• Privacy Policy
  • Contact Us
  • Login
  • Home
  • Archive
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Archive
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
No Result
View All Result
Home British Athletics

Unexpected, Greg Rutherford, (London: Simon and Schuster, 2016. ISBN: 978-1-4711-6252-7), review for RunBlogRun by Stuart Weir

Stuart WeirbyStuart Weir
June 14, 2018
0
0 0
0
SHARES
0
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

unexpected.jpg

Stuart Weir suggested this review for us, as Greg Rutherford, the 2012 Olympic gold medalist, 2015 World Champion, 2014, 2016 European Champion, and 2016 Olympic bronze medalist, has announced his retirement. Book sounds like a very good read!

RelatedPosts

Jake Wightman, 2022 World Champ at 1,500m, opens with a tough 3,000m in Sheffield!

UK Athletics announce a loss for 2021-2022

Sports Journalists Association (UK) annual awards

Unexpected, Greg Rutherford, London Simon and Schuster, 2016. ISBN: 978-1-4711-6252-7

I enjoyed Greg’s story, having been privileged to be in the stadium when all of his big events took place and having often spoke to him afterwards.

He starts the book with a clear statement: “I hate sports autobiographies. Most bore me to death. So before I started writing this, I had a clear condition in my mind: I had to be brutally honest. I didn’t want this to be a conventional, sugar-coated, bland tale of a developing sportsman”.

The book is certainly not PC and bland. The author gives us insights into his own struggles with drinking too much at certain times of his life and the “the hedonistic and promiscuous behaviour that is a familiar theme at the end of major championships”.

There is nothing bland about his assessment of former coaches and managers. Long jump legend, Carl Lewis is dismissed as “one of the world’s biggest arseholes”. That UK Athletics is “is more of a hindrance than a help” is explicitly stated with further criticisms of the governing today repeated 4 or 5 times.

Rutherford also expresses his frustration that he has never received the credit his achievements deserve with detractors saying that his victories were against poor opposition, lucky or flukes etc.

He describes Dan Pfaff as “the best coach in the world” and his decision to work with him as life-changing and his best ever decision. In contrast “too many British coaches are not only mediocre, but can be negative and spiteful people to boot”. Until he worked with Pfaff he feels that he never learned the essentials of long-jumping.

His account of winning gold in London 2012 is compelling. While some GB Olympians struggled with the pressure, he saw it as a once in a lifetime opportunity. At the same time he calls watching his opponents’ last jumps as “the most stressful experience of my life.” He adds: “People expect a great victory to produce unadulterated joy, but the feeling I had was very different – more like a profound sense of intense relief”.

His winning bronze – or losing gold – in Rio is described with the same honesty. Jumping 8.29 was “fantastic, but also gutting” as he realized that he had done the best he could but that on the day it was not good enough. The simple explanation is that his body let him down at the most crucial time. His assessment gives a poignant insight into the demands of elite sport: “I’d given up everything in order to retain my title, and I had failed”.

As Verite Sport is particularly interested in the relationship between faith and sport, we note that Rutherford grew up in a Jehovah’s Witness family. His assessment in later life was that he finds “most religion very frustrating: there seems too little emphasis on the ‘love thy neighbour'”. At the same time in the London Olympics he was “literally praying for some kind of biblical intervention to end the competition right there”.

A good read and some clears insight into the man and the athlete.

Author

  • Stuart Weir
    Stuart Weir

    Since 2015, Stuart Weir has written for RunBlogRun. He attends about 20 events a year including all most global championships and Diamond Leagues. He enjoys finding the quirky and obscure story.

    View all posts

Previous Post

Greg Rutherford, 2012 Olympic Champion, announces retirement

Next Post

2018 HOKA ONE ONE RunBlogRun Spring Training, 800m-5000m, week 22, day 5, an easy day

Stuart Weir

Stuart Weir

Since 2015, Stuart Weir has written for RunBlogRun. He attends about 20 events a year including all most global championships and Diamond Leagues. He enjoys finding the quirky and obscure story.

Similar Post

Yared Nuguse sets AR for 3,000m in 7:28.24 at Boston Terrier Classic
American Records

Yared Nuguse sets AR for 3,000m in 7:28.24 at Boston Terrier Classic

January 28, 2023
For Shoe Geeks: the Brooks Hyperion MAX
Running Shoes

For Shoe Geeks: the Brooks Hyperion MAX

January 28, 2023
2022 RunBlogRun Winter Training Block, Week Three, Day Six, a day at the races
News

Coffee With Larry, Lilac Grand Prix, Dr. Sander Invite, Huge weekend of track and field !

January 28, 2023
UK Athletics announce a loss for 2021-2022
2023 World Athletics Indoor Tour

Dina Asher-Smith gets 7.04 NR, plenty of early World Leads at INIT MEETING Karlsruhe!

January 28, 2023
INIT INDOOR MEETING Karlsruhe, Messehalle, Karlsruhe, Germany, 27 January 2023, complete results
2023 World Athletics Indoor Tour

INIT INDOOR MEETING Karlsruhe, Messehalle, Karlsruhe, Germany, 27 January 2023, complete results

January 27, 2023
RECORDS, AND WILD FINISHES HIGHLIGHT CHEVRON HOUSTON MARATHON AND ARAMCO HOUSTON HALF-MARATHON
Winter Training

2022 RunBlogRun Winter Training Block, Week 4, Day 5, Friday is a recovery…

January 27, 2023

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Subscribe to RunBlogRun's Global News Feed

Wake up to RunBlogRun’s news in your inbox. Sign up for our newsletter and we’ll keep you informed about the Sport you love.

*we hate spam as much as you do

  • Trending
  • Comments
  • Latest
USATF / Day Four:  USA’s Assembled Team Is Ready!

Abby Steiner replies via twitter, on the curiosity about her new professional running contract

July 5, 2022
What happened to the crowd at Eugene?

What happened to the crowd at Eugene?

July 17, 2022
Oregon 22 World Athletics Champs: False Starts reconsidered

Oregon 22 World Athletics Champs: False Starts reconsidered

November 18, 2022
Wanda Diamond League Final plans, 2023-2027, from World Athletics Website

Wanda Diamond League Final plans, 2023-2027, from World Athletics Website

October 14, 2022
Asafa Powell, Considering Longevity in Sprinting

The RunBlogrun Interview: Asafa Powell

5
What happened to the crowd at Eugene?

What happened to the crowd at Eugene?

5
TCS New York City Marathon Broadcast to be Available in More Than 530 Million Homes Around the World on Sunday, November 6

RunblogRun Editorial: The Sorry State of Running Television Coverage, by Peter Abraham, note by Larry Eder

4
Cary Pinkowski did the Heroic Thing–My letter to CNN on the LSB Chicago Marathon

Cary Pinkowski did the Heroic Thing–My letter to CNN on the LSB Chicago Marathon

3
Yared Nuguse sets AR for 3,000m in 7:28.24 at Boston Terrier Classic

Yared Nuguse sets AR for 3,000m in 7:28.24 at Boston Terrier Classic

January 28, 2023
For Shoe Geeks: the Brooks Hyperion MAX

For Shoe Geeks: the Brooks Hyperion MAX

January 28, 2023
2022 RunBlogRun Winter Training Block, Week Three, Day Six, a day at the races

Coffee With Larry, Lilac Grand Prix, Dr. Sander Invite, Huge weekend of track and field !

January 28, 2023
UK Athletics announce a loss for 2021-2022

Dina Asher-Smith gets 7.04 NR, plenty of early World Leads at INIT MEETING Karlsruhe!

January 28, 2023

Popular Stories

  • USATF / Day Four:  USA’s Assembled Team Is Ready!

    Abby Steiner replies via twitter, on the curiosity about her new professional running contract

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • What happened to the crowd at Eugene?

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Oregon 22 World Athletics Champs: False Starts reconsidered

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Wanda Diamond League Final plans, 2023-2027, from World Athletics Website

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Howard Slusher, RIP, 1937-2022, the man behind the new Hayward Field

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0

Recent Tweets

RunBlogRun Follow

RunBlogRun comments on the global world of athletics, sports & ethics, and the Olympic movement. RunBlogRun is the voice of the sport.

RunBlogRun
runblogrun RunBlogRun @runblogrun ·
4h

Coffee With Larry, Lilac Grand Prix, Dr. Sander Invite, Huge weekend of track and field! by RunBlogRun, ...https://www.runblogrun.com/2023/01/coffee-with-larry-lilac-grand-prix-dr-sander-invite-huge-weekend-of-track-and-field.html , #CoffeeWithLarry

Reply on Twitter 1619216893843496960 Retweet on Twitter 1619216893843496960 Like on Twitter 1619216893843496960 Twitter 1619216893843496960
Retweet on Twitter RunBlogRun Retweeted
deek207 Rob de Castella @deek207 ·
9h

@WABathurst23 @WorldAthletics @OceaniaAths @AthsAust @BenitaWillis One of the truely great Aust performances! 👏👏👏

Reply on Twitter 1619139914876194816 Retweet on Twitter 1619139914876194816 1 Like on Twitter 1619139914876194816 15 Twitter 1619139914876194816
Retweet on Twitter RunBlogRun Retweeted
wabathurst23 WABathurst23 @wabathurst23 ·
27 Jan

What does it take to win the @WorldAthletics Cross Country Championship? 🏆🤔 Aussie Champion Benita Willis breaks down how she claimed the title in Brussels 2004, surging clear of a pursuing ...posse of East African rivals over the closing stages. MORE: http://bit.ly/3XJkK0L

Reply on Twitter 1618869531186991106 Retweet on Twitter 1618869531186991106 3 Like on Twitter 1618869531186991106 24 Twitter 1618869531186991106
Retweet on Twitter RunBlogRun Retweeted
howlao Howard Lao @howlao ·
5h

Photos from the 2023 Lilac Grand Prix in Spokane, Washington!

Hosted by Union Athletic Club at The Podium

Photos for Portland Track

Reply on Twitter 1619196860576706560 Retweet on Twitter 1619196860576706560 2 Like on Twitter 1619196860576706560 25 Twitter 1619196860576706560
runblogrun RunBlogRun @runblogrun ·
5h

Yared Nuguse sets AR for 3,000m in 7:28.24 at Boston Terrier Classic , by Larry Eder, https://www.runblogrun.com/2023/01/yared-nuguse-sets-ar-for-3000m-in-728-24-at-boston-terrier-classic.html , ...#yarednuguse, @on_running, @djritzenhein, #bostonterrierclassic, #usatf,

Reply on Twitter 1619197305281978369 Retweet on Twitter 1619197305281978369 Like on Twitter 1619197305281978369 1 Twitter 1619197305281978369
Load More...
Next Post

2018 HOKA ONE ONE RunBlogRun Spring Training, 800m-5000m, week 22, day 5, an easy day

runblogrun

RunBlogRun comments on the global world of athletics, sports & ethics, and the Olympic movement. @runblogrun

Browse by Category

Newsletter

Subscribe to our mailing list to receives daily updates direct to your inbox!

  • Home
  • Archive
  • Contact Us

© 2022 Run Blog Run - All Rights Reserved

No Result
View All Result
  • Archive
  • Contact Us
  • Home page
  • My Account
  • Sample Page

© 2022 Run Blog Run - All Rights Reserved

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist