For years, the British 400m runner has only been able to show off his talent, but as Kathryn Merry writes, 2024 has turned him into a global force.
I’ve known Matt Hudson-Smith since I first heard of the tall, gangly kid from Wolverhampton who started at the Birchfield Harriers Academy at the age of nine. So that says a lot when it comes to his performances on the track, 2024 it feels like the first year we’ve really seen the real him.
There have certainly been glimpses of potential over the years. perhaps a one-off performance that hinted at what might be possible or a time that showed he was headed in the right direction before injury resurfaced and lost momentum. He’s always been fragile, but everyone knew what he could do if he could stay in one piece. Look at what happened this year, albeit with some obscure issues.
He entered 2024 with a PB of 44.26, the then European record, but ran five times faster and lowered it to 43.44 in the Olympic final, where he came so close to the gold medal as Quincy Hall beat him in 43.40.
Matt may have been heartbroken over that race, but in conversations with him, he was more excited about the next Olympic cycle and what’s possible, rather than sounding down or down. He’s brought up the subject of LA 2028 many times already it’s clear where his focus is. I’m also excited for him for the next few years because I think there’s a lot more to come.
How did he take such big steps forward? I think it’s a big combination of things.
First, there is no doubt in my mind that his move to the USA, where he is coached by Gary Evans from 2022, will be possible with the help of additional strength work in the gym, not to mention eating properly also underestimate the fact that he now has a very smooth personal life as well. Everyone remembers how openly he talked about the dark times he suffered mentally and how he thought about taking his own life a few years ago. Now he is a happily married man who recently turned 30 and is in such a peaceful place with everything.
Even with all this in mind, it is still quite a feat to remove the time he has done this year from his PB, and it comes not only from the talent of the athlete, but also from good coaching.
Matt Hudson-Smith (Getty)
In the 400m, you adapt every year to what you’ve done in the previous season, and then what you’ve gained in the winter. That means you have to look at the 400m a little differently every year. All of a sudden, Matt has more speed has more than ever, which means the first part of his race, or his race setup and the first 200 meters, will be different.
To give an example, the Matt of 2022 lost the gold medal in the Commonwealth final in Birmingham because he went out too fast, but the Matt of 2024 may have avoided doing so because his core speed is faster.
He and Gary will start this campaign with the fact that Matt’s base speed is around 44 seconds, and they will correct that over the course of the season.
However, in order to do this successfully, an athlete must fully believe in their coach, trust them 100 percent, listen to what they have to say, and make those adjustments you will leave such times.
Matt Hudson-Smith (Getty)
I wasn’t really surprised by Matt’s performances and they were a great example of good coaching, good athlete management and also good listening to the athlete listener, and I’m sure there will be a few times over the last few years when Gary sticks his head in his hands, but the message is getting through now, and of course Matt has matured , too.
Pain can also be a very useful teacher. How fast you go through the halfway point is very important to the outcome of the 400m and I can tell you from personal experience if you get it wrong it really hurts. I did it once and it’s never been the same the error.
Most of my training was about hitting the halfway point in the 400m. You have to instill that race pace and do it over and over again. But then, of course, that pace gets easier , you get faster, and that’s where you need to start making the adjustments I mentioned.
Matthew Hudson-Smith (Jerry Sun/PUMA)
It’s a difficult art to master. Go too fast, even by a few tenths of a second, and you can be in big trouble, but go a little too slow and you’ll have too much ground to compensate when it comes to crunch. : For some people, it can be the difference between winning and finishing fourth or fifth.
Balancing the scales was how we used to look at it, and Matt is actually a good example of how long it can take to perfect a skill. If you look back 10 years, he made a lot of progress: winning the silver medal at the 2014 European Championships with a then PB of 48.76. that he really consistently leaves in his times.
He’s obviously in the right environment with Gary now, but he’s also been helped along the way by the foundations laid for him at Birchfield by coaches like Tony Headley and Sharon Morris. Don’t forget that Matt was a very good footballer, the standard at Wolverhampton Wanderers back and had to make a choice.We should be thankful that he chose track and field.
Matthew Hudson-Smith (Jerry Sun/PUMA)
After doing that, I know Matt felt some pressure to prove it was the right call, and it made the years when things didn’t quite go to plan for him on the track harder to take.
But look at the athlete who is standing in front of us now. He ran the fifth fastest time of all time in Paris and people are honestly talking about him running 43.00. There is no reason for me why he couldn’t break Wade van Niekerk’s world record of 43.03. Could he? the first to go under 43 seconds. Why not? It’s a big jump, but he’s shown he’s capable of making big strides.
What he’s done this year has been great and him winning the AW British Male Athlete of the Year 2024 is hugely deserved, but as I say, I think there’s more to come. I know he wants Alexander part of the stadium will be named after him. Maybe we can talk about that after Los Angeles, but let’s see what that incentive can do for him. I think we’re just seeing The launch of Matt Hudson-Smith 2.0.
Olympic 400 m final (River)
Record holder
Matt Hudson-Smith has run faster than the European 400m record of 44.26 no fewer than five times in 2024.
May 30: 44.07, Bislett Games, Oslo
July 20: 43.74, London Athletics Meeting
August 6: 44.07, Olympic semi-final, Paris
August 7: 43.44, Olympic final, Paris
August 22: 43.96, Lausanne Diamond League
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