Matt Shirvington

Matt Shirvington
Shirvington in 2013
Personal information
Nickname(s)Shirvo, The Package
Born (1978-10-25) 25 October 1978 (age 46)
Davidson, New South Wales, Australia
SpouseJessica Shirvington
Sport
Country Australia
SportMen's athletics
Events
Achievements and titles
Olympic finals
World finals2001 Edmonton: 4 x 100m relay – Bronze
National finals
Commonwealth finals1998 Kuala Lumpur: Men's 100 m – Finalist
Personal best10.03 seconds (1998 CG: Kuala Lumpur): Men's 100 m
Medal record
Men's athletics
Representing  Australia
World Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2001 Edmonton 4 x 100m relay
Commonwealth Games
Bronze medal – third place 1998 Kuala Lumpur 4 x 100m relay

Matt Shirvington (born 25 October 1978) is an Australian former athlete and television presenter who held the Australian 100m national sprint title from 1998 to 2002. Shirvington is the third fastest Australian sprinter of all time. He qualified for the 100m semi-finals in Sydney 2000, finishing 5th.[1]

Shirvington is currently co-host of the Seven Network's breakfast television program Sunrise alongside Natalie Barr.[2]

Athletics

Shirvington generally competed in the 100m, 200m and 4 x 100m relay events, finding the most success in the 100m sprint. He competed in the 2000 Olympic Games, the Athletics World Championships from 1999 to 2007 and the Commonwealth Games in 1998 and 2006.[3][4]

From 1998 Shirvington claimed five consecutive Australian national titles for the 100m sprint event. At the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur, he broke the Australian national 100m record, finishing fourth in the final with a time of 10.03 seconds. Shirvington held the record until Patrick Johnson recorded 9.93 seconds in 2003.[5] He also featured in two World Indoor Championships 60m finals.

Television

Seven Network

In 2004, Shirvington was a contestant in the first series of Dancing with the Stars and in 2005 was a presenter and reporter on Beyond Tomorrow.

In July 2020, Shirvington joined the Seven Network as weekend sport presenter on Seven News Sydney, replacing Jim Wilson.[6] He also was a fill-in host and sports presenter on Sunrise, Weekend Sunrise and The Morning Show.

On 1 February 2021, Shirvington started hosting the competition series Holey Moley, and on 7 March 2021 he started hosting the competition series Ultimate Tag.

In January 2022, Seven Network announced that Shirvington will join as a host on Sydney Weekender, replacing the long running host Mike Whitney.[7]

In July 2022, Shirvington was part of the commentary team for the network's coverage of the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.[8]

In June 2023, the Seven Network announced that Shirvington will permanently replace David Koch as the co-host of Sunrise, having filled in for him regularly on Fridays in recent months.[9] He commenced on Monday 12 June.

Sky News Australia and Foxtel

In June 2010, Shirvington joined Sky News Australia as a sports presenter. In 2013, Matt was announced as the new host of the Fox Sports NRL coverage and joined The Back Page as a co-host. In 2014, he co-hosted the ASTRA Awards with Shaynna Blaze. Shirvington has previously been the host of Friday Night Football on Fox League.

Other

In 2009, Matt had a cameo and one line in the third episode of :30 Seconds.

Shirvington appeared in a guest role on the Australian version of The Biggest Loser in 2010.

In 2024, he made a cameo in Home And Away

St George Illawarra Dragons

In the 2012 NRL pre-season, Shirvington was appointed a sprint training coach for the St George Illawarra Dragons despite being a fan of the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles.

Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles

In the 2016 NRL pre-season, Shirvington signed up as a Sea Eagles member and recorded a video message encouraging other Manly supporters to either renew their membership or to sign up. Shirvington also regularly promotes the Sea Eagles via social media.[10]

Personal life

Raised in Davidson, a suburb of Sydney, Shirvington has also lived in London.[3][11] He attended St Martin de Porres Catholic Primary School in Davidson. He has also been a National Ambassador for CanTeen, an Australian support organisation for young children living with cancer.[12]

Shirvington is married to author Jessica Shirvington.[13] They have two daughters, and a son.[11] They live in Mosman, New South Wales.[14]

References

  1. ^ Salvado, John (17 February 2018). "Trae Williams: Quadzilla sprinter nails stunning 10.10sec 100m to win national title". news.com.au. AAP. Retrieved 18 February 2018.
  2. ^ "Matt Shirvington joins as new Sunrise co-host | TV Tonight". tvtonight.com.au. 5 June 2023. Retrieved 5 June 2023.
  3. ^ a b "Athlete Profiles – Matt Shirvington". Athletics Australia. Archived from the original on 25 July 2008. Retrieved 6 January 2009.
  4. ^ "Aussies slip up as Powell powers Jamaica to gold". ABC News. Australia. 25 March 2006. Archived from the original on 18 April 2007. Retrieved 6 January 2007.
  5. ^ Magnay, Jacquelin (6 May 2006). "9.93: Johnson dashes into history". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 6 January 2007.
  6. ^ "Channel Seven welcomes Olympian Matt Shirvington to the team". 7NEWS.com.au. 3 July 2020. Retrieved 3 July 2020.
  7. ^ Welch, K. (2022, January 28). Mike Whitney departs Sydney Weekender after 27 years. Mumbrella. Retrieved January 29, 2022, from https://mumbrella.com.au/mike-whitney-departs-sydney-weekender-after-27-years-721985
  8. ^ Knox, David (8 June 2022). "Seven confirms Commonwealth Games 2022 commentary team". TV Tonight. Retrieved 9 June 2022.
  9. ^ "Matt Shirvington announced as Kochie replacement on Sunrise". Seven News. 5 June 2023. Retrieved 5 June 2023.
  10. ^ "Shirvo pledges his support to Manly". Sea Eagles News. National Rugby League. 9 November 2015. Retrieved 18 February 2018.
  11. ^ a b "Matt Shirvington: Biography". Guest keynote and event speaker. ICMI. Retrieved 19 February 2018.
  12. ^ "National Ambassadors – Matt Shirvington". CanTeen. Archived from the original on 1 September 2007. Retrieved 6 January 2007.
  13. ^ Idato, Michael (19 September 2012). "Twilight take two: Spielberg embraces Australian author". The Sydney Morning Herald.
  14. ^ Macken, Lucy (24 June 2017). "Olympian Matt Shirvington makes a speedy $7.5 million purchase of a Mosman house". The Sydney Morning Herald: Domain. Retrieved 19 February 2018.