A little known fact about One Direction star Liam Payne who died on Wednesday, was that he was a budding athletics star in his youth.
At school in England, Payne was already making waves in long distance running.
The teenager’s event of choice was the boy’s 1500m. At Under-15 level in 2007, Payne clocked a Personal Best (PB) time of 4 minutes 36 seconds (4:36) at the West Midlands County School Championships in Birmingham in June.
The next year, running in the Under-17 age category, he improved his PB to 4:24 in the National Junior Athletic League central meeting in Stoke in April 2008. He was also ranked in the top three 1500m runners in England during his junior career.
From auditioning on X-Factor to becoming part of one of the biggest boy bands in the world, Liam Payne’s journey has been nothing short of incredible. Thank you for the music and memories 🥺 pic.twitter.com/FCFxYlaDrw
— MY BABY CHOI SAN 🥺 CRAZY FORM #1 FAN (@marsilabotros) October 16, 2024
Tough choice
Payne also participated in cross country running, which led to him joining Wolverhamption & Bilston Athletics Club. The young Payne was said to have been intent on pursuing a career in running, before his music career became his focus.
The 31-year-old died in Buenos Aires, Argentina after falling from the third floor of a hotel.
The cause of his fall was not yet clear, or whether his death was a result of intoxication, as his struggles with alcohol addiction were well known. Payne had previously spoken publicly about his addiction.
A police statement on Wednesday confirmed that “Liam James Payne, composer and guitarist, former member of the band One Direction, died today after falling from the third floor of a hotel.”
According to reports, Payne had suffered "very serious injuries incompatible with life as a result of his fall,” the head of the city's SAME emergency medical service, Alberto Crescenti said.