How the Great Coach John Wooden Defined Success

09 June 2010

John Wooden speaks at a press conference in Indianapolis, Indiana in 2004

This is the VOA Special English Education Report.

John Wooden died last Friday at the age of ninety-nine. He was one of the greatest twentieth-century Americans in sports. He was an excellent college basketball player. He led Purdue University to a national championship in nineteen thirty-two. After college he was a high school coach. He also taught English for nine years.

But where he really made his mark was at the University of California, Los Angeles. He was head coach of men's basketball for twenty-seven years.

His teams won a record ten national championships. These included seven in a row during the late nineteen sixties and early seventies. The Bruins have won just one other championship since then.

An announcer described him in nineteen seventy-five after his final championship victory, which was also his final game.

ANNOUNCER: "As Wooden enters the playing court, he receives a standing ovation from an overflow crowd and true to the Wooden tradition, on the outside everything appears calm."

He coached famous players like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, known then as Lew Alcindor, and Bill Walton.

Several years ago, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar spoke at a ceremony honoring John Wooden. He said many top athletes worry they will be exploited for their skills by their coach.