CHRIS Myers blushes slightly, then chuckles and parries any suggestion that he's something of a coach whisperer.
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But his mind is well worth the picking - and that's what they've been doing all of this week on the pool deck at Macksville.
Chris is the Swimming NSW regional coaching director and his extended stay in the town is a big deal.
He told the Guardian he'd been to Macksville before, briefly in February, but a week-long stint of 'coaching the coaches' in this town is as unprecedented as it is appreciated.
"We're very privileged to have him here," said Lyndel Sutton of the Macksville Marlins Swimming Club.
"We're only a small club but our results show that we have been consistently punching above our weight."
Local coaches Renee Pickvance and Tony Kokegai have been delighted to learn from Chris, who describes his role as a conduit to pass on the latest techniques and provide general support for country-based swim instructors.
"I guess the message is that you're not forgotten just because you're in a regional area," Chris said.
He noted it was a two-way street of learning - as he could draw upon the knowledge and practices of regional coaches.
Chris has this week also been working with the local Marlins swimmers, and the Guardian asked if any of the young charges had caught his eye.
And he was having nothing of it.
"There are three or four I've noticed but I won't name names. The moment you say someone could be the next Ian Thorpe, well ... there's only one Ian Thorpe," Chris said.
While the Thorpedo was blessed physically for the sport, Chris said athleticism alone was never enough to rise to an elite level.
"It's a mix. You have to have the physical and mental attributes, and a commitment in and to training," he said.
The visit from the high ranking State official has been timely - as on Saturday the Marlins club host their annual qualifying carnival at the Macksville pool with athletes coming from as far afield as Armidale as well as right across the North Coast.
The racing will be underway from 9am tomorrow and continue through to about 3pm and the public is welcome to enjoy the spectacle.
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