Matthew Hudson-Smith (born 26 October 1994) is a British

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

sprinter who specialises in the

400 metres The 400 metres, or 400-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics (sport), athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1964 for women. On a standard outdoor runn ...

. He holds, as of July 2022, the British record, running a personal best of 44.35 seconds for the distance set at Eugene, Oregon in the 2022 Diamond League meeting. He was the 2018 European Champion in 400 metres, and a member of the gold-winning teams in the 4 x 400 metre relay at the

2014 European Athletics Championships The 2014 European Athletics Championships was held in Zürich, Switzerland, between 12 and 17 August 2014. It was the first time that Switzerland had hosted the European Athletics Championships since 1954. Great Britain headed the medal table, w ...

, with Great Britain and

2014 Commonwealth Games The 2014 Commonwealth Games ( gd, Geamannan a' Cho-fhlaitheis 2014), officially known as the XX Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Glasgow 2014, ( sco, Glesca 2014 or Glesga 2014; gd, Glaschu 2014), was an international multi-sport ev ...

with England. In the summer of 2022 he won his first individual global medal, a bronze, in the 2022 World Championships, only the second British male after

Roger Black Roger Anthony Black MBE (born 31 March 1966) is a retired English athlete who competed internationally for Great Britain and England. During his athletics career, he won individual silver medals in the 400 metres sprint at both the Olympic G ...

to win a World Championships medal in the event. Weeks later, at his home track in

Birmingham, United Kingdom Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West Mi ...

he won the silver medal at the

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...

representing England, before retaining his European title at the

2022 European Championships The 2022 European Championships were the second edition of the European Championships. It was a multi-sport event which took place in Munich, Germany from 11 to 21 August 2022. The tournament began three days after the conclusion of the 2022 Commo ...

event in Munich. By retaining his 400-metre European crown, he matched the achievements of countrymen

and

Martyn Rooney Martyn Joseph Rooney (born 3 April 1987) is an English Sprint (running), sprinter who specialises in the 400 metres event. He reached the 400 m final at the 2008 Summer Olympics and won bronze in the 4×400 metres relay. A mainstay on the a ...

. He is, as of 2022, the most decorated British athlete in European Championships history, with seven medals, second overall only to French sprinter

Christophe Lemaitre Christophe Lemaitre (; born 11 June 1990) is a French sprinter who specialises in the 100 and 200 metres. In 2010, Lemaitre became the first white athlete to break the 10-second barrier in an officially timed 100 m event. Lemaitre has run a su ...

Career

Born in

Wolverhampton Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunian ...

, he joined his local

athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competiti ...

club,

Birchfield Harriers Birchfield Harriers is an athletics club, founded in 1877. Its home is at Birmingham's Alexander Stadium, England. As well as welcoming recreational runners they cater for all levels of experience up to and including Olympic athletes whether ab ...

, in 2006. He competed in a variety of events before focusing more on the sprints from 2008 onwards. In 2010 and 2011 he mainly concentrated as a

200 metres The 200 metres, or 200-meter dash, is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 metre racetrack, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques is needed to successfully run the race. A slightl ...

runner. He was runner-up at the

English Schools Championships English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

over that distance in both 2011 and 2012 before finally winning the title in 2013 at the age of eighteen, after returning from a series of

hamstring In human anatomy, a hamstring () is any one of the three posterior thigh muscles in between the hip and the knee (from medial to lateral: semimembranosus, semitendinosus and biceps femoris). The hamstrings are susceptible to injury. In quadrupeds, ...

injuries and illness.Matthew Hudson-Smith
Power of 10. Retrieved on 2014-08-03. During 2012 to 2013 he studied on the AASE Apprenticeship at

Loughborough College Loughborough College is a general further education college located in Leicestershire, England which offers a range of courses including further education, higher education, apprenticeships and professional qualifications. List of princip ...

and is now a Physical Education and Sports Coaching student at the

University of Worcester , motto_lang = la , mottoeng = ''Aspire to Inspire'' , established = 1946 – Worcester Emergency Teacher Training College 1948 – Worcester Teacher Training College 1976 – Worcester College of Higher Education 1997 – ...

, allowing him to continue his education at the same time as training and competing. That year also saw his international debut for Great Britain: he performed well at the

2013 European Athletics Junior Championships The 2013 European Athletics Junior Championships was the 22nd edition of the biennial athletics competition between European athletes in under twenty. It was held in Rieti, Italy from 18 to 21 July. The medal table was topped by Great Britain with ...

, setting a 200 m best of 20.88 seconds in the semi-finals before getting the bronze medal in a British medal sweep, behind

Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake Nethaneel Joseph Mitchell-Blake (born 2 April 1994, London) is a British sprinter who specialises in the 200 metres. He was the 2013 European Junior Champion and his personal best of 19.95 seconds ranks him as the second-fastest in Britain of a ...

and

Leon Reid Leon Reid (born 26 July 1994) is a former British-Irish track and field sprinter. He won the bronze medal in the 200 metres at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, Northern Ireland's first athletics medal in 28 years, and silver in the event at the ...

. He won a second bronze as part of the British

4×400 metres relay Four-wheel drive, also called 4×4 ("four by four") or 4WD, refers to a two-axled vehicle drivetrain capable of providing torque to all of its wheels simultaneously. It may be full-time or on-demand, and is typically linked via a transfer case ...

team, running the second leg. In the 2014 season he returned to competing in the 400 m, working under his coach

Tony Hadley Anthony Patrick Hadley (born 2 June 1960) is an English pop singer. He rose to fame in the 1980s as the lead singer of the new wave band Spandau Ballet and launched a solo career following the group's split in 1990. Hadley returned to the ban ...

. Coming from a personal best of 48.76 seconds at the start of the year, his new focus on the event greatly improved his times. He ran of 46.29 seconds at the Tom Jones Memorial Invitational in

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

in April, then set a best of 45.80 seconds in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

in May. He ran a quick race at the

British Athletics Championships The British Athletics Championships is the premier national championship in track and field held in the United Kingdom, and are organised by British Athletics. The event has doubled as the main trials meet for international team selection for maj ...

, but was disqualified for a lane infringement. His following race at the

Glasgow Grand Prix The London Diamond League, formerly known as the London Grand Prix and subsequently as the Anniversary Games, is an annual athletics event held in London, England. Previously one of the five IAAF Super Grand Prix events, it is now part of the Di ...

marked a career breakthrough as he finished in the top three at the

Diamond League The Diamond League is an annual series of elite track and field athletic competitions comprising fourteen of the best invitational athletics meetings. The series sits in the top tier of the World Athletics (formerly known as the IAAF) one-day mee ...

race in a time of 44.97 seconds. This made him only the second British teenager to dip under 45 seconds for the distance and placed him second on the European rankings for the season. Hudson-Smith surprised himself with the level of improvement, saying "I've no idea where that came from, no idea at all". He was chosen to represent

England at the 2014 Commonwealth Games England competed at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland, between 23 July and 3 August 2014. Commonwealth Games England named a team of 416 athletes consisting of 216 men and 200 women across the 18 disciplines. Administration On 11 ...

in the 4×400 m relay alongside Conrad Williams,

Michael Bingham Michael Bingham (born 13 April 1986) is a British 400 metres track and field athlete. He is one of five children born to British citizen Norris Bingham and Mollissie in Sylva, North Carolina. His parents separated when he was young, and he wa ...

, and Daniel Awde. On his return to Glasgow for the

he ran the fastest split on the final leg to overhaul Trinidad and Tobago's Zwede Hewitt and hold off Olympic champion

Chris Brown Christopher Maurice Brown (born May 5, 1989) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actor. According to '' Billboard'', Brown is one of the most successful R&B singers of his generation, having often been referred to by many contempo ...

, winning the gold medal for the team. At the

Zürich Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...

, Switzerland, Hudson-Smith won the silver medal in the individual

400 m The 400 metres, or 400-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1964 for women. On a standard outdoor running track, it is o ...

in a time of 44.75 seconds, behind compatriot

. This is despite receiving a yellow card (warning) from the officials for not being stable in the set position.Martyn Rooney edges Matthew Hudson-Smith to take 400m gold

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

(2014-08-15). Retrieved on 2014-08-15.

Personal bests

– 44.35 sec (2022) *

– 20.60 sec (2020) *

60 metres 60 metres, or 60-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field. It is a championship event for indoor championships, normally dominated by the best outdoor 100 metres runners. At outdoor venues it is a rare distance, at least for senior at ...

– 6.96 sec (2012)

International competition record

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hudson-Smith, Matthew Living people 1994 births Sportspeople from Wolverhampton English male sprinters British male sprinters Olympic male sprinters Olympic athletes for Great Britain Athletes (track and field) at the 2016 Summer Olympics Commonwealth Games gold medallists for England Commonwealth Games medallists in athletics Athletes (track and field) at the 2014 Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 2018 Commonwealth Games European Championships (multi-sport event) silver medalists World Athletics Championships athletes for Great Britain World Athletics Championships medalists European Athletics Championships winners British Athletics Championships winners Black British sportsmen Medallists at the 2014 Commonwealth Games