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Aston Moore: Do coaches get better with age?

How much of an asset is experience for sports coaches - and do teams and organisations value it enough?

Last year, the Caribbean island nation of Curacao qualified for the Fifa men's World Cup for the first time in their history - led by 78-year-old manager Dick Advocaat. He's now set to become the oldest man to ever coach at the finals, when he leads Curacao out against four-time world champions Germany.

That got us thinking about how much experience matters for coaches. Does having decades of knowledge under your belt make you a better guide for young athletes - or less flexible and more set in your ways?

Last November, More than the Score's Ed Harry talked to Aston Moore, a British athletics coach who's worked with dozens of elite Olympians and Paralympians, including two-time world heptathlon champion Katarina Johnson-Thompson. He turned 70 in February, but has no intention of retiring. He explains the importance of commitment and adaptability for coaches and the athletes in their care - and why he prefers to teach people by letting them work out the answers for themselves, rather than telling them what to do.

Ed also hears from journalist Anthony Wootton, who discusses why sports organisations in North America seem to have more patience with their head coaches.

All this summer, More than the Score brings you more than the men鈥檚 football World Cup - the new teams, standout stars and fandoms shaping the tournament in ways the stats don鈥檛 show. Search for More than the Score, wherever you get your 91福利社 podcasts.

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