View source for Matthew Centrowitz Jr.

{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2016}}
{{Infobox athlete
| name = Matthew Centrowitz 
| image = File:Matthew Centrowitz Rio 2016.jpg
| imagesize = 150px
| caption =Centrowitz at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games
| nationality = [[Americans|American]]
| sport = [[Track and field|Track]]
| event = [[1500 meters]]
| collegeteam = [[Oregon Ducks track and field|Oregon Ducks]] 
| club = [[Bowerman Track Club]]
| coach = [[Jerry Schumacher]]
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1989|10|18}}
| birth_place = [[Beltsville, Maryland|Beltsville]], [[Maryland]]
| residence = Portland, Oregon
| height = 5 ft 9 in
| weight = 133 lb
| pb = {{unbulleted list
|'''[[800 meters|800 m]]:''' 1:44.62<ref name="IAAF">{{cite web |url=https://www.iaaf.org/athletes/united-states/matthew-centrowitz-228630 |author=[[International Association of Athletics Federations|IAAF]] |title=IAAF: ''Matt Centrowitz - Athlete Profile'' |accessdate=August 31, 2018}}</ref> ([[New York, New York|New York]] 2015)
|'''[[1500 meters|1500 m]]:''' 3:30.40<ref name="IAAF"/> ([[Monaco]] 2015)
|'''[[Mile run|Mile]]:''' 3:50.53<ref name="IAAF"/> ([[Eugene, Oregon|Eugene]] 2014)
|'''[[5000 meters|5000 m]]:''' 13:00.39<ref name="IAAF"/> ([[Beaverton, Oregon|Beaverton]] 2019)}}
| medaltemplates =
{{Medal|Comp|[[Olympic Games]]}}
{{Medal|Gold|[[Athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics|2016 Rio de Janeiro]]|[[Athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics – Men's 1500 metres|1500 m]]}}
{{Medal|Competition|[[IAAF World Championships in Athletics|World Championships]]}}
{{Medal|Silver|[[2013 World Championships in Athletics|2013 Moscow]]|[[2013 World Championships in Athletics – Men's 1500 metres|1500&nbsp;m]]}}
{{Medal|Bronze|[[2011 World Championships in Athletics|2011 Daegu]]|[[2011 World Championships in Athletics – Men's 1500 metres|1500&nbsp;m]]}}
{{Medal|Competition|[[IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics|World Indoor Championships]]}}
{{Medal|Gold|[[2016 IAAF World Indoor Championships|2016 Portland]]|[[2016 IAAF World Indoor Championships – Men's 1500 metres|1500 m]]}}
{{Medal|Competition|[[Pan American Junior Championships]]}}
{{Medal|Gold|[[2007 Pan American Junior Championships|2007 São Paulo]]|[[2007 Pan American Junior Championships|1500 m]]}}
}}

'''Matthew Centrowitz Jr.''' (born October 18, 1989) is an American [[middle-distance runner]] who specializes in the [[1500 meters]]. He became a prominent figure in U.S. running when he won a bronze medal at the [[2011 World Championships in Athletics]]. A seasoned competitor with a potent finishing kick, he competed at the [[2012 Summer Olympics]] in the 1500 meters—where he finished 4th by only 0.04 seconds. At the [[2013 World Championships in Athletics]], Centrowitz improved on his bronze medal performance with a silver in the same event. At the [[2016 World Indoor Championships]], he won his first major international championship in the 1500 meters. He then won [[Athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics – Men's 1500 metres|the gold medal in the 1500 meters]] at the [[2016 Summer Olympics]]<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://en.omriyadat.com/american-athletics/american-matthew-centrowitz-1500m |title=American Centrowitz claims shock 1,500m gold medal |date=August 21, 2016 |work=Om Riyadat |access-date=2018-10-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160917033216/http://en.omriyadat.com/american-athletics/american-matthew-centrowitz-1500m |archive-date=September 17, 2016 |agency=[[Reuters]]}}</ref> in [[Rio de Janeiro]] with the slowest winning time since [[Athletics at the 1932 Summer Olympics – Men's 1500 metres|1932]], becoming the first [[Athletics at the 1908 Summer Olympics – Men's 1500 metres|U.S. runner to win the event since 1908]].

==Early life and background==
Centrowitz was born in Beltsville, Maryland, the son of Beverly (Bannister) and two-time Olympian [[Matt Centrowitz]], who was the head track coach at [[American University]].<ref>{{cite web |author=Matt Centrowitz |url=http://www.aueagles.com/sports/c-xc/mtt/centrowitz_matt00.html |title=American University Athletics |publisher=Aueagles.com |date= |accessdate=September 2, 2011}}</ref> His father is of half Jewish and half Irish ancestry,<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.letsrun.com/news/2017/01/letsrun-com-exclusive-read-chapter-two-matt-centrowitzs-new-book-like-father-like-son/ |title=LetsRun.com Exclusive: Read Chapter Two of Matt Centrowitz's New Book "Like Father, Like Son" |last= |first= |date=January 30, 2017 |work=LetsRun.com |access-date=2018-10-07 |language=en-US}}</ref> and his mother is from [[Guyana]].<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2006-09-27/news/0609270186_1_matt-centrowitz |title=In his father's footsteps |last=McMullen |first=Paul |date=September 27, 2006 |work=The Baltimore Sun |access-date=2018-10-07 |language=en}}</ref> 

==Running career==
===High school===
He grew up in [[Arnold, Maryland]],<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/olympics/matthew-centrowitz-follows-his-fathers-footsteps-to-a-second-olympics/2016/08/01/d65a792c-4f79-11e6-a422-83ab49ed5e6a_story.html |title=Matthew Centrowitz follows his father’s footsteps to a second Olympic team |last=Kilgore |first=Adam |date=August 1, 2016 |work=Washington Post |access-date=October 7, 2018}}</ref> and was a track star at [[Broadneck High School]] in [[Annapolis, Maryland|Annapolis]].  His negative split 8:41.55 win in the 2-mile race at the Nike Outdoor Nationals is considered one of the best races in prep history<ref>{{cite web |url=http://runningentertainment.com/runningshots22.html |title=Running_Shots_22 |publisher=Runningentertainment.com |date=May 15, 1965 |accessdate=September 2, 2011}}</ref> and was also the best high school time of 2007.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.usatoday.com/sports/preps/track/top-boys.htm |title=Preps: Boys' top performers [Track and field] |date=June 26, 2007 |work=[[USA Today]] |accessdate=August 21, 2016}}</ref> His time of 4:08.38 for the [[mile run|mile]] at the [[Penn Relays]] in April 2007 established a meet record.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.flashresults.com/2007_Meets/outdoor/penn/friday/156-1-01.htm |title=156 HS Boys Mile Run Champions |date=April 28, 2007 |website=www.flashresults.com |access-date=October 7, 2018}}</ref> He also went on to set the Maryland state record over 1600 meters in 4:04.09 that same year.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.southflorida.com/bal-btrackphoto605,0,7555888.photo |title=Broadneck's Matthew Centrowitz |publisher=Southflorida.com |date=June 1, 2006 |accessdate=September 2, 2011}}</ref> He also won a gold medal at the [[2007 Pan American Junior Athletics Championships|Pan American Junior Championships]] held in [[São Paulo, Brazil]] in 2007 in the 1500m run.

===College===
Like his father, Centrowitz ran for the [[University of Oregon]].  In 2009, Centrowitz's split of 3.59.53 helped break the NCAA 4 x mile record on May 10 with fellow Oregon teammates, [[Andrew Wheating]] (3:59.60), Shadrack Kiptoo-Biwott (4:05.21), and [[Galen Rupp]] (3:58.93), shaving a little more than a second off of the old record with a 16:03.24.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.oregonlive.com/ducks/index.ssf/2009/05/video_oregon_ducks_break_mens.html |work=The Oregonian |title=Video: Oregon Ducks break men's 4x1-mile record at Hayward Field |date=May 10, 2009}}</ref>

In 2011 Centrowitz won the 1500 meters in the [[Pac-12 Conference|Pac-10]] and the [[NCAA Men's Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships]]. He'd previously won the 1500 in the Pac-10 three times.

On November 29, 2011, he announced his decision to turn professional, forgoing his participation on the [[Oregon Ducks track and field|University of Oregon team]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Goe |first=Ken |url=http://www.oregonlive.com/trackandfield/index.ssf/2011/11/matthew_centrowitz_explains_hi.html |work=The Oregonian |title=Matthew Centrowitz explains his decision to leave Oregon early to turn professional |date=November 29, 2011}}</ref>

===Professional===
His decision to turn professional resulted in his becoming a Nike-sponsored athlete, and he joined the [[Nike Oregon Project]], where he was coached by [[Alberto Salazar]]. Centrowitz outkicked [[Bernard Lagat]] and [[Leo Manzano]] at the 2011 USATF Outdoor Championships in the 1500m. His 2011 season is sometimes described as "The Perfect Season", where he won the NCAA Championship and went on to win the national championship in the 1500m. He went on to get a bronze medal in the 2011 IAAF World Championships in Athletics in the 1500m behind [[Asbel Kiprop]] and [[Silas Kiplagat]], both of Kenya.

When 2012 came around, he qualified for the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Istanbul, Turkey by getting second in the national indoor 1500m championship, behind Leo Manzano and in front of his teammate, [[Galen Rupp]]. He would go on to finish 7th 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&nbsp;m.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2012-07-01/sports/bs-sp-matthew-centrowitz-0702-20120701_1_matthew-centrowitz-track-and-field-london-olympics |work=The Baltimore Sun |title=Former Broadneck star Matthew Centrowitz qualifies for London Olympics |date=July 1, 2012}}</ref> He finished in fourth place in the [[2012 London Olympic Games]] in the 1,500 meter race, missing the bronze medal by .04 seconds with a time of 3:35.17 minutes. He won the [[Fifth Avenue Mile]] ahead of Bernard Lagat that September.<ref>{{cite news |last=Calderwood |first=Stuart |title=Centrowitz and Martinez take Fifth Avenue titles |date=September 23, 2012 |publisher=[[IAAF]] |url=https://www.iaaf.org/news/news/centrowitz-and-martinez-take-fifth-avenue-tit |access-date=August 20, 2016}}</ref>

During the 2013 indoor season, his first race was at the Seattle UW Indoor Preview, where he won the 800m. He was second at the Millrose 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 got 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 this year, which qualified him for the IAAF World Championships in Moscow, Russia.

On August 16, 2013, at the 14th IAAF World Championships in Moscow, Russia, Centrowitz ran 3:35.95 to place second and automatically qualify for the Finals in the Men's 1500m run, where he won the silver medal with his 3:36.78 performance.

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 July 12, 2014, Centrowitz made his seasonal debut in the 800 meters in Glasgow. He finished in 4th place, running a 1:46.12.

On February 20, 2016, Centrowitz won the [[Millrose Games]] men's indoor mile in 3:50.63, edging out [[Nick Willis]].<ref>[http://results.nyrrmillrosegames.org Results: Men's Wanamaker Mile].  [[Millrose Games]]. Retrieved August 21, 2016.</ref>

On March 20, 2016, Centrowitz won the 1500 meter at the [[IAAF World Indoor Championships|World Indoor Championships]] wrapping up an unbeaten indoor season.

[[File:Matthew Centrowitz Jr. on August 29, 2016.jpg|220px|thumb|Centrowitz attended a [[Baltimore Orioles]] baseball game after winning a gold medal in the [[Athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics – Men's 1500 metres|2016 Summer Olympics]].]]
On August 20, 2016, Centrowitz competed at the [[2016 Olympic Games]], where he won the [[Athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics – Men's 1500 metres|1500 meters]] race in 3:50.00, becoming the first American to win the event since [[Mel Sheppard]] in [[Athletics at the 1908 Summer Olympics – Men's 1500 metres|1908]].<ref>{{citeweb|url=http://www.espn.com/olympics/trackandfield/story/_/id/17356182/2016-rio-olympics-matthew-centrowitz-first-american-win-gold-men-1500m-1908|title= Matthew Centrowitz ends U.S. drought in men's 1,500 meters|date=20 August 2016|work=ESPN|accessdate=22 August 2016}}</ref> The race "got off to an unusually slow start" for tactical reasons; the first four finalists in the T13 1500m men's final at the [[2016 Summer Paralympics]] all finished faster than Centrowitz.<ref name="Guardian 17 September 2016">{{cite news |last=Addley |first=Esther |title=Digested Week - Breadxit means breadxit: just when we kneaded a rise in baking puns |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/sep/17/digested-week-david-cameron-battered-legacy-bake-off-hinkley-point |date=17 September 2016 |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |location=London |page=20 |accessdate=19 September 2016}}</ref><ref name="Huffington Post 12 September 2016">{{cite web |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/paralympic-1500m-t13_us_57d6d3a8e4b03d2d459b7e78 |title=Four Paralympians Just Ran The 1500m Faster Than Anyone At The Rio Olympics Final |last=Strachan |first=Maxwell |work=The Huffington Post |accessdate=19 September 2016}}</ref>

In January 2019, Centrowitz moved to the [[Bowerman Track Club]] under the coaching of [[Jerry Schumacher]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.letsrun.com/news/2019/01/olympic-1500m-champion-matthew-centrowitz-to-be-coached-by-jerry-schumacher-will-train-with-bowerman-track-club |title=Olympic 1500m Champion Matthew Centrowitz To Be Coached By Jerry Schumacher, Will Train With Bowerman Track Club |last=Gault |first=Jonathan  |work=LetsRun |accessdate=12 January 2019}}</ref>

==Personal life==
Centrowitz's sister, Lauren Centrowitz, is also an elite runner. She completed her bachelor's at [[Stanford University]] in 2009,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gostanford.com/sports/c-track/mtt/centrowitz_lauren00.html |accessdate=June 19, 2012 |title=Lauren Centrowitz |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121107143555/http://www.gostanford.com/sports/c-track/mtt/centrowitz_lauren00.html |archivedate=November 7, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gostanford.com/ViewArticle.dbml?&DB_OEM_ID=30600&ATCLID=208080719 |title=Untitled Article |publisher=GoStanford.com |date= |accessdate=June 12, 2014}}</ref> and received a master's degree from [[American University]] in Justice, Law, and Society in 2012. Lauren qualified for the [[United States Olympic Trials (track and field)|Olympic Trials]], also in [[2012 United States Olympic Trials (track and field)|2012]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.usatf.org/events/2012/OlympicTrials-TF/entry/status.asp |title=USA Track & Field - Status of Entries |publisher=Usatf.org |date= |accessdate=June 12, 2014}}</ref>

==International competitions==
{| {{AchievementTable|Event=yes}}
|-
!colspan="6"|Representing the {{USA}}
|-
|2007
|[[2007 Pan American Junior Athletics Championships|Pan American Junior Championships]] 
|[[São Paulo]], Brazil
|bgcolor=gold|1st
|1500 m
|3:56.63
|-
|2011
|[[2011 World Championships in Athletics|World Championships]] 
|[[Daegu]], South Korea
| style="background:#c96;"|3rd
|1500 m
|[[2011 World Championships in Athletics – Men's 1500 metres|3:36.08]]
|-
|rowspan=2|2012
|[[2012 IAAF World Indoor Championships|World Indoor Championships]]
|[[Istanbul]], Turkey
|7th
|1500 m
|[[2012 IAAF World Indoor Championships – Men's 1500 metres|3:47.42]]
|-
|[[Athletics at the 2012 Summer Olympics|Olympic Games]]
|[[London]], United Kingdom
|4th 
|1500 m
|[[Athletics at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Men's 1500 metres|3:35.17]]
|-
|2013
|[[2013 World Championships in Athletics|World Championships]] 
|[[Moscow]], Russia
| style="background:silver;"| 2nd
|1500 m
|[[2013 World Championships in Athletics – Men's 1500 metres|3:36.78]]
|-
|2015
|[[2015 World Championships in Athletics|World Championships]] 
|[[Beijing]], China
|8th
|1500 m
|[[2015 World Championships in Athletics – Men's 1500 metres|3:36.13]]
|-
|rowspan=2|2016
|[[2016 IAAF World Indoor Championships|World Indoor Championships]]
|[[Portland, Oregon|Portland]], United States
|bgcolor=gold|1st
|1500 m
|[[2016 IAAF World Indoor Championships|3:44.22]]
|-
|[[Athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics|Olympic Games]]
|[[Rio de Janeiro]], Brazil
|bgcolor=gold|1st
|1500 m
|[[Athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics – Men's 1500 metres|3:50.00]] 
|-
|2017
|[[2017 World Championships in Athletics|World Championships]]
|[[London]], United Kingdom
|37th (h)
|1500 m
|[[2017 World Championships in Athletics – Men's 1500 metres|3:48.34]]
|-
|2019
|[[2019 World Athletics Championships|World Championships]]
|[[Doha]], Qatar
|8th
|1500 m
|[[2019 World Athletics Championships – Men's 1500 metres|3:32.81]]
|}

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Matthew Centrowitz}}
* {{IAAF|228630|Matthew Centrowitz}}
* {{USATF|Matthew-Centrowitz|Matthew Centrowitz}}
* [http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=925196 University of Oregon bio: Matthew Centrowitz Jr.]

{{Footer Olympic Champions 1500 m Men}}
{{Footer World Indoor Champions 1500m Men}}
{{Footer US NC 1500m Men}}
{{Footer USA Track & Field 2012 Summer Olympics}}
{{Footer USA Track & Field 2016 Summer Olympics}}
{{Footer Bowerman Track Club}}
{{Footer Nike Oregon Project}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Centrowitz, Matthew Jr.}}
[[Category:1989 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Track and field athletes from Maryland]]
[[Category:People from Arnold, Maryland]]
[[Category:People from Beltsville, Maryland]]
[[Category:American male middle-distance runners]]
[[Category:Olympic male middle-distance runners]]
[[Category:Olympic track and field athletes of the United States]]
[[Category:Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2016 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:World Championships in Athletics athletes for the United States]]
[[Category:World Championships in Athletics medalists]]
[[Category:Oregon Ducks men's track and field athletes]]
[[Category:American people of Guyanese descent]]
[[Category:American people of Irish descent]]
[[Category:Jewish American sportspeople]]
[[Category:University of Oregon alumni]]