60 seconds with….Axel Muller
This season on the HSBC Sevens World Series, fans are being encouraged to nominate best performances by a ‘rookie’ at each round.
In the second round of the Series in Dubai, while Semi Kunitani of Fiji was named in the Dubai Dream Team on his debut, Argentina were ably assisted in their Plate victory by Axel Muller playing in just his second Series event.
Muller, who also represented Argentina at this summer’s World Games in Cali, scored tries at 7he Sevens Stadium against Sevens powerhouses South Africa and New Zealand, resulting in people standing up and taking notice of a man who only made the transition to Rugby three years ago.
Ahead of this weekend’s South Africa Sevens, we caught up with Muller, a former decathlete and American Footballer…
Axel, how have you found your first two round on the Series? “This is quite a new experience for me and to tell you the truth I really like it. The team I got chosen to play with has treated me really well, I feel really comfortable here, and they teach me all their techniques and strategies so I can play the best of my ability.”
How did you get into Rugby? “When I was 7 I moved to the USA, Arizona, I was born in Argentina, and moved back when I was 17 so I had almost 10 years there. I played American football and also did track as a decathlete so when I moved back I tried to find a sport similar to those and I found Rugby. My first friend when I moved back played rugby so I went to his club, and within a year I was at the High Performance centre, then a year later with the U19s, and then this year U20s and now Sevens.”
How have you found the transition? “I think the transition has been really fast. All the abilities and techniques are quite similar. In American football and in track in the States I used to train my running techniques, sidesteps, and strength and power, and somehow it transitions into all the Rugby moves.”
What sporting teams do you support? “I am from Phoenix Arizona, so like the Cardinals, that is my main team, they aren’t the best but you have to support your home team. The Pheonix Suns too int he NBA, I would always go and watch them. In Rugby I like the French teams like Toulon and Toulouse.”
Who are your sporting idols? “I never grew up with Rugby, but I always had idols in decathlon and track, but especially football players like Larry FItzgerald and Tim Hightower.”
What do you like to do outside of Rugby? “Outside of rugby I like to hang out with my friends. I also like to snowboard – I like trying to do other sports too.”
And what music do you listen to? “I am just starting to like Argentinean music, but also like Hip Hop.”
Your best sporting memory? “My best sporting memory as an athlete would be when I made it to nationals in track and field in decathlon, that was really important to me. Coming back to Argentina was kind of hard for me, it was either sticking with my family or leaving everything and dedicating everything to sport.”
Courtesy of IRB
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