.jpg) Centrowitz wins the 1500 m at the2018 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | American |
| Born | (1989-10-18)October 18, 1989 (age 36) |
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (175 cm) |
| Weight | 133 lb (60 kg) |
| Sport | |
| Country |  United States |
| Sport | Track and Field |
Event | 1500 meters |
| College team | Oregon Ducks |
| Turned pro | Nov. 2011 |
| Achievements and titles | |
| Olympic finals |
|
| World finals |
|
| Personalbests | |
Matthew Centrowitz Jr. (born October 18, 1989) is an Americanmiddle-distance runner, who specializes in the1500 metres. He won a gold medal in the event at the2016 Summer Olympics inRio de Janeiro. He also achieved a bronze medal at the2011 World Championships and a silver medal at the2013 World Championships. Centrowitz is a five-time national champion in the 1500 m at theUSA Outdoor Track and Field Championships.
As a high schooler, Centrowitz won a gold medal at the2007 Pan American Junior Championships. He competed in college for theUniversity of Oregon, where he was the NCAA champion in the 1500 m in 2011. The university inducted him into theOregon Sports Hall of Fame in 2021. Centrowitz has competed professionally forNike since 2011.
Centrowitz was born in Beltsville, Maryland, the son of Beverly (née Bannister) and two-time OlympianMatt Centrowitz, who was the head track coach atAmerican University in Washington, D.C.[2] Centrowitz Jr.'s father is ofJewish andIrish ancestry,[3] and his mother is fromGuyana.[4] His sister Lauren Centrowitz is also an elite runner, qualifying for theOlympic Trials in2012.[5] Centrowitz isCatholic.[6] He grew up inArnold, Maryland.[7]
Centrowitz was a track star atBroadneck High School inAnnapolis. His negative split 8:41.55 win in the 2-mile race at the Nike Outdoor Nationals was described as one of the best races in prep history[8] and was also the best high school time of 2007.[9] His time of 4:08.38 for themile at thePenn Relays in April 2007 established a meet record.[10] That same year, he also set the Maryland state record over 1600 meters in 4:04.09[11] and won a gold medal at thePan American Junior Championships held inSão Paulo, Brazil in the 1500 m run.
Centrowitz ran for the University of Oregon from 2007 to 2011, where he was a 7-time All-American.[12] In 2009, Centrowitz's split of 3.59.53 helped break the NCAA 4 x mile record on May 10 with teammatesAndrew Wheating (3:59.60), Shadrack Kiptoo-Biwott (4:05.21), andGalen Rupp (3:58.93), shaving a little more than a second off of the old record with a 16:03.24.[13]
In 2011 Centrowitz won the 1500 meters in thePac-10 and theNCAA Men's Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships.[14] On November 29, 2011, Centrowitz announced his decision to turn professional.[15]
Centrowitz joined theNike Oregon Project in 2011, where he was coached byAlberto Salazar. Centrowitz outkickedBernard Lagat andLeo Manzano at the 2011 USATF Outdoor Championships in the 1500m.[16] He won a bronze medal in the 2011 IAAF World Championships in Athletics in the 1500m behindAsbel Kiprop andSilas Kiplagat.
In 2012, Centrowitz qualified for the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Istanbul, Turkey by getting second in the national indoor 1500m championship, behind Manzano and in front of teammateGalen Rupp. He finished seventh in the World Championship Indoor 1500m final, with a time of 3:47.42. On July 1, 2012, Centrowitz qualified for the United States Olympic team in the 1500 m.[17] He finished in fourth place in the2012 London Olympic Games in the 1,500 meter race, missing the bronze medal by .04 seconds with a time of 3:35.17. He won theFifth Avenue Mile ahead of Bernard Lagat in September.[18]
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During the 2013 indoor season, his first race was at the Seattle UW Indoor Preview, where he won the 800m. He was second at theMillrose Games Wanamaker Mile. He was first at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix mile. At the USATF Indoor Championships, he was fourth in the 800m and 8th in the mile. To kick off his outdoor season, he took part in the Penn Relays USA vs. The World, where his team took fourth in the DMR with a time of 9:19.33. He was sixth at the Oxy High Performance meet in the 1500m. He was tenth in the Prefontaine Classic Bowerman Mile, setting a personal best of 3:51.79. He won the USATF Outdoor 1500m championship for the second time, which qualified him for the IAAF World Championships in Moscow. He won the silver medal in Moscow with a time of 3:36.78.
Centrowitz spent the 2014 outdoor season lowering his PRs. At the Diamond League meet in Monaco, he achieved a nearly one second personal best in the 1500 meters best by clocking 3:31.09, which ranked seventh in United States history at the time.
On February 20, 2016, Centrowitz won theMillrose Games men's indoor mile in 3:50.63, edging offNick Willis.[19]
On March 20, 2016, Centrowitz won the 1500 meters at theWorld Indoor Championships, wrapping up an unbeaten indoor season.
On August 20, 2016, Centrowitz competed at the2016 Olympic Games, where he won the1500 meters race in 3:50.00, becoming the first American to win the event sinceMel Sheppard in1908.[20] The race was tactical and the pace slow at the start; the first four finalists in theT13 1500m men's final at the2016 Summer Paralympics all finished faster than Centrowitz.[21][22]
In January 2019, Centrowitz moved to theBowerman Track Club under the coaching ofJerry Schumacher.[23]
In 2021, Centrowitz qualified for his third Olympics in the 1,500 m. Prior to the Olympics, Centrowitz ran in a specially set up mile run as a tune-up. While his pacers dropped off the pace earlier than expected, he still finished in a new personal best of 3:49.26.
Centrowitz competed in the 1500 m at the delayed2020 Summer Games in Tokyo. In the heats of the 1500, he coasted through the slowest heat with a time of 3:41.12. In the semifinals he placed 9th, failing to qualify for the finals and defend his 1500m Olympic title.
Centrowitz was inducted into theOregon Sports Hall of Fame in 2021.[24] In May 2022, Centrowitz had surgery to repair an ACL injury from the prior year. Prior to this injury-induced absence from the USA championships, he had made all eight outdoor World Athletics Championships and Olympic teams from 2011-2021.[25] In late 2022, he formally confirmed that he had left the Bowerman Track Club and was now self-coached.[26]
Centrowitz placed tenth in the final of the 1,500 m at the2023 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships.[25]
Centrowitz announced in March 2024 that he would retire after the 2024 outdoor season.[25] On June 21, 2024, the 34-year-old announced his withdrawal from the2024 U.S. Olympic trials due to injury.[27]
Centrowitz married on October 3, 2023 to Lyndsay Centrowitz.[28] Their first child, Luka, was born on November 10, 2024.[29]
All information fromWorld Athletics profile.[1]
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Representing the United States | |||||
| 2007 | Pan American Junior Championships | São Paulo, Brazil | 1st | 1500 m | 3:56.63 |
| 2011 | World Championships | Daegu, South Korea | 3rd | 1500 m | 3:36.08 |
| 2012 | World Indoor Championships | Istanbul, Turkey | 7th | 1500 m | 3:47.42 |
| Olympic Games | London, United Kingdom | 4th | 1500 m | 3:35.17 | |
| 2013 | World Championships | Moscow, Russia | 2nd | 1500 m | 3:36.78 |
| 2015 | World Championships | Beijing, China | 8th | 1500 m | 3:36.13 |
| 2016 | World Indoor Championships | Portland, United States | 1st | 1500 m | 3:44.22 |
| Olympic Games | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | 1st | 1500 m | 3:50.00 | |
| 2017 | World Championships | London, United Kingdom | 37th (h) | 1500 m | 3:48.34 |
| 2019 | World Championships | Doha, Qatar | 8th | 1500 m | 3:32.81 |
| 2021 | Olympic Games | Tokyo, Japan | 10th (sf) | 1500 m | 3:33.69 |
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