{"id":46129,"date":"2020-01-30T12:12:57","date_gmt":"2020-01-30T04:12:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.runnerstribe.com\/?p=46129"},"modified":"2025-01-14T10:19:25","modified_gmt":"2025-01-14T02:19:25","slug":"martin-dent-ferocity-hard-work-honesty","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/runnerstribe.com\/features\/martin-dent-ferocity-hard-work-honesty\/","title":{"rendered":"Martin Dent: Ferocity, Hard Work & Honesty"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Jaryd Clifford<\/strong><\/p>\n

In 1998, a young runner from New South Wales lay shattered on the\u00a0Olympic Park track in Melbourne. His name was Martin Dent, and<\/strong>\u00a0moments earlier he had come to a grinding halt, his panic-stricken face\u00a0awash with realisation. It was the Australian junior steeplechase final, and\u00a0while leading the race, he had forgotten to hurdle the all-important water\u00a0jump. His race was over, and there was nothing he could do. It was his fault,\u00a0and he knew it. Rising slightly from the track, he began to pummel his fist\u00a0into the ground, his frustration released in a brief, yet unforgettable tirade.\u00a0It was this fierce passion that would one day take him to the Olympic\u00a0Games, and make him one of the toughest runners in Australian history.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"
Michael Shelle, Liam Adams, and Martin Dent. Commonwealth Games 2014<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

On a cold Canberra night, I sit across from Martin Dent in the old games room at the\u00a0Australian Institute of Sport. His words are humble, his voice a comforting interlude to\u00a0the silence that has shrouded the institute in the years since his retirement from\u00a0professional running in 2014. It is nearly six years since his farewell marathon, but as\u00a0we teeter on the edge of a golden era in Australian marathon running, there are valuable\u00a0lessons to learn from a man that braved more than a decade at the elite level. It all began\u00a0more than 20 years ago, even before the fabled meltdown of 1998.<\/p>\n

Not many runners \u2013 especially male runners \u2013 can boast two appearances at world\u00a0junior level, but Dent is one of them. It highlighted a junior career like none other. \u201cI\u00a0was a pretty rigid person,\u201d he recalls. \u201cIf I had a training plan, I\u2019d just go out and do it. It\u00a0was what you had to do: go hard and race hard.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

There are two stories from his youth that epitomise this mantra.<\/p>\n

Firstly, as an under-16 competing at interclub, Dent ran an 800m personal best of 1:58.\u00a0Then, 90-minutes later, he broke the NSW state record for 3000m, running 8:38 \u2013 the\u00a0time would stand for nearly a decade, eventually broken by teenage prodigy Ryan\u00a0Gregson. Such a feat seemed to defy common sense, even sanity.<\/p>\n

The second story takes place in post-Apartheid South Africa, where Dent was thrust\u00a0prematurely into the senior team environment. As one of only two juniors on the 1996\u00a0world cross-country team, which boasted the likes of Steve Moneghetti, Lee Troop, and\u00a0Shaun Creighton, there was no other option than to grow up fast. This transformation\u00a0was accelerated further by incidents including when fellow junior Mark Thompson ran\u00a0straight into a barbed wire fence on a training run in the days preceding the race, an\u00a0accident that required Dent to \u201ccheck if there was any blood spurting out.\u201d. It was these\u00a0experiences that ignited the fearlessness that would define his career.<\/p>\n

Aged 18, and determined to emulate the achievements of his 1996 teammates, Dent\u00a0moved to Canberra to train under the tutelage of esteemed coach, Dick Telford.\u00a0Although he was determined to run himself into the ground, even he could not always be\u00a0prepared for the famously brutal Telford training regimen.<\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes you\u2019d turn up to a long run, and Dick would decide that it was going to be\u00a0pretty hard \u2013 almost a race,\u201d Dent says. \u201cYou\u2019d argue with him: I don\u2019t want to do this,\u00a0what about the other boys that haven\u2019t even turned up? But he wasn\u2019t interested in\u00a0excuses like that. He\u2019d just say: toughen up and get on with it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Having missed out on the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000 despite having run a qualifier\u00a0in the steeplechase, Dent turned his attention to the marathon \u2013 his dream distance. In\u00a0his debut race at the Fukuoka Marathon in 2002, he suffered dramatically, recording a\u00a0seven-minute positive split to run 2:20:04. Even he acknowledges that his first\u00a0experience was a painful one: \u201cI was pretty messed up. I just laid on the stretcher for\u00a0ages.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"
Gold Coast Half Marathon Martin Dent and Jeff Hunt<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In the modern era, a runner reeling from a failed marathon attempt is likely to seek out\u00a0help from any number of non-running practices, such as strength and conditioning,\u00a0physiotherapy, or sports psychology. However, even though these are scientifically\u00a0supported methods, Dent does not believe they are imperative to success.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
An Australian running classic, buy now from the Runner’s Tribe shop<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cI know people talk about one-percenters, but I call them the point-one-percenters, and\u00a0I think they\u2019re worth even less than that. I didn\u2019t really do any of it. I just ran heaps. I\u00a0did 10,000 crunches an hour when I was running because my abs flex with each step, so\u00a0I just ran as much as I could,\u2019 he says. \u201cI was too lazy to do anything else. If you\u2019ve got\u00a0time, then, maybe, it\u2019s good. But you don\u2019t have to do injury prevention if you don\u2019t get\u00a0injured \u2013 that\u2019s one theory.\u201d<\/p>\n

Over the ensuing years, Dent notched an array of impressive performances, including a\u00a02:15:12 marathon in Canberra, and a fourth-place in the steeplechase at the Melbourne\u00a0Commonwealth Games in 2006. Nevertheless, he decided to part ways with Telford,\u00a0opting instead to go it alone. Within a year he had recruited a small tight knit squad that\u00a0included current Paralympic Games coach Philo Saunders, and 15-year-old future\u00a0Olympic 5000m finalist Brett Robinson.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

During this period, Dent developed an unwritten rulebook that, for many squads in\u00a0Canberra, remains intact to this day. Arguably, the most popular rule stated that when\u00a0there was an allocated start time for training, the squad would only wait for Olympic\u00a0and world champions, which led to the famous quote: \u201cIf Deek was training with us\u00a0today, we\u2019d wait\u2026but he\u2019s not.\u201d<\/p>\n

The other rule was more like a formula. It dictated who was allowed to \u2018win\u2019 the final rep\u00a0in training. For someone to be eligible for such an honour, they had to have led at least\u00a0half their share. For example, in a 16x400m session with four runners, the natural share\u00a0is four reps each. Therefore, if a runner had led two reps, they were entitled to race the\u00a0final rep. When one particular runner, in his first session with the group, broke this\u00a0coveted rule, Dent ran the culprit off the track, giving him an earful that witnesses would\u00a0never forget.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
NO BUGLES NO DRUMS – PETER SNELL’S BIOGRAPHY BY GARTH GILMOUR (Click on the cover above.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Despite the ferocity, it was Dent\u2019s intense demand for hard work and honesty that\u00a0inspired those around him. It may also be the reason for the vehement frustration\u00a0directed at Athletics Australia selectors on his behalf, particularly during the 2008\u00a0Olympic cycle.<\/p>\n

In 2007, attempting to qualify for the world championships in the steeplechase, Dent\u00a0recorded a time of 8:24.56 \u2013 six one-hundredths of a second under the qualifying time.\u00a0However, on a trip to Kenya for the world cross-country championships later in the year,\u00a0he was informed that this performance would not be enough to qualify. \u201cThey told me I\u00a0had to run it twice,\u201d he says. The untimely decree left little opportunity for a\u00a0counterpunch. He would have to wait one more year.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

And yet, somehow, 2008 offered only more agony. Firstly, having run an A-qualifier in\u00a0the steeplechase, Dent realised that, although he had recorded it during the IAAF\u00a0period, it was not during the Athletics Australia period, due to their failure to align.\u00a0Ignoring this misfortune, he went on to record a slew of B-qualifying times, before\u00a0winning the Olympic trials race \u2013 something that would secure automatic qualification
\ntoday \u2013 beating Youcef Abdi, who would eventually place sixth at the Olympic Games later in the year. Still, none of this was enough for Olympic selection. A further four years of gruelling training awaited.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was frustrated,\u201d Dent recalls bitterly. \u201cI remember having a conversation with some of\u00a0the selectors, and they said: You need to run the time again, and you don\u2019t have a\u00a0finishing kick. They weren\u2019t even interested. I lost a lot of sleep over that.\u201d<\/p>\n

This disappointment fuelled the years that followed. A 21 st in the marathon at the 2009\u00a0world championships would forever remain Dent\u2019s highest position at a senior global\u00a0competition. He would also place sixth over the marathon distance at the 2010\u00a0Commonwealth Games.<\/p>\n

Nevertheless, on a training camp at Falls Creek in 2011, Dent suffered a setback that\u00a0threatened to derail his final Olympic opportunity. Alongside Mark Tucker, the pair had\u00a0decided to run \u2013 rather than drive \u2013 out to the traditional \u2018Quarters\u2019 session along the\u00a0Bogong High Plains Road. Almost immediately, Tucker was felled by a stress fracture in\u00a0his foot. Conversely, Dent fought on, trained well, and did not feel his punishment until\u00a0the following day: a sore back, later diagnosed as a severe sacral stress fracture. For\u00a0those that knew him, there was little surprise that, at least initially, he tried to run\u00a0through the pain. \u201cI can\u2019t remember any other time where I had to stop on a run. It was
\nthat painful,\u201d he says. \u201cI couldn\u2019t even pick up the kids.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"
Training at Falls Creek in 2008. Dent leads Jeff Hunt, James Nipperess, and Jeremy Roff. Photo thanks to Inside Athletics.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Frustration and selection anxiety settled into their familiar routine upon Dent\u2019s return\u00a0to racing one year later. Needing a sub-2:12 marathon to qualify for the 2012 Olympic\u00a0Games, he ran 2:12:23 at the Fukuoka Marathon to ensure his hopes remained in limbo\u00a0\u2013 it would remain the fastest time of his career. However, this time, luck was on his side.\u00a0Finally, the selectors had found it within themselves to give him a chance. Deep down,\u00a0he knew that this had been his last gasp at Olympic qualification.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was ecstatic,\u201d he says. \u201cI don\u2019t think I could have done what Scotty (Westcott) did and\u00a0push through to 2016. I\u2019d been doing hard training for 20 years, ever since I was 13. It\u00a0was taking its toll.\u201d<\/p>\n

And, although this culmination in his career might imply contentment, such\u00a0complacency does not sit well with Dent. In fact, his 28 th place at the 2012 Olympic\u00a0Games evokes a conflict of emotions. \u201cI was so proud \u2013 but I\u2019m also still a bit pissed. I\u00a0should have got another three places in the final straight.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although this intensity burns on, Dent was aware when his time at the top had come to\u00a0an end. It was during the 2014 Commonwealth Games \u2013 halfway through the marathon,\u00a0to be exact. The drive had ebbed, and his willingness to hurt had evaporated on the\u00a0slippery streets of Scotland.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome guy came up to me with two kilometres to go and said: \u2018your mate (Michael\u00a0Shelley) just won\u2019. Like, oh, that\u2019s awesome, but it also meant that he had already\u00a0crossed the finish line. It was pretty frustrating,\u201d he recalls. \u201cI don\u2019t think I was prepared\u00a0to put in the training anymore: twice a day, every day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fast forward to now, and it feels as if something is changing in the marathon\u00a0community. For those of us born in the years after Deek, Mona, and Clayton, having\u00a0three male runners \u2013 Brett Robinson, Jack Rayner, and Liam Adams \u2013 all under 2:12\u00a0seems like something to celebrate. However, Dent is less na\u00efve, and perhaps, less\u00a0sentimental. He knows from personal experience that there is always a desire for faster
\ntimes. There is always desperation for more.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\u201cAustralian marathon running is pretty strong right now. It\u2019s going to take 2:11:36 or\u00a0faster to make the Olympic Games. It hasn\u2019t been this strong for a while,\u201d he says. \u201cI bet\u00a0those guys can go quicker. In fact, I bet that they might have been a little disappointed,\u00a0knowing them. And Liam, well he would have done anything to run six-seconds faster.\u201d<\/p>\n

As the interview approaches its conclusion, I probe for some final advice. \u00a0Once more,\u00a0Martin Dent\u2019s words are wise, applicable to every runner: \u00a0\u201cTry to enjoy the successes.\u00a0When you have a win, no matter what, enjoy it.\u201d<\/p>\n

And, lastly: \u201cThe more you run, the better!\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In 1998, a young runner from New South Wales lay shattered on the\u00a0Olympic Park track in Melbourne. His name was Martin Dent, and\u00a0moments earlier he had come to a grinding halt, his panic-stricken face\u00a0awash with realisation. It was the Australian junior steeplechase final, and\u00a0while leading the race, he had forgotten to hurdle the all-important water\u00a0jump. His race was over, and there was nothing he could do. It was his fault,\u00a0and he knew it. Rising slightly from the track, he began to pummel his fist\u00a0into the ground, his frustration released in a brief, yet unforgettable tirade.\u00a0It was this fierce passion that would one day take him to the Olympic\u00a0Games, and make him one of the toughest runners in Australian history.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9805,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12106,16],"tags":[3783,434],"class_list":["post-46129","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-a-column-by-jaryd-clifford","category-features","tag-jaryd-clifford","tag-martin-dent"],"yoast_head":"\nMartin Dent: Ferocity, Hard Work & Honesty - Runner's Tribe<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In 1998, a young runner from New South Wales lay shattered on the\u00a0Olympic Park track in Melbourne. His name was Martin Dent, and\u00a0moments earlier he had come to a grinding halt, his panic-stricken face\u00a0awash with realisation. It was the Australian junior steeplechase final, and\u00a0while leading the race, he had forgotten to hurdle the all-important water\u00a0jump. His race was over, and there was nothing he could do. It was his fault,\u00a0and he knew it. Rising slightly from the track, he began to pummel his fist\u00a0into the ground, his frustration released in a brief, yet unforgettable tirade.\u00a0It was this fierce passion that would one day take him to the Olympic\u00a0Games, and make him one of the toughest runners in Australian history.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/runnerstribe.com\/features\/martin-dent-ferocity-hard-work-honesty\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Martin Dent: Ferocity, Hard Work & Honesty\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Worldwide running and athletics media.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/runnerstribe.com\/features\/martin-dent-ferocity-hard-work-honesty\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Runner's Tribe\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/runnerstribe\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-01-30T04:12:57+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-01-14T02:19:25+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/runnerstribe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/01\/dent11.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"848\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"565\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Runnerstribe Admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@runnerstribe\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@runnerstribe\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Runnerstribe Admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"12 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/runnerstribe.com\/features\/martin-dent-ferocity-hard-work-honesty\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/runnerstribe.com\/features\/martin-dent-ferocity-hard-work-honesty\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Runnerstribe Admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/runnerstribe.com\/#\/schema\/person\/4897f5a27f67e48e46d5adb8168ee8b5\"},\"headline\":\"Martin Dent: Ferocity, Hard Work & Honesty\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-01-30T04:12:57+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-01-14T02:19:25+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/runnerstribe.com\/features\/martin-dent-ferocity-hard-work-honesty\/\"},\"wordCount\":2067,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/runnerstribe.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/runnerstribe.com\/features\/martin-dent-ferocity-hard-work-honesty\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/runnerstribe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/01\/dent11.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Jaryd Clifford\",\"martin dent\"],\"articleSection\":[\"A Column By Jaryd Clifford\",\"Features\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/runnerstribe.com\/features\/martin-dent-ferocity-hard-work-honesty\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/runnerstribe.com\/features\/martin-dent-ferocity-hard-work-honesty\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/runnerstribe.com\/features\/martin-dent-ferocity-hard-work-honesty\/\",\"name\":\"Martin Dent: Ferocity, Hard Work & Honesty - Runner's Tribe\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/runnerstribe.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/runnerstribe.com\/features\/martin-dent-ferocity-hard-work-honesty\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/runnerstribe.com\/features\/martin-dent-ferocity-hard-work-honesty\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/runnerstribe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/01\/dent11.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-01-30T04:12:57+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-01-14T02:19:25+00:00\",\"description\":\"In 1998, a young runner from New South Wales lay shattered on the\u00a0Olympic Park track in Melbourne. 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