Paul Gray

Paul excelled on the international scene, with his finest performance taking place in the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Victoria, Canada. But he is very much a Cardiff stalwart, being a loyal and prolific points winner for Cardiff AAC in British League events.

In Canada, on the beautiful West Coast of British Columbia, he followed Colin Jackson’s marvellous gold medal in the 110m hurdles with a magnificent bronze in 13.54 secs, clipping eleven hundredths of a second off his pre-season best, after setting a personal best of 13.53 in the semi-final. This remained his best time throughout a glittering career. This was the first and only time that two Welsh athletes had taken medals in the same Commonwealth Games event.

He followed up his Victoria bronze with a fine 4^th in the 110 hurdles in next Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur in1998. However, yet another bronze was to come in Malaysia as he teamed up with Jamie Baulch, Doug Turner and Iwan Thomas to take third in the 4 x 400m relay. This was the  first medal to be won by Wales in this event since the first Commonwealth Games – then called The Empire Games -  that Wales took part in, in London’s White City in 1934.

In 1987 and 1988, Paul was one the leading under 20 high hurdlers in the world. He took yet another bronze, this time in the European under 20s in Birmingham in 1987. And he was tipped to win a medal, but placed a disappointing fifth at the World junior Championships in Canada in 1988.

Paul was a fine all-round sprinter and hurdler taking and prolific winner of Welsh titles,  taking eight titles in all, including four sprint hurdles wins, three at 400 hurdles and the 100m crown in 1987. He also took the under 20 100 title in 1986.  

Unable to decide which hurdles event was his best, he is one of the few Welsh athletes to have competed in three Commonwealth Games. But in retrospect, the 400m hurdles was his best event during a 20 year period when Welsh sprint and 400 hurdlers were the finest in Britain.

He became the first Welshman to dip under the 50secs barrier for 400 hurdles with 49.81 in 1998, setting two further Welsh records that year including 49.16, which stood until beaten by Matt Elias with his Commonwealth silver in 2002 (49.11). He also took two AAA (British) 400m hurdles titles in a career that was probably overshadowed in the sprint hurdles by his great friends and team-mates, Colin Jackson and Nigel Walker. In 2004, at the age of 35 he was still good enough to be ranked 4^th in Britain over 110m hurdles and took the silver medal in the AAA Championships.

Despite not reaching the final of the 400m hurdles at the European Championships in Hungary in 1998, he set that Welsh record of 49.16 in the heats. This performance earned him the accolade of Britain’s best 400 hurdler that year and to this day his 49.16 clocking is the fourth fastest recorded by a Welsh athlete. Only world champion Dai Greene, European champion Rhys Williams and Commonwealth silver medallist Matt Elias have gone faster. So the Cardiff born star is in good company.

Paul is one of the finest exponents of hurdling in Welsh athletics history and his election to the Welsh Athletics Hall of Fame in 2022 is richly deserved.

Written by Clive Williams.