Matthew McKenna
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
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| Nationality | British (Scottish) | ||||||||||||||
| Born | 16 June 2007 | ||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||
| Sport | Athletics | ||||||||||||||
Event | Middle distance | ||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | |||||||||||||||
| Personal bests | 800m: 1:46.84 (Watford, 2024) 1500m: 3:47.61 (Loughborough, 2024) Indoor 800m: 1:47.19 (Glasgow, 2026) NU20R | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Matthew McKenna (born 16 June 2007) is a British middle-distance runner. He is the British under-20 record holder for the 800 metres.[1]
Biography
In 2024, McKenna won the gold medal at the 2024 European Athletics U18 Championships over 800 metres in Banska Bystrica, Slovakia.[2]
At the British Milers Club in Watford on 21 August 2024, McKenna ran a personal best time of 1:46.84 for the 800 metres which placed him second on the European U18 800m all-time list behind Max Burgin.[3][4] In October 2024, he was nominated by Athletics Weekly for best British male junior.[5]
On 31 January 2026, McKenna set a British under-20 indoor record with 1:48.20 for the 800 metres in Glasgow, surpassing the David Sharpe 40-year-old mark from 1986.[6][7] He was a finalist over 800 metres at the 2026 British Indoor Athletics Championships in Birmingham on 14 February 2026, placing sixth overall.[8] On 1 March in Glasgow, McKenna lowered his British under-20 800m record with 1:47.19.[9][10] He was named in the GB & NI U20 team for the 2026 Loughborough International in May 2026, winning the 800 metres race in 1:52.17.[11][12] In July, McKenna won the England Athletics U20 Championships over 800 metres in 1:49.24.[13] He was selected as part of the Great Britain team to compete at the 2026 World Athletics U20 Championships, reaching the semi-finals and narrowly missing out on a place in the final by a single second.[14][15]
Personal life
McKenna lived in Aberdeen prior to moving to England. He often runs wearing a backwards baseball cap.[4]
References
- ↑ "Matthew McKenna". World Athletics. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
- ↑ "McKenna's English Schools ambitions lead to European gold". European Athletics. 25 July 2024. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
- ↑ "Watford witnesses fast late-season times". Athletics Weekly. 24 August 2024. Retrieved 24 Feb 2025.
- 1 2 Collett, Jasmine (Oct 24, 2024). "European U18 800m champion Matthew McKenna's rapid rise to success". Athletics Weekly. Retrieved 26 October 2024.
- ↑ Henderson, Jason (Oct 30, 2024). "Vote for your athletes of 2024". Athletics Weekly. Retrieved 18 November 2024.
- ↑ "Native Indoor Mile Records and Scottish event wins at another exciting EAP Glasgow". Scottish Athletics. 31 Jan 2026. Retrieved 1 Feb 2026.
- ↑ Crumley, Euan (1 Feb 2026). "JAKE MINSHULL SPRINGS SURPRISE ON ALEXANDER DOOM IN GLASGOW". Athletics Weekly. Retrieved 1 Feb 2026.
- ↑ "Novuna UK Athletics Indoor Championships". World Athletics. 14 Feb 2026. Retrieved 14 Feb 2026.
- ↑ "Keely and Georgia treat Glasgow fans with fast times and Scottish Records for Andrew and Matthew, too". Scottish Athletics. 1 March 2026. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
- ↑ "KEELY HODGKINSON HAS EYES ON RELAY AFTER OUTRIGHT 400M PB". Athletics Weekly. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
- ↑ "Scots at Loughborough: Sophie lands Scottish U20 100m record amid our highlights". Scottish Athletics. 17 May 2026. Retrieved 17 May 2026.
- ↑ "GB & NI U20 TEAM AND PARA TEAM NAMED FOR 2026 LOUGHBOROUGH INTERNATIONAL". British Athletics. 13 May 2026. Retrieved 17 May 2026.
- ↑ "U20 Scots revel in medal moments at Bedford; Laura, Jemma on track; Pursuit 5000m PBs". Scottish Athletics. 5 July 2026. Retrieved 6 July 2026.
- ↑ Adams, Tim (10 July 2026). "PHOEBE GILL AND JAKE ODEY-JORDAN LEAD GB WORLD U20 TEAM". Athletics Weekly. Retrieved 10 July 2026.
- ↑ "First medal for Novuna GB&NI on Day Three of World U20 Championships". British Athletics. 8 April 2026. Retrieved 8 August 2026.