British athlete reveals extent of 'bedroom-hopping' at major athletics championships

Greg Rutherford. Photo / AP

British Olympian Greg Rutherford has lifted the lid on the 'bedroom-hopping' which he was exposed to at one of his first athletics championships.

Rutherford won gold at London 2012, seven years after he had broken the eight-metre barrier for the first time at the European Junior Championships in Lithuania.

Jumping more than eight metres was a significant achievement at the age of 18, but the aftermath also sticks in Rutherford's memory.

In a serialisation of his new autobiography in The Sun, Rutherford wrote: "I was exposed to - and involved in - the hedonistic and promiscuous behaviour that is a familiar theme at the end of major championships.

"Sometimes I found myself - and more than one other couple - going at it in the same room.

"On the night of the closing ceremony there was a big party, and I found what went on absolutely unreal.

"I was staggered by just how many people got ­absolutely smashed and the bedroom-hopping that took place left, right and centre."

Rutherford also feels it proved a distraction for some of the England team at the 2006 Commonwealth games in Melbourne.

Rutherford, who is currently appearing in BBC's Strictly Come Dancing, wrote: "It was my first experience of the pulling power of the accreditation we all wore around our necks.

"As I subsequently learned, the older members of our team referred to it as a "p***y pass" because, well, it unlocked a few doors.

"English athletes were heavily criticised for not winning enough medals and I could see why - some of them seemed more intent on having fun and being a bit naughty than trying to set personal bests.

"I'm not sure the culture has changed that much since, sadly."