Greg Rutherford: My Olympic long jump to fame caused split with girlfriend

 
p3 Picture taken from Twitter of Greg Rutherford and his girlfriend Liz Rose Pic: Twitter
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Mark Blunden @_MarkBlunden28 November 2012
The Weekender

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Olympic long jump champion Greg Rutherford has blamed his “overnight fame” for splitting up with his girlfriend after eight years.

The athlete, 26, said that his new-found status had “completely changed” his relationship with fashion PR Liz Rose. Rutherford, who struck gold at the Olympic Stadium alongside Mo Farah and Jessica Ennis on “Super Saturday”, said: “Before the Games, I’d do the odd appearance here and there, maybe once a month.

“Now it’s ... been five or six a day. It’s been absolutely manic. With the stress of travelling and competing, we started to grow apart. It’s a shame as she has always been so supportive of me, and sacrificed everything for me, but we drifted towards being friends more than anything else.”

He told the Daily Mirror: “I feel like it’s the right thing for both of us. It’s sad and a big change after eight years but it’s for the best.”

His schedule has included appearances on The Xtra Factor, Channel 4’s Hotel GB, and Alan Carr’s Chatty Man.

After the Games, Rutherford, who lives in Milton Keynes, said it was a “shock” how many offers of sex he received on Twitter: “People just ­offer their sexual services. I’ve had a lot of propositions from girls and boys.”

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