Luis Rodríguez (sprinter)
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Luis Rodríguez |
| Nationality | Spanish |
| Born | 19 August 1966 |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Track and Field |
| Event | 100 metres |
| Achievements and titles | |
| Personal bests |
|
Luis Rodríguez (born 19 August 1966) is a Spanish former sprinter and coach. He competed for Spain at the 1991 IAAF World Indoor Championships and at the 1990 European Athletics Championships. He coaches his niece, Spanish Olympic sprinter María Isabel Pérez.
Running career
He specialised as a sprinter and competed at an elite level during a career that lasted 16 years. He is one of a few Spaniards who beat Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson in a race.[1] He was a member of the Spanish 4 x 100 metres relay team which finished sixth overall in the final of the 1990 European Athletics Championships in Split, Yugoslavia, running alongside Florencio Gascón, Enrique Talavera and José Javier Arqués.[2]
Rodriguez competed for Spain at the 1991 IAAF World Indoor Championships in Seville both individually, and as part of the 4 × 100 metres relay. He finished fifth in his heat in the 200 metres and qualified for the semi-finals. He ran a personal best of 10.27 seconds for the 100 metres in May 1990 in Seville. His personal best 200 metres time was 20.91 seconds, recorded in Salamanca in July 1992.[3]
Coaching career
He began coaching his niece María Isabel Pérez at a young age. Perez has said she was inspired to start athletics at the age of seven years-old partly through watching her uncle compete.[4] She progressed to compete for Spain at numerous major championships including the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. He remained her coach when she broke the Spanish national record in the 60 metres in 2024 and secured a place to compete at the 2024 Paris Olympics.[5][6]
Personal life
He is from Seville in Andalusia. He is the uncle of Spanish athlete María Isabel Pérez.[7]
References
- ^ "What happened to... Luis Rodríguez?". abc.es (in Spanish). 2 August 2021. Retrieved 5 April 2025.
- ^ "Split European Championships". World Athletics. 27 August 1990. Retrieved 5 April 2025.
- ^ "Maribel Pérez: "My uncle knew I was a diamond in the rough from a very young age."". Estadio Deportivo (in Spanish). 12 June 2023. Retrieved 5 April 2025.
- ^ "María Isabel Pérez, destination Tokyo". Andalucia.information.es (in Spanish). 18 July 2021. Retrieved 5 April 2025.
- ^ "PEREZ Maria Isabel". Olympics.com. Archived from the original on 31 July 2021. Retrieved 5 August 2021.
- ^ Jiminez, Maria Angel (25 July 2024). "Maribel Pérez will lead the 4x100m relay in Paris: "No one gave a damn about four little white girls who are five feet tall."". Diariodesevilla.es (in Spanish). Retrieved 5 April 2025.
- ^ Pecellín, Javier D. (2 August 2015). "Maribel Pérez, a Sevillian with a flying gene". elcorreoweb.es. Retrieved 5 April 2025.