Josh Hoey
American track and field athlete (born 1999)
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Josh Hoey (born November 1, 1999) is an American middle-distance runner who is the world record holder in the short track 800 meters, with a time of 1:42.50 set in 2026. He won a gold medal in the event at the 2025 World Indoor Championships.[1] Hoey also holds the world best in the short track 600 meters and the American record in the short track 1000 meters, with times of 1:12.84 and 2:14.48 respectively.[1][2]
United StatesHoey at the 2025 World Indoor Championships | |||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nationality | United States | ||||||||||||||
| Born | November 1, 1999 | ||||||||||||||
| Education | Bishop Shanahan High School | ||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||
| Sport | Track and field | ||||||||||||||
Event(s) | 600 meters, 800 meters, 1000 meters, mile | ||||||||||||||
| Club | Adidas | ||||||||||||||
| Coached by | Terrence Mahon (2013-2019) Lee Labadie (2019-2020) Matt Centrowitz (2021-2022) Tom Nohilly (2022-2023 Rana Reider (2023-2024) Justin Rinaldi (2024-2025) self-coached (2025-) | ||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | |||||||||||||||
| National finals |
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| Personal bests | All information from athlete's World Athletics profile. | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Career
2018–2024
Hoey attended Bishop Shanahan High School in Downingtown, Pennsylvania. As a senior, he set the U.S. high school national record in the indoor 800 meters, with a time of 1:47.67 (since broken by Cooper Lutkenhaus in 2025).[3][4] He competed at the 2018 IAAF World U20 Championships in Tampere, Finland, running 1:48.07 in the semifinals of the 800 meters.[5]
In 2018, originally intending to compete for the University of Oregon, Hoey turned pro after high school, signing with Adidas.[5] He is one of three U.S. men's distance runners to turn pro immediately after high school, alongside Drew Hunter in 2016 and Hobbs Kessler in 2021. From 2018 to 2023, Hoey struggled to improve and cycled through five coaches, including Terrence Mahon (who had coached Hoey remotely since seventh grade), Matthew Centrowitz Sr., and Rana Reider, before finding success with Justin Rinaldi.[6]
At the 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials, Hoey finished fourth in the 800 meter final, with a personal best time of 1:44.12. A few weeks later at the Moore-Guldensporen Meeting in Belgium, Hoey improved his 800 meter personal best to 1:43.80. In September 2024, he competed in the Fifth Avenue Mile, finishing second to Josh Kerr in 3:48.9. In December 2024 at Boston University, Hoey ran a personal best of 3:52.61 in the indoor mile.[7][8]
2025: World 800 meter indoor champion
On January 18, at the Quaker Invitational at the University of Pennsylvania, Hoey set a new American record in the short track 1000 meters, with a time of 2:14.48. This broke Shane Streich's previous record of 2:16.16 by almost two seconds. Hoey's time is the second fastest in indoor history, behind Ayanleh Souleiman's world record of 2:14.20.[7][9]
On February 2, Hoey won the 1500 meters at the New Balance Grand Prix, in a new personal best of 3:33.66, beating Olympians Grant Fisher and Olli Hoare.[10] On February 8, Hoey won the 800 meters over Bryce Hoppel at the Millrose Games, winning in a new American record of 1:43.90, whilst Hoppel finished second in 1:44.19.[4]
On February 23, Hoey won a national title in the 800 meters at the 2025 USATF Indoor Track and Field Championships in New York City. He improved his area record and national record to 1:43.24, splitting 50.36 for the first 400 meters and 52.89 for the second 400 meters. This time placed Hoey as the second fastest athlete of all time at the time in the indoor 800 meters, with only Wilson Kipketer, who held the world record of 1:42.67, having run faster.[11]
On March 23, Hoey won a world title in the 800 meters at the 2025 World Athletics Indoor Championships in Nanjing, China. Hoey was nearly caught at the finish line by Elliot Crestan of Belgium, but managed to remain 0.04 seconds ahead of Crestan to win in 1:44.77.[12]
On June 15, at the Stockholm Diamond League, Hoey set a new outdoor personal best in the 800 meters, with a time of 1:42.43. This time placed Hoey as the third fastest American over 800 meters, behind Donavan Brazier (1:42.34) and Bryce Hoppel (1:41.67).[13] On July 11, he improved his personal best to 1:42.01 at Herculis.[14]
At the 2025 United States Outdoor Track and Field Championships, Hoey finished fourth to Bryce Hoppel, Cooper Lutkenhaus, and Donavan Brazier in the 800 meters, after opening in a 49.29 second first lap.[15][16] On August 20, in rainy conditions, Hoey won the 800 meters at the Lausanne Diamond League, in a time of 1:42.82. It was the first 800 meter win by an American man on the Diamond League circuit since Isaiah Harris' win at the London Diamond League in 2021.[17]
In October, it was announced that Hoey had parted ways with his coach Justin Rinaldi.[18]
On December 6, at the 2025 BU Opener meeting, Hoey broke Donavan Brazier's short track 600 meter world best of 1:13.77, clocking 1:12.84. This time falls 0.03 seconds short of the outdoor 600 meter world best of 1:12.81, set by Johnny Gray.[19]
2026: Short track 800 meter world record
On January 24, at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix, Hoey broke Wilson Kipketer's nearly 29 year old world record of 1:42.67 in the short track 800 meters, clocking 1:42.50.[20]
Personal life
Hoey comes from a running family. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Hoey family built a track on their family farm outside Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.[21] Hoey often trains with his brothers Jonah and Jaxson. His father Fran is a financial advisor and former athlete that has invested in his sons' track careers.[6]
Achievements and titles
International competitions
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Time | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | World Indoor Championships | Nanjing Youth Olympic Sports Park, Nanjing, China | 1st | 800 m | 1:44.77 | [12] |
Circuit performances
Grand Slam Track
| Grand Slam Track results[22] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Slam | Race group | Event | Pl. | Time | Prize money |
| 2025 Philadelphia Slam | Short distance | 800 m | 2nd | 1:44.41 | US$30,000 |
| 1500 m | 5th | 3:35.45 | |||
Diamond League wins
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Time | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Athletissima | Stade Olympique de la Pontaise, Lausanne, Switzerland | 1st | 800 m | 1:42.82 | [17] |
National championships
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Time | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Olympic Trials | Hayward Field, Eugene | 4th | 800 m | 1:44.12 | [7] |
| 2025 | Indoor Track & Field Championships | Ocean Breeze, New York City | 1st | 800 m | 1:43.24 NR | [11] |
| Outdoor Track & Field Championships | Hayward Field, Eugene | 4th | 800 m | 1:43.06 | [16] |