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| Human Interest | |
|---|---|
Sport Specific Information | |
| Club / Team | Melbourne Track Club: Australia |
Further Personal Information | |
| Higher education | Physiotherapy - La Trobe University: Melbourne, VIC, AUS |
General Interest | |
| Hobbies | Writing, cooking. (Instagram profile, 02 Jun 2021) |
| Injuries | In 2018 he sustained a bone stress injury and suffered from low bone mineral density in his lumbar spine, causing him to miss the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, QLD, Australia. (pogophysio.com.au, 31 Jan 2020) In January 2010 he slipped on snow and injured his knee, which put him out of action for several weeks. Just after returning from this injury he stepped on a rock and injured his foot, which sidelined him for another four weeks. (flotrack.org, 25 Apr 2009) |
| Famous relatives | His grandfather John McNeill was the 1939 Victoria state champion in Australia in long jump and triple jump. (athletics.com.au, 24 Nov 2009) |
| Ambitions | To compete at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. (athletics.com.au, 12 May 2021) |
| Awards and honours | While competing for Northern Arizona University in the United States of America, he was named 2009 Division I Male Cross-Country Scholar Athlete of the Year by the United States Track & Field and Cross-Country Coaches Association [USTFCCCA]. (ustfccca.org, 01 Mar 2010) |
Sport Specific Information | |
| Name of coach | Nic Bideau [personal], AUS, from 2014 |
| When and where did you begin this sport? | He began running in high school. |
General Interest | |
| Nicknames | Dave (rio2016.olympics.com.au, 01 Dec 2015) |
| Other information | OCCUPATION He works part-time as a physiotherapist in Blackburn, VIC, Australia, and also coaches with Run Strong Online Coaching. He has previously been a written and digital content creator for Runner's Tribe and a writer at Tempo Journal. (LinkedIn profile, 01 Oct 2020; tempojournal.com, 21 Mar 2021) EDUCATION He studied physiotherapy for 18 months at La Trobe University in Melbourne, VIC, Australia, before moving to Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, AZ, United States of America, completing both bachelor's and master's degrees in exercise physiology. In 2019 he gained a doctorate in physiotherapy at the University of Melbourne. (Melbourne University Sport Facebook page, 14 Dec 2017; Facebook profile, 19 Apr 2019; LinkedIn profile, 01 Oct 2020) |
Further Personal Information | |
| Residence | Melbourne, VIC, AUS |
Sport Specific Information | |
| Why this sport? | He took up athletics because he was not interested in any of the other sports on offer at school. |
Further Personal Information | |
| Occupation | Athlete, Coach, Physiotherapist |
| Languages | English |
General Interest | |
| Most influential person in career | US distance runner Bernard Lagat. (rio2016.olympics.com.au, 01 Dec 2015) |
| Sporting philosophy / motto | "When I run, I feel happiest. I feel running creates the best version of myself for all other aspects of my life." (rio2016.olympics.com.au, 01 Dec 2015) |