Sebastian Coe believes Netflix is about to do for his sport what it did for F1, golf and tennis, by spreading the athletics gospel worldwide.
With 80 days left before the Paris Olympics, the World Athletics president is buzzing for a new series that will showcase closer to the Games’ opening ceremony.
The six-episode special was largely filmed at last year’s World Championships in Budapest and will focus mainly on sprinting.
The sport has had to deal with the 2017 retirement of Usain Bolt, whose worldwide appeal was magnetic but American Noah Lyles will star in the documentary and offer proof that there is life after the superstar Jamaican.
Coe can barely hide his excitement about the show and said: “It was really interesting when I spoke to the Netflix guys.
“The thing that surprised them is when you go to a World Championships and on the first day you’re celebrating gold medals from Dominica and Ecuador, you know that you are in a truly global sport.
“There’s no sport on the planet that can claim that. [Winning a track and field medal] is statistically tougher to win than in any other sport. And that’s why everything we do is to promote the cause and give them great exposure.”
Lyles, who claimed three world golds in Budapest, has been touted as Bolt’s successor and is one of the stars of the Netflix production. He can’t wait to tell his tale.
“I’m pretty excited,” Lyles said. “I’d say more than showing a personality, I love telling a story.
“Looking at 2023 it’s probably my best-written story so far. And then seeing how competitive it was throughout the whole process, nobody really showing that they were going to back down just because a 200m guy said they were going to come down to 100m, makes it even more entertaining.
“[It will] tell amazing stories, not just from my point of view, but it’s going to show up from every athlete’s point of view.”
For Coe, there were many important elements he wanted portrayed in the series but top of his list was Netflix giving a worldwide audience the chance to see athletics from a new perspective.
“They do a very good job of showing personality and not just the star but from the bottom to the top.
“[It will showcase the] extraordinary jaw-dropping talent that is in our sport, the diversity of the sport, the inclusive nature of it and the global footprint.
“Our athletes are unique. They have transferable skills, which means that there are challenges keeping them in the sport, there are other sports they can go off and do.
“I’m acutely conscious that when I’m at a trackside, there are as many recruiters from basketball and NFL looking at the talent on display. It’s more transferable than any other sport.”
There are already plans for series two, based on the Paris Games and Coe believes this year will be a turning point for his organisation and its athletes.
“It’s going to blow people away with the quality of what we have on display and it’s the beginning of the journey.
“I’m hoping that Netflix will at least lift the lid on that talent a little bit and get people to recognise just what we’re dealing with. It’s unbelievable.”
