Matthew Boling

Boling competing in the mixed 4 × 400 m relay at the 2023 World Athletics Championships
Personal information
Born	(2000-06-20)June 20, 2000 (age 25)[1] Houston, Texas, U.S.
Height	6 ft 0 in (183 cm)[2]
Sport
Sport	Track and field
Events	Sprints Long jump Relays
College team	Georgia Bulldogs[3]
Coached by	Caryl Smith-Gilbert[4]
Achievements and titles
Personalbests	Outdoor 100 m: 9.98 (2022) 200 m: 19.92 (2022) 400 m: 44.84 (2024) Long jump: 8.02 m (26 ft3+1⁄2 in) (2021) Indoor 60 m: 6.56 (2022) 200 m: 20.12 (2023) 400 m: 45.51 (2021) Long jump: 8.25 m (27 ft3⁄4 in) (2022)
Medal record Men'sathletics Representingthe United States World Championships 2023 Budapest 4 × 400 m relay 2023 Budapest 4 × 400 m mixed World Athletics Relays 2024 Nassau 4 × 400 m relay World U20 Championships 2018 Tampere 4 × 400 m relay Pan American U20 Championships 2019 San José 100 m 2019 San José 200 m 2019 San José 4 × 100 m relay 2019 San José 4 × 400 m relay
Updated on August 19, 2023; 2 years ago (August 19, 2023)

Matthew Boling (born June 20, 2000) is an Americantrack and field athlete specializing in the sprints andlong jump. He won four gold medals at the2019 Pan American U20 Championships in the100 m,200 m,4 × 100 m relay and4 × 400 m relay, and helped setworld under-20 records in both of the relay races for the United States. He also ran in the semi-final for the American4 × 400 m relay team at the2018 World U20 Championships that went on to earn silver in the final. Boling would later go on to win a gold medal at the2023 World Athletics Championships in themixed 4 × 400 m relay, and would help set a world record for the event in the process.

Boling gained national attention during the spring of 2019 for his accomplishments in high school track and field. In March, he leaped the farthest in the long jump for a high school athlete in ten years with a 26-foot-3.5-inch (8.014 m) mark at theTexas Relays,^[5] and then bested the high school all-conditions 100 m record, breaking the10-second barrier with awind-assisted 9.98 seconds run on April 27, 2019. Boling finished his high school track career in May at the Texas state championships by running a 44.74 second anchor in the4 × 400 m relay for theStrake Jesuit Crusaders, coming from behind to win in the fastest time for a high school team in the nation that year (3:10.56).^[6][7]

Matthew Boling was born to Mark and Monique Boling on June 20, 2000, with a twin brother, Michael.^[8] They grew up inHouston, Texas, and attendedRiver Oaks Baptist School, where Matthew began running track.^[9] The two then began attendingStrake Jesuit College Preparatory. Initially, Matthew competed in the high jump,^[10] then began focusing on the long jump and the 400 m.^[11] At the2018 IAAF World U20 Championships, Boling ran the opening leg for the USA's4 × 400 m relay team, which went on to get the silver medal in the final. In November that year, he committed to theUniversity of Georgia.

Boling went viral in 2019 when he broke the10-second barrier with a wind-aided (+4.2 m/s) time of 9.98 seconds on April 27, 2019, setting the high school all-conditions record in the 100 m. He subsequently took on the nickname White Lightning, which was a reference to his race and to his speed, although Boling himself publicly stated he disliked attention being called to his race.^[12][13] He also long jumped 26 ft 3 in (8.00 m) at theTexas Relays, the furthest jump for a high school athlete in 10 years. He won both events at the Texas UIL 6A State Championships, setting the wind-legalUS high school record of 10.13 seconds in the 100 m,^[14] and anchored Strake Jesuit to 3rd in the4 × 100 m. He went viral once again in the4 × 400 m when he split 44.74 seconds on his anchor leg to bring Strake Jesuit a win from over 20 m behind.

After winning the 100 m and 200 m at the USA U20 Championships, Boling turned the double at the2019 Pan American U20 Athletics Championships inSan José, Costa Rica. Both times (10.11 and 20.31, respectively) were personal bests, and his 100 m time of 10.11 was also a championship record. He then ran the 4th and 2nd legs for the USA's4 × 100 m and4 × 400 m teams, respectively, both settingWorld U20 records. For his performances, Gatorade awarded Boling itsNational Boys Track & Field Player of the Year honors for 2018–19,^[15] and he was named the 2019 High School Boys Athlete Of The Year byTrack & Field News.^[16]

Before his first season at Georgia was cut short by theCOVID-19 pandemic, Boling attempted the 60 m, 200 m, Long Jump and the4 × 400 m indoors.^[17] At the SEC Indoor Championships, Boling finished second overall in the 200 m with 20.71 seconds, losing toTerrance Laird ofLSU from the first section.^[18]

Boling stands before entering thestarting blocks.

Boling (center) sprinting

Boling representing theGeorgia Bulldogs at the Arkansas Invite in 2020.

Returning to track, Boling again tried each event and chose to focus on the 200 m for the indoor season. At the SEC Championships, he was disqualified in the final for stepping out of his lane on the final turn, and Laird took the title. However, because he ranked high enough by running 20.37 in his preliminary, he qualified for his firstNCAA Indoor Championships, where he would win the 200 m indoor NCAA national title. Boling clocked a 20.19,^[19] the joint-sixth fastest time in history.

Laird and Boling's rivalry was set to grow in the outdoor season with the addition of the 100 m and4 × 100 m. At the SEC Outdoor Championships, Laird won the 100 m/200 m double, while Boling finished 2nd and 3rd, respectively. His time of 20.06 seconds was a personal best in the 200 m. Boling ran the anchor for Georgia's4 × 100 m, with a slight lead but was caught by Laird and finished 2nd. At theNCAA Outdoor Championships atHayward Field inEugene, Oregon, Boling finished 6th and 5th in the 100 m and 200 m, respectively. Boling was considered a Freshman in 2021 by many, due toCOVID-19 causing a short season his Freshman year.^{[citation needed]}

Boling stayed in Eugene for theUS Olympic Trials, where he finished 14th overall in the 100 m semis and 9th overall in the 200 m semis, bringing his first complete College season and first Olympic tryout to an end.^{[citation needed]}

At the 2022 SEC Outdoor Track & Field Championships, Boling placed 4th in the 100 m in a time of 10.13 and won the 200 m with the time of 20.01. At the 2022 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships, Boling placed 6th in the 100 m with a time of 10.18 and finished 2nd in the 200 m in a time of 20.13.

Boling ran the third leg of the mixed4 × 400 m relay at the2023 World Athletics Championships inBudapest.^[20] His team set a world record of 3:08.80 and finished first. In September, he decided to forgo his remaining year of eligibility in the NCAA to turn professional.^[21] In an interview, he reflected on his decision, citing his desire to compete on the world stage: "The atmosphere around a world championship and global meets is different. I felt so in the zone."^[22]

At the2024 World Athletics Indoor Championships, Boling was a member of the US team for the4 × 400 m relay, earning a silver medal.

In the2024 US Olympic Qualifying Trials Boling made the finals in the 400 m, finishing in 8th place.^[23] In the 200 m, he did not qualify for the finals, ultimately recording the 9th fastest time.^[24] Needing a top 3 event finish, Boling failed to automatically qualify for the 2024 Olympics and was not selected for a relay team.

• Information fromWorld Athletics profile unless otherwise noted.^[1]

Representing the United States

Year	Competition	Position	Event	Time	Wind (m/s)	Venue	Notes
2018	World U20 Championships	1st (semi 3)	4 × 400 m relay	3:05.57	—	Tampere, Finland	WU20L,Q[note 1]
2019	Pan American U20 Championships	1st	100 m	10.11	+0.5	San José, Costa Rica	PB
		1st	200 m	20.31	-0.8		WU20L,PB[25]
		1st	4 × 100 m relay	38.62	—		WU20R[note 2]
		1st	4 × 400 m relay	2:59.30	—		WU20R[note 3]
2023	World Athletics Championships	H1 1st	4 × 400 m relay	2:58.47		Budapest, Hungary
		1st	Mixed4 × 400 m Relay	3:08.80			WR

• NCAA results from Track & Field Results Reporting System.^[3]

As of September 2024, Boling holds the following track records for 100 metres and 200 metres.

• Matthew Boling atWorld Athletics
• Matthew Boling atTFRRS

• 2000 births
• Living people
• Track and field athletes from Houston
• American men long jumpers
• American men sprinters
• Strake Jesuit College Preparatory alumni
• Georgia Bulldogs men's track and field athletes
• World Athletics Championships winners
• NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships winners
• 21st-century American sportsmen

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use mdy dates from May 2019
• Use American English from June 2019
• All Wikipedia articles written in American English
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• Articles with unsourced statements from August 2021