Dai Greene: Former 400m hurdles world and Commonwealth champion retires - 'I never truly fulfilled my potential'
By Leon Imber
Published 20/07/2024 at 10:31 GMT+1
Former 400m hurdles world and Commonwealth champion Dai Greene has announced his retirement, with an Olympic Games medal the only accolade missing to his trophy-laden career. Greene said that, despite his achievements, which includes European and Commonwealth crowns in 2010, before winning gold in the 400m hurdles in the 2011 World Championships, he feels he "never truly fulfilled my potential".
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Former 400m hurdles world champion Dai Greene has announced his retirement at the age of 38, saying he "never truly filled my potential" after winning all major titles except an Olympic medal in his career.
The former world, European and Commonwealth champion enjoyed great success on the track, competing in both the 400m hurdles and 400m.
"My career can be seen as having two halves," Greene said on Instagram. "By the age of 25 I had won everything in the sport except for the Olympics, yet I feel I never truly fulfilled my potential.
"The arrival of my daughter in December prompted my decision to stop trying to return to competition."
Greene's 400m hurdles World Championship gold in 2011 capped an outstanding few years after also picking up 4x400m relay silver in 2009, alongside European and Commonwealth titles in 2010.
Greene, however, suffered subsequent injury issues which prevented him from reaching such heights again.
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"The years between 2013 and 2016 should have been dedicated to honing my skills and maximising my talent," Greene said. "But a routine surgery gone wrong derailed those dreams.
"Subsequent corrective surgeries meant I was never able to return to my peak performance, though I occasionally caught glimpses of the athlete I once was."
In 2018, Greene spoke of his frustration after complications with a minor hernia operation he underwent in 2013 caused him to lose five years of his career.
Greene made his sole Olympic appearance in London at the 2012 Games, achieving a fourth-placed finish in both the 400m hurdles and 4x400m relay.
The former world champion has established coaching as his next career move, having already mentored other athletes.
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