Greg Rutherford Ralph Hodgson

Fee Band


Without a big sponsor, Greg drummed up support in his community to pursue his dream. He then earned instant fame by becoming the first Briton to win the Olympic long jump in half a century. He thought he should have gone farther; it wasn’t even a personal best. With humour and humility he speaks about looking for improvement, staying focused and managing pressure.


Biography

Long jumper Greg Rutherford won the Olympic gold medal at the London 2012 games and was part of a remarkable treble of golds on the same night that Mo Farah and Jessica Ennis also won.

From a sporting family that saw his great-grandfather play for Newcastle United and his grandfather for Arsenal, Greg had trials as a teenager for Aston Villa before focusing on athletics. He became the youngest ever AAA long jump champion aged 18, a title he defended twice. He also went on to become European champion before injury forced him out of competition.

Competing in the Beijing Olympics, Greg just failed to qualify for the final and the following seasons saw him struggle with injury. His fitness and performances became more consistent in the run up to the London 2012 games and his rivalry with fellow Brit Chris Tomlinson saw them exchange British records and titles.

In London, Tomlinson was narrowly the favourite to perform well, although neither were favourites to take the gold medal. Greg produced an impressive 8.21m jump to take him into the lead in the final of the event, and then bettered it with a jump of 8.31m. He held on to the lead and became the first British man to win long jump gold in fifty years. In addition, his win completed the UK’s best ever single night in Olympics track and field with three wins in the space of 45 minutes.

Taking bronze at Rio, Greg was frustrated to find that he could not retain the Olympic title he won in London. He refused to blame the whiplash that had given him problems with balance earlier in the season, and instead took comfort in seeing his team-mates from London 2012 collect gold medals in their events.

Contact

We’re on hand to help you find the perfect speaker, presenter or performer for your events. Call or email our London office and use our agents' experience to expertly match you with the right person for your programme!


From time to time we send out emails announcing new speakers and free tickets to our showcase events including Speakers Breakfasts and the JLA Real Variety Show. Please tick the box below if you would like to receive these emails.

Don't miss anything!

We will never share the data you submit here with a third party. Information is stored in a database in order to service your enquiry, but is deleted once it is no longer required. You may request to have this data removed at any time.

JLA Presents


Event - 30/04/2024 - 9:00 am

Speakers Breakfast

Understanding AI Now

Speakers
Priya Lakhani and Anne-Marie Imafidon

We were joined at 87 Barts Close by three brilliant speakers on a panel that delved into the complex world of Artificial Intelligence. Over the hour our panellists de-mystified AI, speaking about AI’s immense promise for enhancing our lives, alongside the apprehension it has generated regarding job security, privacy infringement, and ethical considerations.

Location

87 Barts Close, 87 Bartholomew Close, London, EC1A 7EB

WATCH

Event - 06/02/2024 - 9:00 am

Speakers Breakfast

Looking Ahead to International Women’s Day

Speakers
Samira Ahmed, Eniola Aluko, Julia Gillard, and Alex Mahon

We were joined by four fantastic speakers to look ahead at International Women’s Day. With the theme of this year’s event being #InspireInclusion, we were lucky enough to hear from four women who have each blazed a trail in their respective fields: CEO of Channel 4, Alex Mahon; the former Australian Prime Minister and Chair of Kings’ Global Institute of Women’s Leadership, Julia Gillard; one of the leading voices in football, Eniola Aluko MBE; and broadcaster and journalist, Samira Ahmed.

Location

Bishopsgate Institute, London

WATCH