Watching ‘Personal Best ‘, you get an insight into how four British Athletes take on the challenge leading up to the Olympic Games in London.
You follow James Ellington, Jeanette Kwakye, Richard Alleyne and newcomer Omardo Anson thought their joinery to become the best athletes they can be.
Directed by Same Blair, the documentary is filmed over a journey of four years, you see how many ups and downs these athletes go through and look back into when they started out as youngsters.
James ‘ story is interesting ahead of the build up to the World Championships in 2011, watching him train and coach is something else.
Jeanette is a strange but saddened story, the first time you see her train I can instantly guarantee you will judge the commitment and she even asks that question later in the documentary.
But watching her progress is just incredible and seeing her run the final of the Beijing Olympic Games makes you want to watch on, three years of injury is a long time for any athlete, watching her recover and peak is something else.
What is interesting is the introduction of Omardo Anson, by his own admission he could of went down a darker side of life but chose the life of sprinting.
How often to do you hear about how athletics changed people ‘s lives no matter what background they came from? It was a breath of fresh air to hear Omardo ‘s story and listen to how motivated and mature this athlete is.
Richard Alleyne is an interesting story, a talented hurdler as a youth but quit because of injuries and has to choose a different path in sport.
He has a change of heart and without giving too much away one operation could be the key to that.
The documentary is a bit of a slow starter, I enjoyed getting to know the athlete ‘s history but it did take a while.
That was the only downside to it however, each link tied imperfectly with what athletes were talking about, whether it was eating or training in general.
It was good to see how coaches work their athletes too, John Powell and Michael Afilaka receive the focus here.
You see how hard they push their athletes during training, their feedback after reps and pep talks before competitions.
It ‘s the kind of documentary I can ‘t really go into too much detail incase I give away too much of how it ‘s filmed.
But it’s along the lines of Sprint, when that was on the BBC leading up to the 2008 Olympic Games.
Of course it ‘s advised that adults watch this because of the few choice words thought the 90 minutes it ‘s on.
But if you love athletics and you want to see how professional sprinters take on preparing for major competitions then I can ‘t recommend this documentary enough
Be sure to rent the film via Vinco Sport!
Verdict: 8/10
For more information go to www.personalbestdoc.co.uk.
**** “Beautifully observed, elegantly shot and carefully paced, a powerful documentary debut ” The Times
**** “Motivational viewing, captures the blood sweat and ceaseless commitment ” Daily Express
*** “A Unique film, truly about achievement over success” Financial Times
*** “Gripping and fascinating documentary ” Sunday Mirror
