Sam Ruddock

Samuel (Sam) Ruddock (born 19 February 1990) is a Paralympic track and field athlete representing Great Britain in the F35 classification, for athletes suffering from cerebral palsy in the lower limbs. He is the current British Record holder for the F35 Shot Put.^[1]

Early Years

Ruddock was born in Rugby, Warwickshire and was diagnosed with cerebral palsy caused by premature birth at seven months. He attended Bishop Wulstan School to study at GCSE level, taking a profound interest in languages, history and politics. He found it difficult to play the predominant playground sport of football, as lower body coordination was a challenge. He however found great pleasure in basketball and cites films like Space Jam and Coach Carter as major influences on his extra-curricular ambitions in playing sport. After completing secondary education, he took scholarship exams in 2006 and was subsequently offered a full academic scholarship to attend Rugby School to study English, History and Economics as a day pupil in Town House.

Loughborough University

After completing his A-Levels, Ruddock chose to study International Relations at Loughborough University. He became immersed in the ethos of Loughborough campus life, a heathy body breeds a healthier mind. He took up American football alongside his studies, playing linebacker for the Loughborough Aces, as the only player with a physical disability in the British University League. In late 2011, his final year of study, he was spotted by an athletics coach during one of the football team's quarterly combine testing sessions. The athletics coach, Joe McDonnell, spotted Ruddock's impairment and encouraged him to take up disability sprinting, singling him out for his speed and power over short distances.

^[2] Ruddock was quickly brought through the talent identification ranks by British Athletics and within months of training was awarded his senior international debut for the Great Britain Paralympic Athletics team that would compete in London, having attended his first official competition event in April 2012.^[3]

Post-University and Athletics

Having graduated with First Class Honours, Ruddock is currently training for the 2020 Summer Paralympics in Tokyo^[4] and is employed as an Athlete Mentor for the Youth Sport Trust,^[5] working with secondary schools in the UK to encourage pupils to use the values and lessons learnt through sport to better their academic performance.

During the earlier part of the 2013-2014 athletics season, Sam made the transition to the field events to further his medal prospects at the 2016 Summer Paralympics and was selected to represent Great Britain in the shot put for the 2014 IPC Athletics European Championships in Swansea. After producing a new lifetime best in at the 2015 World Championships and starting the 2015-2016 season with a silver medal performance at the 2016 Euros, Sam was selected by Great Britain to compete at his first Games in shot put. He finished 6th in the final.

He is a big fan of the National Football League and WWE.

References

External links

Results for Sam Ruddock from the International Paralympic Committee

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