Ten years ago Matthew Hudson-Smith was stacking shelves in Asda and flirting with pensioners while scanning their food to deal with being ‘bored out of my skull’.
At the time he was seriously considering joining the Army after falling out of love with athletics and the dream of playing football for his beloved Wolves had also faded away.
Mental health issues and injury even drove him to take his own life at his lowest ebb just three years ago.
But today he is the fastest British 400m runner of all time, smashing his own European record with a time of 43.44sec in the Stade de France in Paris last night.
The Florida-based athlete lived with American track star Noah Lyles, who won the men’s 100m gold on Sunday, and his brother Josephus Lyles for a year, growing so close that he at one point was known as ‘the third Lyles’.
There were tears afterwards as he embraced his mother in the crowd – and a tragic moment caught on camera where he appeared for a split-second to believe he might have won the title.
‘I thought I had cleared the field but he got me on the line,’ admitted the Wolverhampton runner afterwards.
Quincy Hall, of the United States, crosses the finish line closely followed by Matthew Hudson-Smith, of Britain, in the men’s 400-metres final in Paris last night
Matthew appeared to briefly think he had won – but he narrowly missed out on gold even though he ran the 5th fastest 400metres of all time
An emotional Matthew Hudson-Smith hugs his proud mother after the race last night
Matty has admitted that he tried to take his own life after becoming depressed and also struggling with injuries
The Wolverhampton athlete, who is based in Florida, has said he will be back to fight for gold again
Hudson-Smith, who attempted suicide in 2021 following a battle with depression, was later consoled in the stands by his mother Cheryl, who was seen crying.
But Matthew has overcome many hurdles to reach the pinnacle of his sport at Paris 2024 – and said defiantly last night: ‘My time is going to come’.
‘Sometimes the journey is better than the outcome and it has been a hell of a journey,’ said Hudson-Smith, who becomes Britain’s first medallist in the event since Roger Black in 1996.
‘I didn’t even know my family were here. It was a bit of a shock. Everyone was proud. They know what I’ve been through. They know that it’s been a rough journey. There have been incredible highs and some deep lows. I’m just grateful. I can’t complain. The better man won.’
It could have been so different for Matty, as he is called by friends.
Earlier this year he revealed that he was ready to join the Armed Forces.
He has kept the ‘apply now’ email to remind him of the path he almost chose.
‘I was bored out of my skull working at Asda, Brierley Hill at the time.It was fun to flirt with the old people – they loved my till! But it was just repetitive work.
‘I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I knew I didn’t want to work at Asda and I didn’t want to go to university. So when I got that email, I was like, ‘Make money? Travel the world? Why not?’ and I signed up.’
Matthew is a graduate from the University of Worcester’s Physical Education and Sports Coaching course
Hudson-Smith collects his silver medal in Zurich at the 2014 European Championships
Hudson-Smith then waited to hear back from the Army about the next stage of the recruitment process.
However, at the same time, he was offered a surprise chance to run the 400 metres at a Diamond League meet in Glasgow.
There, he shocked himself by finishing third with a personal best of 44.97sec from lane eight – the second-fastest time in Europe that year.
Suddenly, the Army could not have been further from his thoughts.
‘My life literally changed in a day,’ admits the Wolverhampton runner. ‘It could have been a lot, lot different.’
Five years later, Hudson-Smith did not even make it to Tokyo. He withdrew just days before the Games because of injury but he was also struggling with his mental health.
Living in Florida away from his family during the Covid pandemic, he felt isolated. He also got himself into huge debt because of a lack of medical insurance and sponsorship money to cover his injury treatments.
Hudson-Smith was so low he attempted suicide – something he revealed to reporters after winning that breakthrough world bronze in Eugene in 2022.
‘I didn’t really plan to say anything,’ he said. ‘I had just won a medal and I was just emotional and it literally slipped out.
‘When I said it, I was like, ‘Oh c**p’ and looked at my agent because I didn’t want it to be a headline. I didn’t really want to be one of those people who used it as an excuse.
‘But now I think it’s good to be open and honest about mental health because I think more athletes are now talking about it.
‘Everyone in track and field has a story and I think it’s good that people are now saying their stories because it makes us more relatable. When we show our personality, it shows we are actually human.
‘I’ll be real, I don’t eat vegetables every day. I go out, I slip up and eat burgers with my friends. But it’s good to be relatable and not be a robot.’
An overview shows US’ Quincy Hall crossing the finish line ahead of Britain’s Matthew Hudson-Smith in an extraordinary
Matthew says he was proud as he know that the winner would have to take the title off him to win
The runner looked sad afterwards but was rightly proud of his performance
He still lives in Florida, where he trains alongside one of his biggest 400m rivals, the Bahamian Olympic champion Steven Gardiner.
And last night Hudson-Smith’s silver matched the medal he won at last year’s World Championships and he shouted ‘f***’ as he crossed the line and realised he had been beaten by Hall.
He said: ‘I said if you’re going to win, you have to take it from me, and that’s exactly what he did.
‘I’ve been the bridesmaid twice now, but my time will come. I’m not angry, I’m not upset. I’ve run the fifth fastest time ever.
‘This is just the start. I know there is a bigger time in there. I am just going to keep building on it and I am going to shock the world. I am going to f*** them up’.
Hudson-Smith, from Wolverhampton, has been an inspiration after he overcame mental health challenges to make it to the Paris Games.
He attempted suicide in 2021 after a horrific string of events that forced him out of the postponed Tokyo 2020 Olympics, injuries led to him losing his sponsors and – without insurance – crushing financial debt.
His mentor Lloyd Cowan died aged 58 that January, the same year he found himself isolated in America, far away from family and friends during the Covid-19 pandemic.
His friend Noah Lyles has said he was backing Briton Hudson-Smith in the 400m race over Americans, calling him ‘my boy’.
He said: ‘It’s funny, I don’t know if he’s told anybody yet, but I remember when he was like, “As soon as I’ve won a medal I’m retiring”.’
‘He won a medal two years ago, and he’s still going, so I’m hoping that he gets knighted and I get to see him get knighted. Sir Matthew Hudson-Smith.’
Hudson-Smith was an academy player with Wolverhampton FC when he was a youngster, and the club showed their support ahead of Wednesday’s final, posting on X: ‘Good luck to one of our own.’
For confidential support call Samaritans on 116123 or visit www.samaritans.org
