He was 14 and fully committed to gymnastics when he went to watch some local track cycling with his dad one night in Perth, and a representative from the Midland Cycling Club handed him a flier to 'come and try'.

"It was a Wednesday night which was the only night I had off gymnastics, so it was purely by luck that I got into cycling," Matt says.

"Dad liked cycling so we went along for a look and if I never went that day I may never have been a track cyclist. It's nuts."

Within 12 months he'd made the switch to cycling full-time and 10 years on is a World and Commonwealth champion and preparing for his second Olympics in Paris as one part of Australia's team sprint.

Despite changing sports, Matt remained devoted to the gym where in a heavy training phase he now does four sessions a week, each lasting up to three hours.

"I've explained it to people before - we are basically weightlifters who ride bikes," he says.

"I really enjoy the gym. It's a bit of a mental battle sometimes because it's generally the place where I'll get injured, so it's a love-hate relationship."

For someone who hits top speed every time he steps onto a velodrome, it's no surprise Matt lives life in the fast lane away from the sport as well.

Whether it's rebuilding the engine of a 1972 Yamaha XS 650 motorbike, transforming a Ford Transit into a motorhome on wheels, mastering latte art with his coffee machine, or restoring a 22-seater school bus with a mechanical lift on the back for his motorbike, he likes to stay busy.

"My mind is always switched on. I can't switch off, so I'm better switching over so I'm not always thinking about cycling," he says.

"I kind of have a general knowledge of a lot of things and learn stuff from online or watching YouTube videos.

"The van was really interesting because it was 60 projects in one, like building a miniature house. There was carpentry, electrics, upholstery, all sorts of things and I had to learn so many different skills to tie it all together."

Alongside Matthew Glaetzer and Leigh Hoffman, Matt and the men's team sprint will be one of Australia's main medal hopes on the velodrome in Paris which was the scene of their world championship triumph in 2022.

Incredibly, Australia's men's team sprint has narrowly missed the podium by finishing fourth at every Olympics since Athens in 2004. It's a stat  Matt and his teammates are well aware of, but as race day nears, Matt says the key to his mental preparation is staying level-headed.

"I'm treating it like any other competition and for me that works quite well because having this sustained level of pressure or expectation on a given race where it doesn't matter if it's a national championship or Olympic Games, it's always the same for me," he says.

"I race every competition to the best of my ability and that means I don't have ups and downs. If my mindset is to win at all costs, it's a very easy mindset to maintain."

Track Cycling will be held from 5-11 August at the Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines Velodrome.

Reece Homfray