In this interview, we speak with Brett Robinson, Head Coach and Founder of Vikings Athletics, about his journey from elite athlete to high-performance coach. Robinson shares insights on building a successful coaching business, the evolving demands of athlete development, and his vision for the future of performance training in Australia.
Q: Brett, can you start by sharing your background and what led to the creation of Vikings Athletics?
Brett Robinson: Vikings Athletics began back in 2009, initially as a side project while I was winding up my own athletic career. Sport - particularly running and surf lifesaving - had always been a major part of my life, and I naturally transitioned into coaching.
What surprised me was how much more I enjoyed coaching than competing. Seeing multiple athletes succeed at the same meet gave me far more satisfaction than chasing individual results. Over time, Vikings evolved from a hobby into a full-time operation as we identified a genuine gap in Queensland's performance landscape.
At the grassroots level, there was very little access to high-performance resources. Athletes weren't getting exposure to the types of services you'd expect at an AIS or Queensland Academy of Sport environment. Our core mission became (and still is) delivering high-performance support at the grassroots level, so athletes can maximise their potential regardless of where they start.
Q: Who do you primarily work with today, and how has your target market evolved over time?
Brett Robinson: Our market has definitely evolved. We started with surf lifesaving, which is still a strong part of our program, and then expanded heavily into athletics; particularly sprinting. That's where our real passion lies, even though passion alone doesn't always equal financial sustainability.
Interestingly, AFL became our largest market almost by accident. We were approached by the Gold Coast Suns to solve a running efficiency issue with one athlete. The results were immediate and strong, which led to further endorsement within the club. That credibility opened doors into the academy system and elite youth AFL development.
Today, AFL is our largest market, followed by athletics and surf lifesaving. From a business perspective, most of our marketing targets youth athletes - typically aged eight to thirteen - because that's where long-term development begins and where families have the capacity to invest. Our passion, however, remains with senior athletes chasing elite outcomes, even though they often have less financial capacity.
Sometimes your biggest market opportunity comes by accident. Being open to unexpected opportunities and delivering exceptional results can open doors you never anticipated.
Q: Vikings Athletics has built a reputation for high-performance outcomes. What trends are you seeing in elite sport right now?
Brett Robinson: In Australian athletics, we're still playing catch-up internationally. We've historically benchmarked ourselves domestically, but that's no longer enough. The focus now is on competing globally, which requires much deeper preparation, particularly in relay programs and long-term athlete development.
In AFL, especially here in Queensland, there's a growing demand for private high-performance training outside academy environments. Athletes are doing significantly more training than ever before, and while academies do great work, they can't cover everything year-round.
One challenge we see is saturation - schools, clubs, academies and private providers all claiming to deliver "high performance." Very few, however, are genuinely planning long-term development pathways that prepare junior athletes for senior professional sport. That's where we believe Vikings Athletics is ahead of the curve.
Q: Are you still surprised by how little some athletes know about nutrition and preparation?
Brett Robinson: It really depends on the environment. Some sports-focused schools on the Gold Coast do an excellent job with nutrition education - my own son comes home knowing things I didn't at his age.
That said, if you took 100 young athletes, maybe 10 truly understand high-performance principles across nutrition, recovery and preparation. The rest are still learning. Even at elite levels, gaps remain.
The truly elite athletes - the ones who succeed - are meticulous. They're not guessing. They cover every base. I've seen this firsthand with AFL players like Touk Miller and with elite sprinters like Jacob Despard. They're not obsessed for the sake of it - they're committed to preparation so they never wonder "what if".
Q: What are your short-, medium- and long-term goals for Vikings Athletics?
Brett Robinson: In the short term, we're focused on stabilising the business after moving into our new facility. It's a major step up and comes with increased costs, so ensuring sustainability is key.
Medium to long term, my goal is for Vikings Athletics to be part of the national conversation whenever an athlete thinks about improving performance. We don't need to work with everyone - but we want to be seen as a trusted, elite option.
Longer term, I want to leave a legacy. I want Vikings to be known as a business that genuinely disrupted athlete development in Australia - that raised the standard and forced the industry to evolve. Personally, I'd love to eventually step away post-2032 Olympics and enjoy time with my family, knowing we built something meaningful.
Q: You've recently opened a new performance facility. Can you tell us about it?
Brett Robinson: We've just opened the Vikings Athletics Performance Centre - a purpose-built, nearly 500-square-metre facility on the Gold Coast. It includes athlete lounge areas, kitchen, lifting zones, testing equipment, force decks, Nordic boards, GymAware, and our curved Woodway treadmills.
It's a booking-only facility - not open to the general public - designed specifically for athletes. We've created an environment where athletes can spend all day, train hard, recover properly, and feel like it's their home base.
The response has been incredible. Membership has increased by more than 400% in just a few weeks. Athletes and professionals who walk in immediately feel the difference - relaxed, professional, and high-performance focused. That's exactly what we set out to build.
Q: Finally, what does training look like for you these days?
Brett Robinson: These days, most of my physical activity involves kicking a football back to my son when his mates aren't around - and that's enough to leave me sore.
I'm on my feet all day, coaching five or six sessions daily, each lasting an hour or more. It's physically demanding in its own way. I'm happy now making others do the hard work while I focus on helping them perform at their best.
