Who is Charlie Dobson? All about the 24-year-old sprinter who clocked Great Britain's sixth fastest 400m at the Meeting Citta Di Savona 2024

Charlie Dobson is a sprinter who represents Great Britain in international events. He recently rose to fame after clocking a personal best time of 44.46s in the men’s 400m at the 2024 Meeting Citta Di Savona in Italy.

With this, he also shattered the meet record in the event which was previously established by Italian sprinter Davide Re, who clocked a time of 45.31s.

This performance by Dobson also placed him sixth on the list of the fastest 400m timings clocked by a sprinter from Great Britain and Northern Ireland in the event’s history. The three-time World Championships medalist Matthew Hudson-Smith owns the fastest timing over the distance with a sensational European Record of 44.26s.

Iwan Thomas (44.36s), Roger Black (44.37s), Mark Richardson (44.37s), and Martyn Rooney (44.45s), are the only athletes who have better timings than Dobson.

As the 2024 Paris Olympics is nearing, Dobson has now become one of the exciting prospects to look out for. So, let’s dive deeper into knowing about the 24-year-old who made headlines at the 2024 Meeting Citta Di Savona.

Charlie Dobson’s hometown

Dobson was born on October 20, 1999, in Colchester, Essex, England.

Charlie Dobson’s education

Dobson went to St Benedict's Catholic College and then attended Colchester Sixth Form College. He pursued aeronautical engineering from Loughborough University.

Charlie Dobson’s junior Athletics career

Dobson bagged a silver medal at the 2018 World U20 Athletics Championships in Tampere, Finland, by finishing second behind compatriot Jona Efoloko (20.48s) with a time of 20.57s. Additionally, he established the British Universities & Colleges Sport record over the 60m short sprint event.

Charlie Dobson’s prominent achievements

Rio Mitcham and Charlie Dobson of Team Great Britain celebrate after winning bronze at World Athletics Championships Budapest 2023. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)

Dobson was a key member of Great Britain and Northern Ireland’s 4x400m squad that won the bronze medal at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest.

He and his teammates Alex Haydock-Wilson, Lewis Davey, and Rio Mitcham ran a 2:58.71 to achieve third place, behind the USA (2:57.31) and France (2:58.45).

In addition, he played a crucial role in earning the gold medal for Great Britain at the 2022 European Championships in Munich. He and his teammates Hudson-Smith, Davey, and Haydock-Wilson produced a season-best performance of 2:59.35 to win the event.

He also narrowly missed out on a podium finish in the men’s 200m with a fourth-place finish, clocking 20.34s. His compatriot Zharnel Hughes clinched the gold in a season-best time of 20.07s. Notably, Dobson owns a personal best of 20.19s in the 200m which he achieved in 2022.