Matthew Wilkinson

Carrie chats with fellow Minnesotan and 2024 Olympian Matthew Wilkinson! They discuss Matt's journey from growing up in Minnetonka, becoming a 2X Division III champion at Carleton College, finishing his college career at the University of Minnesota as a Big Ten Champ, signing a pro contract with Under Armour Mission Run Dark Sky Distance, his recent achievements including becoming a US Olympian and running a personal best in the 3000m in Paris, and so much more!

The track is HOT.

Okay, it’s actually quite pleasant by Eugene-in-June standards, with temperatures in the high 70s and a pleasant breeze that always seems to be a tailwind in Hayward Field. But the performances laid down last night in Day 8 of the Olympic Trials sure heated up the stadium — even in events where we’re not on finals yet.

For the first time in history, three men broke 13 seconds in the same 110m hurdles race as Grant Holloway picked up his second national title, made his second Olympic team, and clocked the fourth-fastest performance in history ahead of Freddie Crittenden and Daniel Roberts’s lifetime bests. Five men broke 20 seconds in the 200m semifinals led by Noah Lyles’s wind-aided 19.60, and another epic battle between Gabby Thomas and Sha’Carri Richardson is set up in the women’s 200m final.

While middle-distance rounds can sometimes get tactical, they sure didn’t tonight. It took 4:05.36 to make the final of the women’s 1500m, and the “heavy hitters” heat did not disappoint with Nikki Hiltz making a statement with a 4:01.40 win and five finishes at 4:02.14 or faster. The 1500m final will be absolutely stacked, and in the mixed zone competitors were suggesting that it may make times well under 4 minutes just to make the team.

In the men’s 800m, it’s clear that qualifying for the Games in the 1500m has lifted a weight off Hobbs Kessler’s shoulders, as he seems to be absolutely elated in each round of racing and led all semifinal qualifiers with a huge personal best of 1:43.71. Kessler skipped the 1:44s entirely as his PB heading into this weekend was 1:45.07.

It’s now officially the weekend and, bittersweetly, our final two days of action, so make sure you don’t miss any of these incredible competitions over the last few finals. If we’ve learned anything form the action we’ve seen so far, we’re in store for something very, very fast in multiple events.

CITIUS MAG LIVE From Eugene! will bring you daily interviews with athletes, coaches and notable folks in town at noon PT each day. Our guests for day three of the Olympic Trials include Nico Young, Payton Otterdahl, Kendall Ellis, and Matthew Wilkinson. 

LIVE SHOWS

Good Morning Track and Field will start your day with some takes and updates from Eugene hosted by Eric Jenkins, Mitch Dyer and Karen Lesiewicz at 8:30 a.m. PT.

TRIALS TALK – our hit daily podcast series from 2021 – ⁠returns on The CITIUS MAG Podcast feed⁠ + streaming live immediately post-race to unpack all of the action immediately following the meet.

LIVE MEET COVERAGE

Stay updated on live results, mixed zone interviews and more on the CITIUS MAG ⁠Instagram⁠, ⁠X⁠ and ⁠Threads⁠ pages while the meet is underway each evening. All interviews will be uploaded to our aforementioned YouTube channel.

MORNING RUNS

CITIUS MAG and New Balance will be hosting group runs on Sunday, June 23rd at 8 a.m. ET; Tuesday, June 25th at 8 a.m. and Saturday, June 29th at 7:30 a.m. Come on by to our pop-up next to Prince Puckler’s Ice Cream shop to meet for some easy morning miles.

All paces are welcome. We’ll be giving away shirts, hats and more. Plus, you’ll have an opportunity to try all of the latest and greatest from New Balance. We’ll also have Olipop, coffee, games and cold plunges to enjoy afterward.

Also, CITIUS MAG Newsletter subscribers will be getting daily emails from the Trials as David Melly rounds up all of the biggest results, stories + our best interviews, photos and original content from Eugene. If you want to hook a friend, there’s no better time than the Trials so forward them the emails or encourage them to ⁠sign up today for FREE⁠ here: https://citiusmag.beehiiv.com/

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS👟 NEW BALANCE: New Balance celebrates runners of all levels and styles. They believe there’s no single ‘right’ way to run - just your way. If you run, no matter the distance, pace or frequency, you’re a runner. New Balance, Run your way. ⁠NewBalance.co⁠m/Running

Matthew Centrowitz joins the CITIUS MAG crew to unpack an insane day of track and field. Here are the biggest highlights from Day 4 of the U.S. Olympic Trials include:

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CITIUS MAG LIVE From Eugene! will bring you daily interviews with athletes, coaches and notable folks in town at noon PT each day. Our guests for day three of the Olympic Trials include Nico Young, Payton Otterdahl, Kendall Ellis, and Matthew Wilkinson. 

LIVE SHOWS

Good Morning Track and Field will start your day with some takes and updates from Eugene hosted by Eric Jenkins, Mitch Dyer and Karen Lesiewicz at 8:30 a.m. PT.

TRIALS TALK – our hit daily podcast series from 2021 – returns on The CITIUS MAG Podcast feed + streaming live immediately post-race to unpack all of the action immediately following the meet.

LIVE MEET COVERAGE

Stay updated on live results, mixed zone interviews and more on the CITIUS MAG Instagram, X and Threads pages while the meet is underway each evening. All interviews will be uploaded to our aforementioned YouTube channel.

MORNING RUNS

CITIUS MAG and New Balance will be hosting group runs on Sunday, June 23rd at 8 a.m. ET; Tuesday, June 25th at 8 a.m. and Saturday, June 29th at 7:30 a.m. Come on by to our pop-up next to Prince Puckler’s Ice Cream shop to meet for some easy morning miles.

All paces are welcome. We’ll be giving away shirts, hats and more. Plus, you’ll have an opportunity to try all of the latest and greatest from New Balance. We’ll also have Olipop, coffee, games and cold plunges to enjoy afterward.

Also, CITIUS MAG Newsletter subscribers will be getting daily emails from the Trials as David Melly rounds up all of the biggest results, stories + our best interviews, photos and original content from Eugene. If you want to hook a friend, there’s no better time than the Trials so forward them the emails or encourage them to sign up today for FREE here: https://citiusmag.beehiiv.com/

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS
👟 NEW BALANCE: New Balance celebrates runners of all levels and styles. They believe there’s no single ‘right’ way to run - just your way. If you run, no matter the distance, pace or frequency, you’re a runner. New Balance, Run your way. NewBalance.com/Running

“When he made that move, I was like, ‘I gotta stick close to him and he’s going to take me to Paris. I thought I made a hard move doing a 63 (lap) with three out, and he comes by me going 59 and I was like, ’That’s world-class.’ when that happened, I was like, ‘There’s no way I'm going to beat him, but if I can stay as close to him as possible, I don’t think anyone’s going to beat us.’”

From Division 3 to Olympian! Matthew Wilkinson joins the show after taking second in the U.S. Olympic Trials steeplechase to qualify for the Paris Olympics. Matthew breaks down the steeplechase final, shares about other steeplechasers that he looks up to, what his goals are for the Olympics + the rest of his season, and lots more. Hear more from Matthew in this episode of the CITIUS MAG Podcast.

Hosts: Hosts: Chris Chavez | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@chris_j_chavez on Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ 

Guest: Matthew Wilkinson | @silkywilky1123 on Instagram

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CITIUS MAG LIVE From Eugene! will bring you daily interviews with athletes, coaches and notable folks in town at noon PT each day. Our guests for day three of the Olympic Trials include Nico Young, Payton Otterdahl, Kendall Ellis, and Matthew Wilkinson. 

LIVE SHOWS

Good Morning Track and Field will start your day with some takes and updates from Eugene hosted by Eric Jenkins, Mitch Dyer and Karen Lesiewicz at 8:30 a.m. PT.

TRIALS TALK – our hit daily podcast series from 2021 – returns on The CITIUS MAG Podcast feed + streaming live immediately post-race to unpack all of the action immediately following the meet.

LIVE MEET COVERAGE

Stay updated on live results, mixed zone interviews and more on the CITIUS MAG Instagram, X and Threads pages while the meet is underway each evening. All interviews will be uploaded to our aforementioned YouTube channel.

MORNING RUNS

CITIUS MAG and New Balance will be hosting group runs on Sunday, June 23rd at 8 a.m. ET; Tuesday, June 25th at 8 a.m. and Saturday, June 29th at 7:30 a.m. Come on by to our pop-up next to Prince Puckler’s Ice Cream shop to meet for some easy morning miles.

All paces are welcome. We’ll be giving away shirts, hats and more. Plus, you’ll have an opportunity to try all of the latest and greatest from New Balance. We’ll also have Olipop, coffee, games and cold plunges to enjoy afterward.

Also, CITIUS MAG Newsletter subscribers will be getting daily emails from the Trials as David Melly rounds up all of the biggest results, stories + our best interviews, photos and original content from Eugene. If you want to hook a friend, there’s no better time than the Trials so forward them the emails or encourage them to sign up today for FREE here: https://citiusmag.beehiiv.com/

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS
👟 NEW BALANCE: New Balance celebrates runners of all levels and styles. They believe there’s no single ‘right’ way to run - just your way. If you run, no matter the distance, pace or frequency, you’re a runner. New Balance, Run your way. NewBalance.com/Running

“I definitely feel like having that success indoors with the two titles helped me gain confidence in my ability to close down a race and win a race in any way. Whether it’s a fast race, slow race, I'm equally as confident. For the rest of the outdoor season, it definitely helped me be not as concerned as the gun went off that I was going to be able to close well off of any kind of race.”

Newly minted Olympian Nico Young joins the show after qualifying for his first Olympic team in the 10,000m at the 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials. He also just announced signing a professional contract with adidas. Nico unpacks his third-place finish in the 10,000m, recaps his incredible NCAA season, shares about his excitement for Paris, breaks down his Mount Rushmore of NAU distance running legends, and lots more. Hear more from Nico in this episode of the CITIUS MAG Podcast.

Hosts: Hosts: Chris Chavez | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@chris_j_chavez on Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ + Eric Jenkins | @_ericjenkins on Instagram

Guest: Nico Young | @nico__young__ on Instagram

_________

CITIUS MAG LIVE From Eugene! will bring you daily interviews with athletes, coaches and notable folks in town at noon PT each day. Our guests for day three of the Olympic Trials include Nico Young, Payton Otterdahl, Kendall Ellis, and Matthew Wilkinson. 

LIVE SHOWS

Good Morning Track and Field will start your day with some takes and updates from Eugene hosted by Eric Jenkins, Mitch Dyer and Karen Lesiewicz at 8:30 a.m. PT.

TRIALS TALK – our hit daily podcast series from 2021 – returns on The CITIUS MAG Podcast feed + streaming live immediately post-race to unpack all of the action immediately following the meet.

LIVE MEET COVERAGE

Stay updated on live results, mixed zone interviews and more on the CITIUS MAG Instagram, X and Threads pages while the meet is underway each evening. All interviews will be uploaded to our aforementioned YouTube channel.

MORNING RUNS

CITIUS MAG and New Balance will be hosting group runs on Sunday, June 23rd at 8 a.m. ET; Tuesday, June 25th at 8 a.m. and Saturday, June 29th at 7:30 a.m. Come on by to our pop-up next to Prince Puckler’s Ice Cream shop to meet for some easy morning miles.

All paces are welcome. We’ll be giving away shirts, hats and more. Plus, you’ll have an opportunity to try all of the latest and greatest from New Balance. We’ll also have Olipop, coffee, games and cold plunges to enjoy afterward.

Also, CITIUS MAG Newsletter subscribers will be getting daily emails from the Trials as David Melly rounds up all of the biggest results, stories + our best interviews, photos and original content from Eugene. If you want to hook a friend, there’s no better time than the Trials so forward them the emails or encourage them to sign up today for FREE here: https://citiusmag.beehiiv.com/

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS
👟 NEW BALANCE: New Balance celebrates runners of all levels and styles. They believe there’s no single ‘right’ way to run - just your way. If you run, no matter the distance, pace or frequency, you’re a runner. New Balance, Run your way. NewBalance.com/Running

Last time we saw Matt Wilkinson, he was preparing for the D3 National Meet.

Now he's in his first Pro season with Under Armour's Dark Sky team in Flagstaff, Arizona.

Before he got to Flagstaff, he had a few seasons at Minnesota where he swept the Steeple and 5k at the Big 10 conference meet.

He talks about how he's handled each transition from D3 to D1 to Pro and how he's overcoming his imposter syndrome with each race.

With each step in the journey he's embraced his new teammates that he trains with and gains confidence knowing he can hang with them in workouts.

As he prepares for the Olympic Trials, he's excited to see what a full year of training with his UA team can have on his performance.

Matt is running for the long haul. He expects to have a long career that will have him on the roads after track.

Follow Matt on Instagram

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