Rooney eyes relay redemption for Team England
DOUBLE European 400m champion Martyn Rooney heads ‘down under’ with a point to prove, having skipped the relay at the Commonwealth Games four years ago.
Representing Team England, Rooney cuts a distinctive figure at 6ft 5 and with an impressive beard, and will line up in the 4x400m relay with one thing on his mind: gold.
Having lived and trained in Loughborough since 2005, Rooney is one of the Loughborough veterans who’ll be making the long journey to Australia, but he still has fond memories of his formative years.
“Coming up to Loughborough was such an exciting experience and I just loved being here; whenever I went home to London I was desperate to come back up. Even though I’ve lived here ever since I still get that feeling.
“In my first year here I went to the Commonwealth Games and ran a British junior 400m record so things worked out really well right from the start. I also got a bronze medal at the World Juniors that year, but I probably should have won it but I was probably too cocky and I learnt some big lessons. Fast forward to 2008 and I came sixth in the Olympics, ran massive PBs and I think those first two years in Loughborough really set me up for that.”
Now a father of two with Olympian wife Kate, Martyn has to balance family life with his athletics aspirations, something that didn’t get off to the smoothest of starts.
“2015 was an interesting year, as my wife Kate and I had our first child, Jack. However he was due during the World Championships, so not the best planning, but I had a job to do. I knew if I didn’t go to Beijing it would affect our livelihood so I had to go out there and miss out on his birth. The pressure was on to get a medal but I came home with a PB and a bronze medal, so it worked out well in the end!”
Despite his vast medal collection, which includes Olympic, World and European gongs, Rooney has no hardware to show from his two Commonwealth Games to date, so is hoping it’ll be third time lucky.
“I regretted not going to the Commonwealth Games in 2010, so in 2014 I really wanted to take advantage of the opportunity and I had a point to prove. I ran fairly quickly but unfortunately just missed out on a medal, finishing fourth, so I was gut- ted. I went to anti-doping afterwards and was sat between Kirani James and Greg Rutherford and they were both talking about their gold medals. I knew then that I had to go to the European Championships a month later and redeem myself and fortunately I did, winning two gold medals.”
With his focus switching to those European Championships in Zurich just a few weeks later, Rooney made the bold decision to wave goodbye to Glasgow after his individual event, heading back to Lougborough to focus on his training.
“Skipping the relay at Glasgow 2014 was a massive decision and a tough decision to make, namely because I love relays and I love being part of the team. I really want to make up for that in 2018 and I’m going to commit to the guys as much as possible and go out there and try and win a medal for the squad.
“Going back to Australia for the Commonwealth Games, having started my senior career in Melbourne in 2006, is a massive opportunity to go full circle and really enjoy myself.
“My family are coming out and it will be special to have them in the stadium. When I won the European Championships for the second time in Amsterdam my son was there and that was really cool and I got a bit tearful. If we can win a gold medal on the Gold Coast I’ll be able to take him round on a lap of honour and show that he can sprint as well!”