Who: Matthew Elliott
High School: Green Sea Floyds High School, Green Sea, S.C., Class of 2003
HS Personal Bests:
800m: 2:05
1600m: 4:42
3200m: 10:50
5,000m XC: 16:59
Current Personal Bests:
1500m: 3:36.61
Mile: 3:57.16
It’s pretty hard not to cheer for Matthew Elliott. Not only did he take the track world by storm with his surprise fourth place finish in the 1500m at the U.S. track championships in June and give one of the most memorable Flotrack interviews ever, breaking down in tears of joy, but he is also a schoolteacher at the Palmetto School in Rock Hill, S.C., at the Children’s Attention Home for special needs children. He teaches first- and second-graders in a one-room classroom by day, and runs by morning and night.
After a high school career during which Elliott ran only 4:42 for the mile, it was unlikely that he’d keep going, especially after four years of school at Presbyterian College in Clinton, S.C., a school with a cross country team, but no track squad. Luckily for Elliott, he made his way to Winthrop (S.C.) for grad school and had eligibility. He qualified for the NCAA championships in the 1500 in 2008. Since then, he was stuck in running purgatory, running solid times and qualifying for the U.S. championships, but never making a final until this year. Now, he’s coming off his fourth-place finish and a summer in Europe full of new PBs, ready to chase faster times.
Elliott, whose charming Southern accent adds to his nice-guy persona, spoke with Running Times about his high school running career, back when he was 5’10” and 130 pounds compared to his 6’1” and 160-pound frame today.
Most Memorable Race:
Back in 2002, South Carolina only allowed eight runners in each race at its state track meet. Elliott was ranked seventh of the eight runners in the 1600. After one lap he was in fourth. He came through the halfway point in third. He moved up one more spot and was in second at the bell. Then, he took off for the lead and held off challengers for the win, crossing the tape in 4:47. “I have several memorable races,” says Elliot, “but my favorite one was the first time I won a state championship. I already loved running, but after competing at the highest level for where I was, it really fueled my fire.”
One fun fact from that day: Green Sea Floyds High School was in the smallest division for South Carolina schools, Class A. Only 250 kids attended the school. Green Sea sent two athletes to state meet, Elliott and Calesio Newman, who was fourth at the 2012 Olympic trials in the 200m. Elliot and Newman still keep in very good touch. “Calesio actually spoke at our high school last Friday,” Elliott says. “He and I have talked about doing a few things at Green Sea in the future.”
Favorite Workout:
“I remember doing stadium stairs and pace work on the track, but it wasn’t a set interval with a rest,” says Elliott. Instead, the workouts were the races. Elliott ran the 1600m, 800m, 3200m, and 4 x 400m his junior and senior years. Elliott loved it, but even if he didn’t, he wasn’t going to complain, because his mom and dad were the coaches. His mom, Phyllis, coached both cross country and track, while his dad, Charles, coached football in the fall but joined for track in the spring. “My mom and dad got people to participate,” he says. Elliot’s dad has retired, but his mom is still coaching. Back when Elliott joined the squad, there were only eight guys on the team; now there are 34. Elliott says his mom has grown interest in running, and adds, “She’s an awesome, awesome lady.”
Other Activities:
In a small school, Elliott tried a few different sports. He played basketball in ninth, 10th, and 12th grade, while dabbling in golf in 10th and 11th. He was the student body president his senior year and was in NHS all four years of high school. He even sang tenor in the choir. He enjoyed that enough to sing in college as well. “I loved high school,” says Elliott. “I knew everybody there. I even love going back and visiting now.”
Lunch Specials:
Elliot lights up when he talks about the cafeteria’s high point: “Every Thursday was Fried Chicken Thursday. It was the best meal of every single week, everyone was lining up like crazy for fried chicken on Thursday.” It was such a hit that a separate stand opened up on Thursdays where students could buy extra chicken. “I loved it, I loved it,” he laughs. “It was awesome.”
Elliott still loves school meals. At the Palmetto school where he teaches, he says, “They have a chef! Whole grain everything, sweet potato, chicken parm with whole wheat noodles. It’s family style, we pass around the dishes.” He praises the lunch ladies Ms. Sarah and Ms. Mariah. He praises them so much that he says Ms. Sarah and he have an agreement: “That when I one day get married, she’ll be catering the wedding.”
Favorite High School Song:
Elliott chided Will Leer’s favorite high school song (Haddaway’s “What is Love?”) and instead went on and on about how great Ja Rule was. “When I think about music from high school,” he says, “the only thing I can think about is Ja Rule.” Every mix Elliott made had at least five Ja Rule songs on it. “He was hot back then, he was on fire. Him and Ashanti were blowing up.” Elliott is still keeping in touch with Ja Rule’s career. “He’s making a comeback,” he said. “He’s got a movie coming out in November!”
Advice to High School runners:
“Just be patient. I didn’t realize that I had any elite level potential until I was 23 years old. Each and every year set goals. I ran as hard as I could every race I ran. People see that, you can really build a platform from your effort, because people will respect that. A lot of guys run high school track and want to be good right now when they’re 16. That’s important, getting a scholarship is great, but just enjoy this sport. Enjoy it more tomorrow than you did today.”
You can follow Elliott on Twitter (@MattElliott1500). Thanks to him and his mother for the picture. Make sure to follow us for Throwback Thursday and more on Twitter (@RunningTimesHS) and Instagram (@RunningTimes)
