08 Dec 2009

Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) coaches are highly sought after by leading sporting organisations, and the Australian Football League (AFL) is no exception.

Charlie Walsh was appointed inaugural AIS Track Cycling head coach in 1987, a position he held until he retired after the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games. He was also national track and road cycling coach.

Today Charlie is assistant fitness coach at the Adelaide Crows AFL club. He was recruited to the club’s football department by former AIS sports scientist and current coach of the Crows, Neil Craig, who joined the club in 2005.

Neil had worked closely with Charlie overseeing the sports science programs for the South Australian Sports Institute and the AIS Track Cycling programs.

Charlie has successfully integrated cycling into the club’s fitness program, both for general fitness and injury rehabilitation. He also performs a mentoring role with individual footballers, especially young players joining the club.

Stuart Cormack is another strong connection between the AIS and AFL. After four years at the AIS as a strength and conditioning coach, Stuart became head fitness coach for the West Coast Eagles AFL club for eight seasons.

While in Perth he completed his PhD research at Edith Cowan University, investigating neuromuscular fatigue and hormonal responses to training and competition in elite Australian rules footballers. In September 2008 Stuart moved to Essendon Football Club as high performance coach.

Denise (Dee) Jennings joined Essendon in October 2008 as physical preparation coach. Dee, who was on the AIS Strength and Conditioning staff with Stuart, spent seven years as Victorian Institute of Sport physical preparation coordinator, where she earned a reputation for rebuilding the bodies of broken athletes.

Winter Olympic aerial skiing gold medallist Alisa Camplin credits Dee with rebuilding her career twice after injury, and considers her one of the most exceptional physical preparation coaches in the country.