Freshman Valentinas Rudys has the sixth quickest time in the 800m in the Southland Conference. He clocked a season-best time of 1:52.10 in the men's 800m at the Mt. SAC Relays to finish fifth in his heat and move into fourth place in the Islanders records. The native of Vilnius, Lithuania, improved his Southland Conference outdoor qualifying time of 1:52.11 set at the Victor Lopez Classic in March. Rudys has qualified for the Southland Conference Outdoor Championships in the 800m and 1500m.
Rudys is next up in the "Meet Your Islanders" features for GoIslanders.com, a unique way to get to truly know your Islander athletes.
Read what Rudys had to say to GoIslanders.com.
Q: Do you have any superstitions before a meet?
A: I try not to talk too much to anyone before a race no matter if I'm in a good or bad mood. I do it to help me keep concentrated and focused for the race.
Q: What do you like most about your coach?
A: I like that he always says whatever is on his mind and tells you exactly how it is. He will let you know if you are performing bad or good even it's something that you don't want to hear. He's very straight forward.
Q: What is something most people don't know about you?
A: People think that since I'm in track that I'm fast but I don't feel fast or strong like everyone believes. I actually think the exact opposite of what others think.
Q: What is your favorite type of music to listen to? Is it any different than the music you run to?
A: I like slow meaningful songs. I'm not big on rap or pop.
Q: What are your hobbies outside of track?
A: I love playing ping pong. I'm not too keen on computer games, but I do like cooking for sure. My drawback is actually buffets because I can eat so much until I feel like I can explode. I don't like the feeling where I can't tell if I'm full or not.
Q: What is your favorite event?
A: Formula one, it's an international European event. I love watching that and the Olympics.
Q: Do you have any nicknames?
A: Val or Tino.
Q: Do you have any personal goals you would like to reach?
A: Olympics Rio de Janeiro 2016. I would like to also follow in my brother's steps to start my own business.
Q: What do you want to do when you graduate?
A: Economics.
Q: If you could learn any sport for recreation what would it be?
A: I'm planning to learn tennis, but I don't think my coach is going to like that very much when he finds out.
