What Happened to Matthew Boling, Who Went Viral for His 100-Meter Record?
Track and field fans likely remember the high school athlete who went viral in 2019 for breaking the 10-second barrier for the 100-meter. At that moment, Matthew Boling entered the spotlight as a high school senior from Houston’s Strake Jesuit College Preparatory.
Now, Boling is a college grad with a track and field career that is far from over. So what is the 22-year-old doing these days?
High school athlete Matthew Boling becomes a track star in 9.98 seconds
Boling was one of the top high school athletes in Texas. As a junior, he won the Texas 6A long jump state championship and finished second in the 400m. Boling did not start running the 100-meter dash until his senior year of high school. This decision proved to be one of the best he’s ever made.
In the track world, the 100-meter will showcase an athlete’s speed and technique. It’s not about just running your fastest; there are many elements to completing a successful 100-meter race. Boling excelled at them all.
During a regional championship, reports ESPN, Boling clocked a 9.98-second finish with a tailwind of 4.2 meters per second. Though the wind helped with his time, no high school sprinter had ever completed the 100m this fast. It set the high school all-conditions record and gained attention from people around the world. Boling appeared on NBC Nightly News, CNN, and BBC.
Matthew Boling sets record for high school track
With all the attention Boling received, he continued to experience success on the track. During the final track meet of his high school career, Boling won the 100 meters, running a 10.13 at the state meet. His time tied for the fastest time ever in a regular-season high school competition and tied for the fifth-fastest by any U.S. high school sprinter at any time.
Boling also won his second straight title in the long jump and was the anchor of the 4X400 relay team that finished first. He earned Gatorade‘s 2018-19 National Boys Track & Field Player of the Year award and became Track & Field News‘ 2019 High School Boys Athlete Of The Year.
He committed to the University of Georgia and competed as a freshman just as the COVID-19 pandemic put sports on hiatus.
Matthew Boling’s track and field career at the University of Georgia
Despite the coronavirus prematurely ending his 2020 season, Boling had success as a freshman and was voted the SEC Men’s Freshman Runner of the Year, reports NCAA.com.
In 2021, he made it to the NCAA Indoor Championships and won the 200m indoor NCAA national title, clocking a 20.19 for the sixth fastest time in history. Boling’s first Olympic tryout occurred that year, but he failed to qualify in the 100m and 200m.
After the Supreme Court ruled on the Name Image Likeness law, Boling began partnering with brands. In 2022, he began posting on Instagram in partnership with Dunkin’ Donuts and will likely garner more sponsorships as his career advances.
Boling won the 200m and placed fourth in the 100m at the Outdoor Track & Field Championships in 2022. He placed sixth in the 100m and second in the 200m at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships.
In 2023, Boling represented the Georgia Bulldogs at the 2023 NCAA finals, running the 200m in 20.12 — the fastest time in the world for 2023. In May, the 22-year-old graduated from UGA with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing.
Boling is currently dating University of Georgia student Sofia Baker. Set to graduate in 2024, as Baker shares on Instagram, she currently runs track and field and cross-country for the Bulldogs.
