Alexander Post; Rugby
Age: 22
Course: 3rd year Natural Scientist
Elite Athlete Sport: Rugby
Position: Hooker
My rugby career began at the age of 7 in my hometown of Hong Kong (HK). At the age of 13 I boarded at Harrow school in the UK, exposing me to a highly professional set up and I was able to learn first-hand from more senior students who are now competing at the very highest level. These include England Internationals Billy Vunipola and Maro Itoje.
Whilst growing up I played in various HK Rugby age groups. I eventually went on to captain the U20s side in multiple tournaments in both the 15s and 7s format. After impressing for the U20s I was subsequently offered a full-time professional 7s contract with HK Rugby before heading off to start my studies at UCL. I enjoy the fast pace, openness and technical nature of the 7s format. In addition to my rugby in HK, during the summer of my first year at UCL I was selected for the England Counties U20s.
My single proudest rugby moment came in 2016 when I received my first senior cap for HK. Since then I have gone on to acquire a further two caps, both were earned this summer in the 2019 Rugby World Cup (RWC) Qualifier against the Cook Islands. This two leg fixture was dubbed “HK’s two most important games ever.” I started the first game in the away fixture and went on to score two tries in the return leg home game. As a result, my current aim is to be selected for the HK squad in the final qualifying stage of the 2019 RWC, a Repechage tournament in November this year. My long-term sporting goal is to compete regularly as a full-time athlete.
I have just signed a semi-professional contract with Esher RFC in National League 1 for the upcoming season, where I hope to be regular starter in a team pushing for promotion. During my first two years at UCL I was with Richmond RFC. In my first season I was part of the squad that won Nat1 which promoted them into the Rugby Championship. In my final year at UCL I signed with Old Albanians. Throughout all three years at UCL I represented the UCL first team, starting in all three Varsity games. I was the Sports Club’s Treasurer in my final year. I also helped coach the side in my final year. I will always have very fond memories of my time associated with rugby at UCL. There is no feeling quite like beating KCL at Allianz Park in the Varsity Series. I have made life long friendships in the process.
As a semi-professional athlete in all 3 years of my time at UCL I gave approximately 20-25 hours per week for training, competitive play, travel, opposition analysis, and rehab whilst maintaining UCL course load. This does not include the UCL rugby sessions. As a result I was playing rugby 6 days a week. This included morning and evening sessions as well as additional conditioning sessions. Thus the sport performance services offered to me by UCL were predominantly focused on rehab and injury prevention. The Sports Massage was a frequent necessity. This is the first season in 4 years of playing senior Men’s Rugby without any major injuries. I can honestly say if it was not for the work with Tiahan Eeles that improved my flexibility, prehab, and basic power; this would not be the case. The Elite Athlete status allowed me to flourish and I highly recommend it to anyone looking to maintain a high level of competitive sport whilst completing their studies at UCL. Not to mention the extra kit is a massive bonus…