Words of wisdom: “My first rule of training was ‘No whinjing.’ That’s Aussie slang for no whining.”

Known as “Deek,” Rob de Castella began running around his neighborhood in Melbourne, Australia as a small boy with his father, Rolet, who was staying in shape. Little did de Castella know, years later he would become the dominant marathoner in the world. Deek was known for his single-mindedness and competitive fierceness which was a far cry from his early days as a runner when he was in danger of getting kicked off the high-school team for his pranks and lack of devotion to the sport. But de Castella’s coach in high school—Pat Clohessy—believed in his young runner’s potential and the two stuck together as a team for nearly 22 years. Their motto was, “Train smarter, not harder.” And de Castella did, placing in the top 10 in three straight Olympic Marathons (1980-88), and winning the marathon World Championship in 1983 and two Commonwealth Games marathons in 1982 and 1986. His time of 2:08:18 when he won the Fukuoka Marathon in Japan in 1981 was a world best. He was so popular in Australia that he was voted “the most credible” Aussie in a nationwide poll, topping Olivia Newton-John and the Prime Minster. Trained as an exercise physiologist, de Castella was director of the Australian Institute of Sport after retiring from competition in 1992. Now 49, he lives in Canberra where he devotes himself to improving the health and fitness of Australian children and adults through his company, SmartStart.