Mark Rowland
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | 7 March 1963 | ||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||||||
Mark Robert Rowland (born 7 March 1963 in Watersfield, West Sussex, England) is a retired British track and field athlete, who was a bronze medallist at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul.
Rowland came third in the men's men's 3000 m Steeplechase behind the Kenyan competitors Julius Kariuki (gold) and Peter Koech (silver). His time was 8:07.96 minutes which remains a British record.
Rowland became the eighth and, thus far, final British athlete to pick up a medal in the steeplechase event at the Olympics. His post-race interview at the track-side was famous for his quote:
I just kept telling myself to dig, dig, dig—and I did it! I've got a bloody medal![1]
Two years later, Rowland was beaten to the gold in a sprint finish in the same event at the European Championships in Split by the Italian athlete Francesco Panetta.
Rowland's career didn't hit such heights again and, after retiring, he became a coach to many promising young British steeplechasers and was steeplechase and middle-distance coach for UK Athletics.
He is now training athletes, including British middle-distance runner Jemma Simpson and American Lauren Fleshman in the USA for the Oregon Track Club Elite.[2]
He also coached Mike East, British 1500m runner to his 6th place at the 2004 Athens Olympics.
International competitions
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Representing  Great Britain /  England
| |||||
| 1987 | World Indoor Championships | Indianapolis, United States | 4th | 3000 m | 8:04.27 |
| 1988 | Olympic Games | Seoul, South Korea | 3rd | 3000 m steeplechase | 8:07.96 |
| 1990 | Commonwealth Games | Auckland, New Zealand | 7th | 5000 m | 13:35.69 |
| European Championships | Split, Yugoslavia | 2nd | 3000 m steeplechase | 8:13.27 | |
| 1994 | European Championships | Helsinki, Finland | 4th | 3000 m steeplechase | 8:26.00 |
References
- ^ http://blog.strava.com/wow-the-rowlandtempo-9552/
- ^ Laggner, Kyle (December 15, 2008). "Former Olympian to coach Oregon Track Club Elite". OregonLive.com. Retrieved 29 April 2010.
- 1963 births
- Living people
- People from Watersfield
- British male steeplechase runners
- English male steeplechase runners
- British male middle-distance runners
- English male middle-distance runners
- Olympic athletes of Great Britain
- Olympic bronze medallists for Great Britain
- Athletes (track and field) at the 1988 Summer Olympics
- European Athletics Championships medalists
- Medalists at the 1988 Summer Olympics
- Olympic bronze medalists in athletics (track and field)