Quincy Hall really got what he worked for! After high school, he juggled two jobs to pay for tuition, food, and housing while attending the College of Sequoias, which didn’t have any student housing or a cafeteria. And now, just look at him—his hard work has totally paid off!

Two years ago, Quincy Hall made a big change by switching from the 400m hurdles to the flat 400m in hopes of making the US Olympic team. And wow, it did pay off! He snagged the gold medal at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, setting a personal best and world-leading time of 43.40 seconds. Hall reflected on his journey, saying, “I never made a USA team doing the 400m hurdles.” Well since then 2 months have passed and he got another good news.

Now, Quincy Hall has signed with Grand Slam Track ahead of the inaugural professional track league season in 2025. He recently got No. 4 position on the world all-time list and No. 3 on the U.S. list. Hall, who previously excelled in the 400m hurdles, will focus on long sprints like the 200m and 400m in four Slams next year.

But it is not just him who got signed!

Two-time Olympic medalist Matthew Hudson-Smith also just signed with Grand Slam Track. Hudson-Smith made headlines in Paris by finishing just four-hundredths of a second behind Hall to earn the silver medal. Meanwhile, Hall often trains solo or without partners, relying on his coach, Curtis Allen, who gives him instructions via phone, a setup they developed during their time together in junior college.

Meanwhile, Matthew Hudson-Smith has been on an impressive run, medaling at three consecutive global championships: he won bronze at the 2022 World Championships and silver in Budapest in 2023, where he narrowly missed gold by just 0.09 seconds. His standout 43.09 split also played a crucial role in Team GB’s bronze medal win in the 4x400m relay at the Olympics. However, during his race in Paris, Hudson-Smith was caught off guard by Hall’s dramatic last-minute surge. Reflecting on the moment, he remarked, “I thought I had it. If you’re going to win, you’re going to have to take it from me. That’s exactly what he did.”

As if that wasn’t enough, Hudson-Smith broke the European 400m record three times in 2024, with a personal best of 43.44, landing him fifth on the all-time list. He also dominated the Diamond League, winning three meets this year! It’s worth noting, though, that Hall and Hudson-Smith haven’t raced much with each other till now but…!

Quincy Hall and Hudson-Smith’s head-to-head rivalry

Quincy Hall and Hudson Smith have faced off four times in their careers so far. As of 2024, they are tied at 1–1 in their matchups. In May Hudson Smith clinched victory, at the Oslo Diamond League by setting a record with a time of 44.07 seconds. Although Hall finished fifth in that race but he managed to outperform Hudson Smith, in the Olympic final.

Hudson-Smith boasts the fastest personal best at 20.34 seconds from the 2024 British Olympic Trials, while Samukonga’s last 200m race was 20.48 seconds at an all-comers meet in Lusaka, and Hall last competed in the 200m back in 2015 with a time of 21.65 seconds. Samukonga holds a notable 2-1 lead, against Hall from their encounters at the Diamond League meets in both Marrakech and Doha back, in May this year. It is intriguing to note that neither of these athletes has competed against each other in the 200-meter event. This sets the stage for exciting future matchups in an event they haven’t yet explored.