Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone confirmed her status as one of the most dominant athletes of the modern era with victory in the Olympic 400m hurdles final, breaking her own world record in a time of 50.37 seconds.
“It’s amazing to see our sport continue to grow, for people to want to watch the 400m hurdles, it’s amazing. Just a lot of hard work put in this year,” she said after the race. “I knew it was going to be a tough race. An amazing competition all the way round.”
The American, who celebrated her 25th birthday on 7 August, ran a blisteringly fast race to win the Olympic Games Paris 2024 women’s 400m hurdles gold medal in a new world record time of 50.37 seconds.
It marked the fifth time the American had lowered her own world record, and she became the first woman to go back-to-back at the Olympics in the event since it made its debut at Los Angeles 1984.
“Grateful to God for this opportunity, grateful to be celebrating my 25th birthday like this,” she said after her victory. “It was yesterday, just a super opportunity, you can’t even imagine.”
The American blasted out of the blocks, chasing down her biggest rival, the Netherlands’ Femke Bol, in the lane outside of her before building a sizeable lead with over 100m to go.
As McLaughlin-Levrone raced down the finishing straight, with the roars of the Stade de France crowd behind her, the thousands in the stands knew they were witnessing something special.
McLaughlin-Levrone moved to 3-0 in races against Bol. She beat Bol at the Tokyo Games in 2021 (Bol finished third there too) and again a year later at the world championships in Oregon. McLaughlin-Levrone was hurt last season and didn’t race when the world championships were in Budapest. That opened the door for Bol to win her first world crown.
Coached by Bobby Kersee, McLaughlin-Levrone has been steadily building toward this moment for two years. Mostly out of the spotlight. She’s been racing in sprints at 200 and 400 meters and also in the short hurdles — 100 meters, and 60 meters indoors — to gain experience, speed and technique.
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone’s Parents, Willie and Mary McLaughlin
Willie and Mary McLaughlin have watched their daughter, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, blossom into a star athlete.
The Dunellen, N.J., native is a two-time Olympic gold medalist with a penchant for breaking records. In a 13-month span from 2021 to 2022, she broke four records — including her own — in the 400-meter hurdles.
“She’s been really blessed with talent that other people simply don’t have,” Willie said to the Associated Press in 2017 about his daughter’s success.
For her part, Sydney recognizes that her parents provided her with a strong foundation.
“I credit them so much for how they handled my young years,” Sydney told the Jesus Calling podcast in 2024. “They didn’t want to overwhelm me with rigorous training at a young age. They really wanted me to grow and develop number one, my body, and number two my love for the sport naturally.”