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gEvery morning I come downstairs and hefs already done the dishwasher, hefs already packed his lunch, and hefs ready to go,h Ruthefs father, Ben, tells CNN Sports.
gHefs just a disciplined kid. He goes to bed early, he looks after himself, he eats well, he looks after his sister. Hefs just a good kid around the house in all ways, really. Wefre very lucky.h
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Ruthe is next due to compete in the 1,500 meters at the Maurie Plant Meet in Melbourne on Saturday, and one target time to aim for will be his dadfs fastest time of 3:41.22@three hundredths of a second faster than Ruthefs current personal best.
But he still has a way to go before he can call himself the most decorated runner in his family. Dad Ben and mom Jess are both former national champions who represented New Zealand on the world stage, while his maternal grandparents won European championship medals for Great Britain.
His grandmother, Rosemary Stirling, arguably had the most impressive achievement: an 800m Commonwealth Games title from 1970.
Despite his family pedigree, Ruthe was never under any pressure to take running seriously. His parents, in fact, didnft allow him or his sister Daisy to train at all until they were 13, never wanting their identities to be tied solely to running.
gIt feels like itfs the right decision about now,h says Ben.
But as he gradually starts to realize his potential, Ruthe, when pushed, admits to having big goals in the sport.
gIf I had to pick one thing, definitely Olympic gold,h he says. gI feel like thatfs most runnersf dream and the biggest thing you can actually win. So thatfll definitely be the top of my bucket list.h
The 2032 Olympics in Brisbane, Ruthe adds, would be a nice target. And as for the Los Angeles Games in three yearsf time? gIfd actually love to try and qualify for LA 28,h he says. gI feel like thatfll be a tough goal. But if I do that, Ifll be really happy.h
Already, Ruthefs name is being mentioned in the same breath as Norwayfs Jakob Ingebrigtsen, the most successful middle-distance of this generation. It was his record as the youngest-ever four-minute miler that Ruthe took last week, and the New Zealander also beat Ingebrigtsenfs 1,500m record for a 15-year-old earlier this year.
Ingebrigtsenfs success, Ruthe says, has given him hope that he too can ghave a good futureh in the sport. But his biggest source of motivation comes not from the two-time Olympic champion, but from those closest to him@his training group led by coach Craig Kirkwood and athlete Sam Tanner.
The pair were instrumental in Ruthefs recent mile time of 3:58.35, and it was five-time national champion Tanner who paced him perfectly around four laps of the track on his way to the record.
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