my sport and my studies and I know that I will have a great future after my competition at the top level has ended.

Dr. Blumenthal has not only been a primary influence in that he has helped steer me towards my professional future while still competing at athletics but he is helping me in an on-going way through being there in the background offering occasional support and friendship when needed. Thinking about Dr. Blumenthal reminds me of the important role that all of my current medical mentors (who have offered much support in recent times) have in my life.

The great David Hemery
The great David Hemery

BOOK – “ANOTHER HURDLE” – DAVID HEMERY

Some biographies… even the occasional sport biography… can be boring. They can also be untruthful. Some biographies sum up the lives of their subjects along the lines of “amazing Mr. X… was an amazing athlete, an amazing person, an amazing character who did only amazing things”. David Hemery’s story about his life is quite the opposite. This is an honest book about an ordinary human being who was able to take advantage of a special talent and rise, through enormous hard work, to become extraordinary.

Any athlete… in fact anybody who wants to achieve anything… should read this book. He talks of injuries, nerves, self-doubt and fearing of failure. These are the kinds of honest admissions that make an impact in his biography.

His story and his book have had a huge impact on my own competitive life. I remember after the warm-up for the final at the 2007 world championships I noticed that half of the field in the final were mothers with young children. This gave me a real thrill and I smilingly said so to one of my competitors as we waited to be called out onto the track for the race. The American woman I spoke to not only ignored me… she stared coldly ahead as if I didn’t exist. Nothing. I got nothing from her. Not a smile. Not a wink. Absolutely nothing. I felt gutted. I nearly burst into tears. As the public address called us out onto the track I wondered how I was going to take on the eight best 400 m hurdlers in the world when I was so upset that I couldn’t even concentrate on the first hurdle. Then David and his experiences came back to me. It reminded me that even with all my flaws and frailties I could still be the best in the world. I went on to win the world championship race.

Bobsleigh. Even faster than hurdling.
Bobsleigh. Even faster than hurdling.

SOCRATES

Short, fat, slow, uncoordinated and clumsy, ancient Athenian Socrates had very few of the physical quality required of the elite athlete. He did have, on the other hand, a better than average brain between his ears and a mouth that could talk opposing players, referees and coaches half into their graves. Socrates, as a sport analyst, is what the world needs and misses. He is an opinionated so-and-so that actually thinks deeply about sport and adventuring and likes nothing better than provoking others into deep thought. Socrates is the antithesis of the sporting jock or the West Sydney soccer supporter.

Support Sportsocratic

Thanks for reading this story! We appreciate your visit to Sportsocratic… and love providing alternative information, opinions and angles from the sporting world. The world of sport is so full of the same old stuff from the same old sources that it drives us nuts… and it makes our day giving voice to less orthodox views. If you appreciate our free service, give some thought to helping us out. It costs us big bucks to keep Sportsocratic going but, if our readers support us, our future is much more secure.

Help us to keep you entertained and informed… and enable Socrates to keep asking those big philosophical sporting questions.

Support Sportsocratic for as little as a $1 and we would love you to bits. It only takes a few seconds!

Support Us

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related

travel

Dar Es Salaam to Zanzibar – reviewing a short (but lonely) journey

February 20, 2024 By SOCRATES Leave a Comment

Socrates takes us back in time when he spins a travel yarn about his journey from Tanzania capital Dar Es Salaam to the beautiful island of Zanzibar. As an Aussie expat with years of living in cushy Europe he initially finds his destination intimidating. Find out whether things got better for the intrepid sissy adventurer as he settles into his guest house in the ancient and exotic “old town” of the city of Zanzibar.

To Jambiani – Exploring Zanzibar (travel destination review)

February 18, 2024 By SOCRATES Leave a Comment

Shy and nervous Aussie Socrates doesn’t know what to make of unfamiliar and intimidating Zanzibar old town. The absence of the woman he is starting to fall for doesn’t help. Things make an unexpected turn for the better when the Netherlander heartthrob arrives at his hotel door and lets him know that she will be joining him on his exploration of the beautiful East African island after all. Join them in their journey from the bustling and eye-catching, ancient old town to the simple fishing villages of the Jambiani coast. Will the adventuring pair become an adventuring couple?

SOCRATES’ RECENT TWEETS

Tweets by Sportsocratic

Ethics and fairplay

When is cheating okay?

July 4, 2024 By SOCRATES Leave a Comment

When Socrates found out that Rugby League legend Wally Lewis had pulled off an outrageous State of Origin scam without a soul even realizing, it occurred to him that sometimes pulling a swifty should be tolerated. Here Socrates explores the history of sport and tries to establish the circumstances under which a little bit of rule book stretching is okay. Click the pic and see if you agree with him.

Wallaby v France test – the moment that soared above all the others

July 20, 2021 By SOCRATES Leave a Comment

There were many great moments in the final Wallabies versus France rugby test last week but according to Socrates, one stood our far above all the others. Was it a great try? A brilliant tackle? A perfect scrum or line-out? A fantastic bit of work at the break-down? According to the rotund Greek hooker it was none of those things. He reckons that the highlight of the game was a much quieter, simpler and more subdued moment. A moment that might have escaped the attention of millions of spectators. Find out about Socrates favorite moment of the test. Click the pic.

matildas

Just six words…

May 20, 2021 By TIMOTHY EDWARDS 1 Comment

Have you ever wished that you could meet and have a conversation with someone you idolize? What would you say to your idol to convince them to want to stay in the conversation? What would they say in response to your brilliant social skills? How would the conversation go? How would it leave you feeling? An Australian ex-professional athlete who had played with and against some of the greatest basketball talent that this country has ever seen (Andrew Gaze, Ricky Grace, Shane Heal, Phil Smythe) once, by chance, had a meeting with possibly the greatest and most famous professional sports person that has ever lived. The superstar he bumped into, in a New York elevator, just happened to be the Aussie basketballer’s idol. How did the meeting turn out? Click the pic and discover the six most memorable words in this Australian point guard’s life.

Outstanding achievement

Team Names on Sports Uniforms? Why?

May 23, 2024 By SOCRATES Leave a Comment

Socrates has been playing and watching sport for decades and one of the (many) things that has mystified and annoyed him from a young age is the way that some teams (usually basketball teams) emblazon their uniforms with their team name in text. He doesn’t get it. And he worries about where this tradition might be heading!

New surfing podcast

One of Australia’s greatest ever surfers – one of surfing’s greatest story tellers – “Rabbit” Bartholomew – talks to award winning journalist Tim Baker about life, surfing and stuff. Perfect listening for lockdown entertainment.

professionalism

So Easy To Make Hasty Judgements – Angel Reese vs Catilin Clark

December 12, 2023 By SOCRATES NEWS DESK Leave a Comment

Is the behavior of some elite athletes judged more harshly than others because of their make-up, their nails, their eyelashes, and their personal style? My own reaction to the most recent NCAA women’s basketball tournament final and the shenanigans of one LSU star player in the final moments of the game had me wondering. At the very least the public reaction to these few seconds of hard-core “trash-talking” should remind us that we should not make hasty judgements about individuals on flimsy information. Always consider the full context.

wisdom

Its just a job. Grass grows. Birds fly. Waves pound the sand. I beat people up. – Muhammad Ali

sport at mardi gras

Rusty and an ice cold beer – Photo 4.

November 7, 2024 By SOCRATES Leave a Comment

When it comes to best Australian sporting photographs with a killer back story, this one is hard to beat. What a beautiful image of a champion surfer and his mate at the infamous Sunset Beach in Hawaii. Think it looks good now? Wait until you see what the editors at an American advertising agency did to it. Ouch. Click the pic and read the full story!

A life with horses

Surfers and melanoma – how great is the risk?

November 21, 2024 By TIMOTHY EDWARDS Leave a Comment

We all know that surfers are at greater risk of skin cancer than the average non-surfer. It’s obvious. They spend more time in the sun. Should that be of real concern to surfer? Is it really that big a risk? Recent research from Southern Cross University indicates that it is a way bigger risk than most surfers… and people… imagine. Going through treatment for skin cancer lesions, even when the treatment is successful, is not fun. Surfers should be aware of the risks and take precautions. Click the pic to get the full story.

wisdom

“Pressure? Pressure is a Messerschmidt up your arse. Playing cricket is not!”

Keith Miller

One of the greatest cricket “all-rounders” of all time, Keith Miller was not only an exceptional performer in multiple elements of test cricketing (batting, bowling and fielding) but he was also gifted in numerous other aspects of his life. Witty, entertaining, handsome, a renowned war time pilot and gifted Australian Rules Footballer, Miller was famed for calling a spade a spade and acknowledging that there was much more to life than elite sports. Having flown fighter bombers in the Second World War under life threatening circumstances he was not one to take the “pressure” of high level sport too seriously!

trivia

Here is a cracker of a trivia question.

Who was the college recruiting scout talking about when he said the following to his head coach.

“I’ve just seen a fat guy… who can play like the wind!”

Yup. The same guy who told people that just because they had shoes like his, it didn’t make them like him in any other way. Charles Wade Barkley.

Etymology

Postecoglou coaching pointers

March 8, 2023 By SOCRATES Leave a Comment

Celtic football coach Ange Postecoglou’s post League Cup interview avoided the normal “we knew we had to…”, “full credit to the boys…” and “we talked about blah blah blah during the week…” bollocks that is so common in post-match player and coach chats with the media. The coach actually revealed important insights into the way great coaches think and how they seek to get the best out of their players. Any coach aspiring to become a great coach, no matter what sport they teach should listen to this interview. Postecoglou is the real deal. There are few coaches better at getting the most out of their team.

What does it mean?

What is Elvis leg?

Admit it. You’ve never heard of “Elvis leg,” have you? What the blazes is “Elvis leg?” As is the case with every other “What does it mean…” story we have ever posted, the answer is not directly related to the name itself. It is indirectly related to Elvis, though. Have a guess what the relationship is… then click here and check out whether your were correct. Find out for certain which sport uses this term and what it means.

What is a liberator?

Of course most you aviation buffs will think that a liberator is an American WW2 heavy bomber. Fair enough. But in a sporting context does it have a completely different meaning? Indeed it does. You are going to have to click here to find out what a liberator is and does in the world of sport.

Aphorisms, insights and wisdom

“The thing that’s depressing about tennis is that no matter how good I get I will never be as good as a wall.”

More perceptive sporting analysis from Mitch Hedberg, comic genius.

 

ebook

Phillip has returned to the south of India after eighteen years. But who is the young girl staying in his hotel? And what will he learn about his estranged brother through Inez, the Spanish backpacker?

To buy The Bangalore Test, John Campbell’s new ebook novella, just click the link.

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter

©2019 Sportsocratic