Bronze warrior Matthew Hudson-Smith outruns demons in 400m final

We thought the struggle was real for Matthew Hudson-Smith during an extraordinary 44 seconds at Hayward Field, as he fought the lactic acid in his legs and the fire in his lungs. Really, though, we had no idea. No idea at all.

Moments after the 27-year-old from Birmingham ended the race of his life with a world 400m bronze medal around his neck, and a smile that suggested glorious catharsis, he revealed the shocking truth of how everything had nearly gone permanently dark.

“Not a lot of people know this, but I literally attempted suicide.” And then, suddenly, it all came tumbling out. How he had suffered huge mental health issues. Gone into substantial financial debt in the US due to injuries. Lost his sponsors. And, having been isolated in America during Covid, began slipping dangerously towards the edge.

“In 2018 I won the Europeans even though everything didn’t go to plan,” he explained. “In 2019 I tore my Achilles, tore my hamstring, messed up my hip. I had huge debts because I didn’t have American health insurance. During Covid in 2020 I was stuck in America by myself. And in 2021 I had huge mental health issues.”

The loss of two of his mentors, the former UK Athletics head coach Neil Black, and his close friend Lloyd Cowan, also stung him deeply. But then, thankfully, a close team of friends, family and confidantes managed to pull him back from the brink. “I couldn’t do the Olympics for several reasons,” he said. “I was also racing knowing I was hurt all the time. But it’s also been mental. A lot of people would have cracked.”

Even when the worst was over, he thought about quitting. “My mum and girlfriend were, like, ‘give it a year’,” he said. “I was going to be an electrician.” Thankfully he then found a new