Rodger called-up for the European championships

Eastbourne Olympian Sebastain Rodger has been selected to represent Great Britain in the European Championships in Berlin, Germany in August.
Seb RodgerSeb Rodger
Seb Rodger

The former pupil of Bede’s Senior, Cavendish and Ocklynge School has been selected to run the 400m hurdles and has also been included in the Great Britain 4 x 400m relay squad.

Seb ran the standard in his first race in this country back in May, winning the Loughborough International representing England.

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Although Seb went into the British Championship with a slight injury, he came third in a very close final, missing out on first place by 300 hundredth of a second.

Seb is currently ranked third in GB and started his athletics career competing for Eastbourne Rovers Athletics club.

“I am delighted and honoured to be representing Great Britain again. I did not have a good 2017 season following the Olympics but I’m back. I love stepping on the track to race again and I am having a lot of fun at training.

“I do want to express my thanks to my family, coach and medical team. They have all supported me mentally and financially which is essential in my aim to reach to the top and represent GB in the next Olympics.

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“The best thing about being a 400m hurdler is the satisfaction that comes when all the different technical components of the event click together. It is such a test of speed, endurance, and having the ability to hurdle, read distances and trust yourself. Of course, like every event it has its moments and can be so frustrating, but there’s nothing that comes close to the feeling of getting it right and it is recognised by the selectors.”

He now trains in Brighton, Horsham and London and his club is Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers and his coach is Steve King.

In 2013, the Eastbourne athlete won a silver medal at the European under-23 Championships and reached the semi-finals of the World Championships. He also represented Great Britain at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. His PB in the 400 metres hurdles is 49.19 set in 2013.