RON RODDAN is one of the most iconic coaches in British athletics history.
He most famously coached Linford Christie to Olympic 100 metres gold in 1992 at the Barcelona Olympics.
Roddan coached many household names in the vibrant athletics scene of the 1980s and 1990s, when it was one of the most-watched sports on TV.
He also oversaw the careers of Katherine Merry and Darren Campbell when they won medals at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
Who was Ron Roddan?
Ron Roddan was a Civil Service lab assistant until he started coaching in athletics in 1979.
He made his name as a sprint coach at Thames Valley Harriers.
Roddan met Christie at West London Stadium – a track that would later be named after the champ himself.
He became part of the furniture in the London athletics scene and slowly coaxed the best of out Christie’s abilities.
It was Christie who claimed silver in the 100m behind Carl Lewis at the most infamous race of all time – the 1988 Olympic final in Seoul.
Christie thought he had claimed bronze, only for Canadian winner Ben Johnson to be disqualified after the final.
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Four years later Christie went to Barcelona as a contender and was second fastest going into the final.
But he won the Olympic gold in 9.96 seconds – a race Roddan infamously missed because he had hurt his ankle.
He watched the race on a TV in the warm-up area instead.
When did Ron Roddan die?
Christie announced on his Instagram page that Roddan had passed away.
He posted a picture of them together with the words: “Broken R I E P RON “Rocket” RODDAN.
His agency Nuff Respect then confirmed the news, that he died in the early hours of February 10, 2023.
A statement said: “It is with deep sadness that we heard the news that the amazing and irreplaceable Ron Roddan passed away in the early hours of this morning.
“Ron was a valued coach at Thames Valley Harriers which came to be his second home, but his relationships reached far beyond West London.
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“His coaching achievements are too many to mention but the most obvious is the Olympic, World, Commonwealth and European medals that Linford won with Ron by his side and the Olympic medals won by Katherine Merry and Darren Campbell at the Sydney Olympics.
“Ron was devoted to his athletes, brutally honest, pushing them to their absolute best. This most modest of men was at his happiest with a stopwatch in his hand, standing trackside.”
Source: Athletics - thesun.co.uk
