Dick Telford

Richard David Telford AM (born 2 April 1945) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for Collingwood and Fitzroy in the Victorian Football League (VFL) during the 1960s, although he mainly played reserves.

He went on to become as a leading Australian sport scientist and distance running coach.

He was the first sport scientist employed by the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS).

He was born 2 April 1945 in Melbourne, Victoria.

Telford's primary school days were at College Rural, a small Melbourne Teacher's College practising school in the grounds of the University of Melbourne.

His father (also named Dick) had returned from World War 2 and was studying for a BSc at the university, hence the connection with the university primary school.

He attended Northcote High School.

He is married to Sue and they have two children.

Telford never played a game of competitive football or cricket through primary school as the school was too small to field a team.

This all changed when he went to Northcote High School where his football and cricket blossomed.

He played his junior football with North Reservoir.

He was invited to train with Fitzroy Cricket Club as a 16-year-old and at 17 he was invited to train with Collingwood Football Club.

He won 3rd Best and Fairest for Collingwood Reserves team, playing on the wing, but due to the competitiveness of the team he made just one appearance in the seniors, a win over South Melbourne Football Club at Lake Oval, a debut he shared with Doug Searl.

The following year, he transferred to Fitzroy Football Club and after playing well in the Reserves, he again won a place in the senior team, this time as a rover, but after two games was ruled out for the rest of the season with a badly damaged hand.

On leaving Northcote High School in 1962, Telford pursued his love of sport and physical education and completed a Diploma in Physical Education and Trained Secondary Teachers' Certificate at University of Melbourne to begin a teaching career at Glenroy Technical School in 1966.

He soon found there was more to learn and following advice from good friend Ross Price, (North Melbourne footballer and University of Melbourne 1st grade cricketer) Telford went on to complete a BSc (Hons).

Through his football career, Telford played cricket, and appeared in 21 first XI district cricket matches between 1964/65 and 1968/69 for University and Fitzroy.

Telford was a world class veterans runner.

A natural centreman, Telford was never given a chance to play this position in the VFL but transferred to Preston in 1968.

Coach Alan Joyce immediately recognised his ability and selected him in the centre for the senior team after seeing him play one game in the reserves.

Telford won that season's J.J. Liston Trophy, Best and Fairest Player Victorian Football Association, the club Best Player Award, and Preston won the Premiership.

The following year, he won the club Best Player Award and the Preston the premiership.

Telford retired in 1972 after 68 VFA games, by which time he had secured two club 'best and fairest' and participated in back to back premierships, in 1968 and 1969.

Telford spent the 1975 and 1976 seasons as non-playing coach of Preston after returning from Western Australia.

Not wishing to leave Australia as did some of his colleagues, Telford pursued postgraduate work at his "home away from home" University of Melbourne (he went to Primary School there as well) and in 1976 completed a Master of Science at the University of Melbourne, with his thesis titled The maximal aerobic power and related studies in sedentary subjects and endurance athletes from Melbourne.

He competed in the Melbourne Marathon in 1978 and recorded a time 3 hours 12 minutes, and following 5 other marathons recorded a personal best time of 2-hour 27 minutes.

During his time with the team, it won back to back Sheffield Shield's in 1978/9 and 1979/80 as well as the One-day competition.

In 1979, his PhD thesis titled Cardiorespiratory properties of trained and untrained subjects and specificity of athletic performance evaluation was completed at the University of Melbourne.

He then worked as a lecturer in the Physical Education Department at Preston Institute of Technology.

In 1980, Telford was the first sport scientist appointed to the newly established Australian Institute of Sport.

He was appointed to the position of Co-ordinator of Sports Sciences and Physiologist.

Telford was required to develop the philosophy, select major positions in sports medicine, physical therapy, psychology and biomechanics areas, develop sports science and medicine services and develop a plan for future facilities.

In 1984, he turned to the track and he won his first Australian veterans M40 1500m championship in 1985.

At the 1987 World Veterans Games in Melbourne he tied for third in the 1500m.

He has the unusual personal achievement of recording personal his career personal best times in the 800m (1.58), 1500m (3.57), 5k, 10k, half marathon (1 hour 9 minutes) and marathon (2 hours 27 minutes)in his very last races in these events.

After leaving the AIS in 2005, Telford returned to his research passion.

He took up positions as Research Director of the Lifestyle of Our Kids (LOOK) Project, Commonwealth Institute, Adjunct Professor at the Australian National University College of Medicine, Biology and Environment and Research Fellow at the Canberra Hospital's Clinical Trials Unit.

The four-year LOOK study of 734 otherwise healthy Australian children in the general community, aged between 8 and 12 years, has found that the main difference between lean and overweight children was that lean children were more physically active.

The study provides important evidence in the childhood obesity debate.

Whilst studying for his PhD, Telford was invited to look after the Victorian Sheffield Shield Cricket team as Manager and Coaching Coordinator.