Matt says “carrying the emotions” is the toughest part of the job – and he points to one story about the tragic death of a teen.

With Matt as co-host, Sunrise is still winning the ratings battle.
Channel Seven

Matt Shirvington always had a competitive streak. And it might be getting worse.

In October, the Olympic sprinter-turned-Sunrise host took on a V8 supercar at Sydney Motorsport Park at Eastern Creek for the second time this year – and won. Just to be clear, Matt was running!
Matt takes on a V8 Supercar. (Credit: Instagram)
While the race might have been a bit of fun – and obviously made great television for Sunrise – there is no denying Matt’s drive to win. At everything.

“You don’t grow out of it, which is weird,” Matt, 47, tells TV WEEK. “When I retired from athletics, I thought, that’ll be fine. But in everything I do now, I’m still fairly competitive.”

In television that’s not a bad thing at all. When Matt – affectionately nicknamed Shirvo – took over as Sunrise co-host from David ‘Kochie’ Koch in June 2023, many in the industry questioned whether the change would see the show relinquish its stranglehold on the ratings to Nine Network rival Today. Two-and-a-half years later, with Matt and co-host Natalie Barr at the helm, Sunrise remains the number one breakfast television show.
Matt and co-host Natalie Barr, with Kylie Gillies and Larry Emdur at the Logies. (Credit: Getty)
“You come in with a certain level of uncertainty as to whether or not the audience will resonate with you personally,” Matt admits. “But it’s worked well. Nat and I have had a chance to lean into our strengths. The balance is right. I think that’s why we win.”

Which isn’t to say there aren’t difficulties along the way.  “For me, not coming from a journalistic background, the instant editorial can be challenging, but I’m definitely learning to react more quickly,” he says.

Toughest of all, is “carrying the emotion of a story”. There is a skill, Matt feels, in telling harrowing stories without letting your “natural emotions” take over. At least while on air.

“There are definitely times in the ad breaks where you shed a tear,” Matt concedes. “You put yourself in someone else’s position and you really do feel it.”

He points to the tragic death of 17-year-old cricketer Ben Austin, who was struck by a ball in the neck and died while practising his batting at Ferntree Gully in Melbourne’s east.

“You just put yourself in the family’s position,” says Matt. “It can be hard.”
Matt with movie star Tom Cruise. (Credit: Instagram)
But a show like Sunrise can’t dwell and everyone has their moment. One minute Matt is chatting to Foreign Minister Penny Wong about national security, the next he’s with ‘Australia’s kindest person’, Tammy Robinson, who supplied 9500 Year 12 formal outfits to people in need.

“How amazing is it that Tammy, in Logan, just outside Brisbane, actually has the opportunity to change her community, which is equally as important to me. I think that’s so cool.”

Regardless of what you think of Matt, no-one could ever doubt his dedication to his job. He hit the road covering Cyclone Alfred, which struck southern Queensland and northern New South Wales earlier this year. Away from his family and stuck in a hotel with no power, Matt remained committed to the task. It’s a work ethic that’s partly innate and partly honed by grinding years of training as an elite athlete.

Think the media scrutiny is tough as a host of Sunrise? Try being a teenager and having your every muscle twitch analysed the moment you step on to a track.

“I always felt when I was competing as an athlete, if I wore the green and gold, that I needed to do it in a way that would make people proud,” Matt recalls.

“That’s everyone – from my family to the whole country. I feel the same way with this job. I go into work and bust my butt to do the best job I possibly can.

“I want to please everyone, but, at the end of the day, you can’t do that. I just go in wanting to represent the people closest to me, the people that I work with and, of course, the people that watch.

“I’m so glad that the work I do draws a level of attention. I’ll never misunderstand that. But I’m not out there seeking the limelight.”
Matt competing at the Sydney 2000 Olympics. (Credit: Getty)
We’ve just marked 25 years since Matt, then 22, lined up at the Sydney Olympics in the glamour 100 metres event, where he would eventually place fifth in the semi-final.

Reflecting on the moment, Matt admits he would never have dreamed he’d now be hosting a breakfast show. His mindset was, understandably, vastly different back then.

“I would have thought, as you do when you’re young, that you can do something forever. I would have thought that 25 years on I’d still be running.”

And what advice would he give his younger self?

“Try it all. That’s a really good one,” Matt says. “But, I think, at the end of the day you need to learn from others because they’ve been there before you. They have a blueprint. Take advantage of their experience.”

Wise words, indeed.
Matt and his wife Jessica. (Credit: Instagram)
Matt’s wife, Jessica, has been by his side every step of the journey. Teenage sweethearts, the pair met at 17 and share three children – daughters Sienna, 19, and Winter, 17, and son Lincoln, 8.

“We got married young, in our early 20s, and it will be 24 years next year, which is pretty cool,” he says.

And, while his children might not always think that what he’s doing on TV is the most glamorous work – “I think at times they think some of the stuff I do is cringy” – they do get to see their dad speaking to everyone from politicians to movie stars to everyday Australians.

If they can see him speak to them all with the respect they all deserve, that’s a great life lesson for his children.

“No matter who you are, and who they are, you should treat all people the same way,” he says.