Fears for missing Brit Paralympian, 35, last seen in Vegas nearly two weeks ago as family and friends ‘hugely concerned
FEARS are growing for missing paralympian Sam Ruddock after he was last seen nearly two weeks ago in Las Vegas.
The world para-cycling double-gold medalist, who has a two-year-old son and a baby on the way, travelled to America alone for a holiday.
He was due to watch a wrestling event - but it is believed he never turned up.
Friends and family of the much-loved athlete, who has cerebral palsy, are now “hugely concerned”.
The hotel he had been staying at told them he did not check out on his departure date - and they discovered all his belongings were still in the room.
His best friend, former GB sprint hurdler Lucy Earl, told The Sun that it was very out of character that he had gone “completely cold” on social media.
Read more on sport
And Interpol had no record of him getting on a return flight to the UK.
Lucy said: "We are all very worried about him now. Alarm bells are going off.
“He always updates his Instagram stories, every single day. But then on April 16 he just stopped.
“When we called the place he was staying and they said he had never checked out and that all his stuff was still there, we are all panicking now to be honest.
Most read in Cycling
“Everyone loves Sam, he is the nicest, most wonderful human you could meet.
"He is so friendly and speaks to everyone, he inspires everyone he meets and goes around schools inspiring the next generation.
“We need to know where he is. We are really worried that something has happened to him.”
Sam's mother, Fran Ruddock, said he normally spoke to her every day and was usually "very sociable".
She asked anyone with information get in touch to "piece together the gaps".
Sam, from Rugby, Warwickshire, first competed as a sprinter at London 2012 but switched to shot put after the Games, finishing fifth in the shot put F35 at the 2014 European Championships.
He also competed for ParalympicsGB at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games where he finished sixth in the F35 shot put.
He finished seventh in the same event at the 2017 World Championships in London.
Read More on The Sun
His gold medals came when he switched to cycling and won the 1000km time trial in Quentin en Yvelines, France, in 2022 and again in Scotland in 2023.
A British Cycling spokesperson told the : "We urge anyone who has been in contact with Sam since 16 April or may have any information of his whereabouts to contact their local police department as soon as possible."
