Mateusz Rudyk
Track Sprinter
DOB 20-07-1995
AGE OF DIAGNOSIS 12
YEARS WITH TEAM 4
Joining Team Novo Nordisk is an important stage in my career for me. The team consists of people with diabetes, just like me, and it shows that with diabetes you can be a professional athlete and achieve high results in sports.
PROFILE
Polish track star Matuesz Rudyk joined as Team Novo Nordisk’ Ambassador in 2021 to help the world’s first all diabetes pro cycling team celebrate the 100th anniversary of discovery of Insulin on the world’s biggest athletic stage, the Tokyo Olympics.
A multiple world and european medalist in the Sprint and the Team Sprint, Rudyk won the Gold medal in the Team Sprint at the 2016 European Championships in Yvelines and in 2019 won Bronze in the Individual Sprint at both the World and European Championships.
Born in Olawa, Poland in 1995 into an active and sporting family, Rudyk developed an early passion for football before getting bitten by the cycling bug and after showing promise, started to compete at the age of 11. The oldest of three brothers, Rudyk’s younger brother Bartosz is also a cyclist and represents Poland on the track in the Individual Pursuit.
Rudyk was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at the age of 12. He started to get tired quickly and also hungry, and after beginning to go to the bathroom with more frequency he went for tests. After a few different tests, Rudyk’s family doctor measured his blood sugar level and it turned out that it was too high.
Surrounded by a supportive family and excellent medical professionals, Rudyk was told that sport could play an important part in helping him manage his diabetes and that it wasn’t something that he should let hold him back.
He certainly didn’t and after competing on the track through his teens Rudyk continued to develop physically and technically, going on to represent the Polish national team and considering his breakthrough to be his first medal in the Team Sprint in 2016. Rudyk will continue to race and compete on the track as he prepares for the upcoming Tokyo Olympics in the summer.
When he is not training or racing, Rudyk enjoys spending time with his girlfriend and their dog and also likes playing console games and watching movies, whilst also being interested in the automotive industry, mainly Formula One.