Matthew Clarke (born 29 April 1995) is an Australian Olympic athlete who competes in the

3000 metres steeplechase The 3000 metres steeplechase or 3000-meter steeplechase (usually Abbreviation, abbreviated as ) is the most common distance for the steeplechase (athletics), steeplechase in track and field. It is an obstacle race over the distance of the 3000 met ...

Early years

Clarke was born in

East Melbourne East Melbourne is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Melbourne local government area. East Melbourne recorded a population of 4,896 at the 2021 ce ...

, Victoria, Australia He enjoyed long distance running as a child but gave it up in year 8. After finishing school at the age of 19 he found the motivation to return. By the time he was 20 he was running around 3:49 (1500m) and 8:32 (3000m) whilst still studying

Podiatry Podiatry ( ), also know as podiatric medicine and surgery ( ), is a branch of medicine devoted to the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disorders of the foot, ankle and lower limb. The healthcare professional is known as a podiatrist. The US ...

La Trobe University La Trobe University is a public university, public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. Its main campus is located in the suburb of Bundoora, Victoria, Bundoora. The university was established in 1 ...

. Three years later he ran 3:44 over 1500m when he came ninth at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games trials. In June 2018, Clarke travelled to the US as a guide for Paralympian Jaryd Clifford. He raced as well and clocked a PB in the 1500m at

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...

. Clarke works as a Sports Podiatrist at the Sports and Arthritic clinic (SPARC) in Mile End, SA. He is coached by Adam Didyk as a member of ASICS Team Tempo elite. Clarke lives with his wife Annabel Kitto who is also a middle distance runner. Clarke studied Podiatry at

Achievements

At the age of 23 Clarke competing in a new event, the steeplechase.He ran 8:58 in January, 2019 and 8:38.68 on his second attempt in February. He was placed fifth at nationals and earned selection in the Australian team for the

World University Games The FISU World University Games, formerly the Universiade, is an international multi-sport event, organized for university athletes by the International University Sports Federation (FISU). The former name is a portmanteau of the words "Universi ...

. Clarke came tenth in the final. He then clocked 28:39.02 for the 10,000m at Zatopek, Melbourne. (Named after Emil Zatopek, the Czech long-distance runner, it is the most prestigious track race in Australia). On 18 June 2021 in

Townsville The City of Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Queensland, Australia. With a population of 201,313 as of 2024, it is the largest settlement in North Queensland and Northern Australia (specifically, the parts of Australia north of ...

Clarke ran a new personal best in the

of 8:22.62, the second fastest time ran by an Australian, in Australia and 10 seconds faster than his previous best. 7 days later, Clarke backed up to run another 3000m steeplechase on the Gold Coast in a time of 8:22.13 With that personal best it also placed him as the fifth all time Australian for the 3000m steeplechase. Clarke qualified for the

Tokyo 2020 Olympics The officially the and officially branded as were an international multi-sport event that was held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some of the preliminary sporting events beginning on 21 July 2021. Tokyo ...

where he competed in the Men's 3000m steeplechase. He ran fourteenth in his heat with a time of 8:42.37 and did not qualify for the final. He competed in the

at the

2023 World Athletics Championships The 2023 World Athletics Championships (), the nineteenth edition of the World Athletics Championships, were held from 19 to 27 August 2023 at the National Athletics Centre (Budapest), National Athletics Centre, in Budapest, Hungary. The tourna ...

Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

in August 2023. He competed at the

2024 Summer Olympics The 2024 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad () and branded as Paris 2024, were an international multi-sport event held in France from 26 July to 11 August 2024, with several events started from 24 July. P ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

in the 3000 metres steeplechase. Clarke was a Guide Runner for Jaryd Clifford in the men's visually impaired 5000m - T13 Category at the Paralympics 2024 in Paris. He finished tenth in the 3000m steeplechase at the

2025 Shanghai Diamond League The 2025 Shanghai Diamond League was an outdoor track and field meeting in Shaoxing Shaoxing is a prefecture-level city on the southern shore of Hangzhou Bay in northeastern Zhejiang province, China. Located on the south bank of the Qianta ...

event in China on 3 May 2025.

References

External links

*
Matthew Clarke
at Australian Athletics
Matthew Clarke
at Australian Athletics Historical Results * * *
Matthew Clarke
at the

Paris 2024 Summer Olympics The 2024 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad () and branded as Paris 2024, were an international multi-sport event held in France from 26 July to 11 August 2024, with several events started from 24 July. P ...

(archived
alternate link
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clarke, Matthew 1995 births Living people Australian male steeplechase runners Olympic athletes for Australia Athletes (track and field) at the 2020 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2024 Summer Olympics La Trobe University alumni Place of birth missing (living people) 21st-century Australian sportsmen