Hartley was raised in
Lydiate,
Lancashire (now
Merseyside) on the outskirts of
Liverpool where his family ran a
market garden. He began his athletic career at age 13 as a
high jumper. By age 18 he held the Under-19 record for 400 m hurdles (52.9 seconds). Hartley finished third behind
Alan Pascoe in the 400 metres hurdles event at the
1973 AAA Championships and then won a silver medal representing
England at the
1974 British Commonwealth Games in
Christchurch, New Zealand. The year continued to bring significant success as he won a gold medal at the
European Championships in
Rome in the 400 m relay and by virtue of being the highest placed British athlete in the 400 metres hurdles the
1974 AAA Championships was considered the
British 400 metres hurdles champion. He then won the title outright at the
1975 AAA Championships. He later represented
England in the 400 metres hurdles event, at the
1978 Commonwealth Games in
Edmonton, Canada. He was a member of the winning Europa Cup 4 × 400 m relay team, along with
Alan Pascoe,
David Jenkins and
Jim Aukett. An
achilles tendon problem ended his running career in 1982, after which he became a sprint coach and conditioner for Widnes Rugby League Club and then Wigan Rugby League Club. In 1977 Hartley married fellow athlete
Donna Hartley but the marriage later ended in divorce. Hartley now runs the family
floriculture business in Lydiate. His son
Tom Hartley plays for
Lancashire County Cricket Club and England. == References ==