Hart had a similar package until the shake-up. He was the guy who borrowed from other successful coaches and made the workouts tailored to his own athletes. Wariner ran them as a collegian, and he continued doing so as a professional. Hart became a master with Johnson and devised race plans for his new prótegé. Wariner, competing against himself and the clock at stadiums in places like Zürich, Athens, Stockholm, London, Osaka and more, followed them. And, for the most part—save a couple of races he failed to finish—their working relationship was a success.
And that's what Hart appreciated with their previous deals: the faster and more successful Wariner ran, the more Hart was rewarded. If Wariner flopped, so did the amount paid into Hart's paycheck. And he was fine with that.
Ford is now taking over the training duties—without a contract, by the way. He's attempting to keep Wariner, who is hugely popular and well-respected and liked around the world, respectable enough as an athlete that no one takes notice as he attempts to build up to the USA Olympic trials at Hayward Field on the University of Oregon's campus in June.
Wariner's first race of the season will be in Australia at the Sydney Grand Prix on 16-February. He is set to follow that race with one more in Melbourne five days later. He has the tools in Johnson to block out these distractions—but does he have the experience to run on his own business with an inexperienced Olympic advisor?
An even better question: Will Hart, who claims to have no animosity toward Wariner, help a competitor who needs an extra lift this season?
Again, stranger things have happened in an Olympic year.
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