Luis Rodríguez (sprinter)
{{Short description|Spanish athlete}}
{{Infobox sportsperson
| name = Luis Rodríguez
| birth_name = Luis Rodríguez
| image =
| caption =
| nationality = Spanish
| sport = Track and Field
| event = 100 metres
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1966|8|19|df=yes}}
| birth_place =
| death_date =
| death_place =
| height =
| weight =
| pb = {{ubl
|Outdoor
|100 m: 10.27 (Seville 1990)
|200 m: 20.91 (Salamanca 1992)
|Indoor
|60 m: 6.74 (Genova 1992)
|200 m: 21.43 (Seville 1991)
}}
}}
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.{{cite web|url= https://www.abc.es/deportes/sevi-paso-luis-rodriguez-202102072215_noticia.html|website=abc.es|accessdate=5 April 2025|title= What happened to... Luis Rodríguez?|date=2 August 2021|language=Spanish}} 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.{{cite web|url=https://worldathletics.org/competition/calendar-results/results/6998097?eventId=204593|date=27 August 1990|title= Split European Championships|website=World Athletics|accessdate=5 April 2025}}
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.{{cite web|url= https://www.estadiodeportivo.com/deporte-andaluz/maribel-perez-tio-sabia-que-era-diamante-bruto-desde-muy-pequena-20230612-420538.html|website=Estadio Deportivo|accessdate=5 April 2025|title= Maribel Pérez: "My uncle knew I was a diamond in the rough from a very young age."|date=12 June 2023|language=Spanish}}
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.{{cite web|date=18 July 2021|title= María Isabel Pérez, destination Tokyo |website=Andalucia.information.es|language=Spanish|url=https://andaluciainformacion.es/jerez/986111/maria-isabel-perez-destino-tokio/|accessdate=5 April 2025}} 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.{{cite web | url=https://olympics.com/tokyo-2020/olympic-games/en/results/athletics/athlete-profile-n1349249-perez-maria-isabel.htm | title=PEREZ Maria Isabel | work=Olympics.com | accessdate=5 August 2021 | archive-date=31 July 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210731105210/https://olympics.com/tokyo-2020/olympic-games/en/results/athletics/athlete-profile-n1349249-perez-maria-isabel.htm | url-status=dead }}{{cite web|url= https://www.diariodesevilla.es/deportes/maribel-perez-liderara-relevo-4x100_0_2001940407.amp.html|website=Diariodesevilla.es|accessdate=5 April 2025|title= Maribel Pérez will lead the 4x100m relay in Paris: "No one gave a damn about four little white girls who are five feet tall."|language=Spanish|date=25 July 2024|first=Maria Angel|last=Jiminez}}
Personal life
He is from Seville in Andalusia. He is the uncle of Spanish athlete María Isabel Pérez.{{cite web|url= https://www.elcorreoweb.es/andalucia/2015/08/02/maribel-perez-sevillana-gen-volador-104934393.amp.html|website=elcorreoweb.es|accessdate=5 April 2025|title= Maribel Pérez, a Sevillian with a flying gene|date=2 August 2015|first= Javier D.|last= Pecellín}}
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Rodriguez, Luis}}
Category:Spanish male sprinters
Category:Olympic coaches for Spain