Olaf Lange on Buy-In, Defense, and Becoming Redundant as a Coach

There is no algorithm for leadership. So we ask the world's great coaches how they do it. In this Great Coaches podcast episode, basketball coach Olaf Lange joins from Phoenix after finishing a condensed WNBA bubble season with the Chicago Sky, describing the intensity and relationship-building of life at IMG Academy. Lange discusses what great coaches do differently: eliciting player buy-in, prioritizing defense, and building systems around players rather than forcing players into rigid schemes. He explains the basketball coach’s role as mostly completed before tip-off, aiming to “become redundant” so players make fast decisions, while reflecting on early championships at Wuppertal and culture pillars like discipline, unselfish play, and defense-first. He details sustained success at Ekaterinburg by improving practice culture, standards, leadership from Diana Taurasi, and player development. Lange also covers adapting across countries, managing empathy with tough decisions, helping athletes address self-doubt with rituals and positive focus, and defining legacy as improving people over winning titles.

If you would like to send us any feedback or if you know a great coach, who has a unique story to share, then we would love to hear from you, please contact us at [email protected] or contact us through our website thegreatcoachespodcast.com

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Penny Cula-Reid on Relationship-Based Coaching, Resilience, and Empowering Women in Football

There is no algorithm for leadership. So we ask the world's great coaches how they do it.. In a Great Coaches podcast interview during Melbourne lockdown, Penny Cula-Reid discusses her rapid transition from AFLW player to coach, earning coach of the year and a premiership, and says great coaches build relationships by understanding the person before the player. She describes learning to set boundaries when coaching former teammates and credits mentors Wayne Siekmann and Brad Gotch. Reflecting on her successful sex discrimination case that helped girls play mixed Australian rules to age 14, she explains how negativity built resilience and a drive to prove people wrong. Her coaching values are to engage, encourage, and empower, and she finds meaning in players’ growth, sharing Morgan Doherty’s journey from struggling at training to premiership success. She outlines learning conflict and selection conversations via the AIS program, argues for more women in coaching through real inclusion, pay and flexibility, and visibility, and aspires to coach AFLW and eventually men’s teams.

The documentary, Even Girls Play Footy, was made about the case (click here to watch).

If you would like to send us any feedback or if you know a great coach, who has a unique story to share, then we would love to hear from you, please contact us at [email protected] or contact us through our website thegreatcoachespodcast.com

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Steve Bann on Holistic Golf Coaching, Confidence, and Performing Under Pressure

There is no algorithm for leadership. So we ask the world's great coaches how they do it.. In this Great Coaches podcast episode, golf coach Steve Bann joins Paul from Phillip Island to discuss what great coaches do differently, arguing elite coaching at majors is about identifying what an athlete needs in the moment—shots, strategy, and confidence—rather than swing mechanics. Bann describes how modern pro golf has shifted from one holistic coach to large specialist teams, requiring a head coach to coordinate support. He outlines his holistic philosophy (technical, physical, mental, tactical, and life skills) and explains his improvement cycle model: assess, set goals, create a strategy and timeline, reassess, and repeat. He explains “negative confidence” versus positive confidence, shares K.J. Choi’s 2010 Players Championship win built through targeted practice, clarifies caddie-player decision dynamics, distinguishes choking from the yips, and emphasizes practicing with boundaries, emotional anchoring, and purposeful drills to overcome self-doubt and improve performance.

If you would like to send us any feedback or if you know a great coach, who has a unique story to share, then we would love to hear from you, please contact us at [email protected] or contact us through our website thegreatcoachespodcast.com

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Coach P Joanne McCallie on Evolving Philosophy, Mental Health, and Choice Not Chance

There is no algorithm for leadership. So we ask the world's great coaches how they do it.. Joanne McCallie (“Coach P”) joins the Great Coaches podcast from Durham, North Carolina, discussing writing her second book, Secret Warrior (out February 16), after 28 years of head coaching across Maine, Michigan State, and Duke, including becoming the first Division I coach to win in four conferences. She reflects on lessons from Coach K, Tom Izzo, Kay Yow, Tara VanDerveer, Nick Saban and others, emphasizing authenticity, communication, and adapting philosophy through experience, including work with sports psychiatrist Dr. Rosen on reframing, focus, and personality-based coaching. McCallie shares “Choice Not Chance” as an empowerment framework, her approach to resilience through embracing suffering, her commitment to service and cancer-related advocacy, efforts to reduce mental-health stigma (including Duke’s Mental Wealth Game), and ideas to expand opportunities for women in coaching and administration.

If you would like to send us any feedback or if you know a great coach, who has a unique story to share, then we would love to hear from you, please contact us at [email protected] or contact us through our website thegreatcoachespodcast.com

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Our Great Coach on this episode is Neil Craig.

Neil has coached at the elite level across 3 sports; Australian Rules Football, Cycling and Rugby Union; 

He played 319 games of Australian rules football for Norwood, Sturt and North Adelaide in the South Australian Football League before becoming Norwood's coach in 1991. He then joined the Adelaide Crows in 1997 as an Assistant coach,

Neil was the Sports Science Coordinator for the Australian Olympic cycling team for the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games

He was appointed Head Coach of the Adelaide Football Club in 2004 taking the team to 5 successive finals campaigns and a minor premiership.

Neil then worked for 6 years as a Director of Coaching, at Melbourne, Essendon and Carlton in the Australian Football League.

Since 2017 he has been high performance manager for the England rugby team, working with head coach Eddie Jones.

If you would like to send us any feedback or if you know a great coach, who has a unique story to share, then we would love to hear from you, please contact us at [email protected] or contact us through our website thegreatcoachespodcast.com

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Carrie Graf on Authentic Coaching, Team Culture, and Empowering Women in Sport

There is no algorithm for leadership. So we ask the world's great coaches how they do it.. Carrie Graf joins the Great Coaches podcast from Canberra, where she is Director of Sport at the University of Canberra, overseeing high-performance programs including the Canberra Capitals, partnerships with the Brumbies, and extensive athlete and community sport. Graf reflects on influences such as Tom Maher and argues great coaches are authentic, hold people accountable, and are great teachers. She describes early lessons in honesty and leadership when coaching veteran Robyn Maher at age 25, and how she rebuilt a championship culture at Canberra by recruiting talent, instilling belief, and using lived team themes evaluated constantly (including relentless persistence, handling adversity, and a “we team”). Graf discusses teaching assertive communication to girls, challenges of national team selection and cohesion, adapting to U.S. athlete culture in the WNBA, and her view that coaching is gender-agnostic while urging more women into coaching and sport leadership.

If you would like to send us any feedback or if you know a great coach, who has a unique story to share, then we would love to hear from you, please contact us at [email protected] or contact us through our website thegreatcoachespodcast.com

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There is no algorithm for leadership. So we ask the world's great coaches how they do it.

WV Raman on Empowering Players, Team-First Culture, and Coaching the Mind

On the Great Coaches podcast, Indian cricket coach WV Raman speaks from Chennai about staying safe during the pandemic and outlines what great coaches do: empower players to become their own coaches, respect individual styles, and prioritize mindset at elite levels. He explains his team-first, non-hierarchical philosophy—“no seniors or juniors”—and how foreign coaches and the IPL helped reduce cultural deference in the subcontinent. Raman describes managing player pressure by minimizing pre-game messaging and handing leadership to the captain 48 hours before matches, while noting cricket’s selection committees complicate captain choice. He details his approach when joining teams: aligning expectations, fostering open internal feedback, and resolving issues within the group. With India’s women’s team, he focused on fitness, skill development, self-competing improvement targets, and fearless batting, reframing “World Cup” as “the tournament” and emphasizing effort over results.

If you would like to send us any feedback or if you know a great coach, who has a unique story to share, then we would love to hear from you, please contact us at [email protected] or contact us through our website thegreatcoachespodcast.com

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There is no algorithm for leadership. So we ask the world's great coaches how they do it.

Jan Sterling on Holistic Coaching, Influential Leadership, and Gratitude

On the Great Coaches podcast, Jan Sterling, General Manager of High Performance at Basketball Australia, discusses leading programs in Adelaide and Canberra, including the Centre of Excellence and the NBA Global Academy, and the challenge of extending athlete engagement ahead of the 2021 Olympics. She explains that great coaches surround themselves with people who complement their weaknesses, show authentic care for athletes, staff, and families, and focus on holistic development. Sterling defines coaching as making athletes more resilient for life while developing values such as passion, trustworthiness, accountability, and leaving an environment better than you found it. She reflects on building sustained success with the Adelaide Lightning through a unique, stimulating, high-demand program, adapting her style when coaching the Opals to manage elite expectations, and designing Port Adelaide’s leadership approach around influencing others amid organizational chaos. She describes legacy as fostering gratitude, including writing thank-you notes to supporters.

If you would like to send us any feedback or if you know a great coach, who has a unique story to share, then we would love to hear from you, please contact us at [email protected] or contact us through our website thegreatcoachespodcast.com

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There is no algorithm for leadership. So we ask the world's great coaches how they do it.

Boxing coach Eddie Bolger discusses preparing German national-team camps and the core high-performance behaviors he expects—punctuality, correct equipment, honesty, and respect—alongside a clear team vision. He contrasts mentors Billy Walsh’s passion and leadership with Zsolt’s technical, tactical, conditioning, and periodization expertise, emphasizing how complementary coaching teams create success. Bolger describes lessons from his boxing family about culture and discipline, and explains his four pillars for world-class boxing: mental strength, physical strength, lifestyle, and technical/tactical development supported by specialists. After being hired by Germany, he recounts early mistakes, earning regional coaches’ trust, unifying fragmented programs, and standardizing routines, travel, and team identity. He outlines process-driven routines for athletes’ and coaches’ composure, cross-sport learning with rugby and slalom skiing, Katie Taylor’s preparation and self-belief, handling ethical crises by prioritizing culture over individuals, and his goal of consistent podium impacts rather than legacy.

If you would like to send us any feedback or if you know a great coach, who has a unique story to share, then we would love to hear from you, please contact us at [email protected] or contact us through our website thegreatcoachespodcast.com

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There is no algorithm for leadership. So we ask the world's great coaches how they do it.

Chris O’Brien discusses what differentiates great coaches, emphasizing human connection, understanding individuals, and harnessing athlete spirit beyond standard training plans. He describes key influences from his father—making sport enjoyable and prioritizing technical skill—and explains why there is no “cookie cutter” approach in high performance. O’Brien shares a 2008 Beijing story of scrapping a training session for coffee to reset athletes, introducing his distinction between fast “choices” and slower “decisions,” influenced by AFL decision-making. He outlines balancing physical, technical, and mental development through rehearsal, mindfulness, and understanding performance cues, and reflects on Australia’s 2012 silver in London, including the “Lucerne vs Munich” finish. As head coach post-2012, he focused on role alignment, targeted campaigns (e.g., Kim Brennan with Lyle McCarthy), strategy, values, and centralization, while managing organizational complexity and stakeholders. He closes on legacy as long-term relationships and careful, constructive impact.

If you would like to send us any feedback or if you know a great coach, who has a unique story to share, then we would love to hear from you, please contact us at [email protected] or contact us through our website thegreatcoachespodcast.com

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