Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is an American track athlete who was the first to break four world records in the same event, the 400-meter hurdles.
While the 25-year-old runner has had her share of success, it hasn’t come without its struggles. In order to perform at such a competitive level, McLaughlin-Levrone first had to overcome her crippling fear of failure.
McLaughlin-Levrone inherited the running gene from her parents. Her mother, Mary McLaughlin, ran middle distance, while her father, Willie McLaughlin, made the semifinals for the 400-meter during the 1984 Olympic trials. Her dad helped guide McLaughlin-Levrone through her running journey, often offering encouragement without the pressure of always needing to be the best.
“Mary and I saw the tremendous potential in our kids at an early age and tried to protect and nurture it in a way that would allow them to fall in love with the sport on their own,” W. McLaughlin said to Runner.
“I started running when I was six, and I think it’s kind of hard to tell [how good you are] when you’re that young. You’re just running for the fun of wanting to run. But I think it wasn’t until I got to high school coming into now freshman year, my first race was an indoor 300. And I actually won the race against some seniors.” McLaughlin-Levrone said to the Christian Broadcasting Network.
When she was 15, she qualified for the junior national team coached by Lisa Morgan.
“The first time I saw her run was her freshman year, the indoor season. She ran the 300 at the Armory in New York. She ran it in 38 seconds, and I was like, “That girl is the truth.” She basically came along and wiped most of my coaching records,” Morgan said to the New York Times.
At 16, McLaughlin-Levrone qualified for the 2016 Olympics. However, she was incredibly anxious about losing. Throughout her high school career, she won most of her races and carried a perfectionist mindset into the games. She advanced to semifinals, but failed to make it to the final round of competition. In her 2024 book, “Far Beyond Gold,” she admitted that she had done so intentionally.
“I’ll never forget it. I must have been going past the eighth fence and I was thinking, ‘I’m going to make sure I don’t make this final’. I don’t care if my season ends early, I just want it to be over,” McLaughlin-Levrone said to Marca.
She returned home disappointed in her own actions, and knew she had to do something to overcome her fears. The solution turned out to be finding her faith and trusting the process. She discovered that even when she lost a race, it was still an experience she could learn from.
“I realized that the only thing holding me back was me, and I was determined not to let that happen anymore,” McLaughlin-Levrone said to Observe.org.
Following the 2016 games, McLaughlin-Levrone took a break from running in order to play other sports, such as soccer, basketball and dance. This allowed her to better her abilities on the track, as each activity helped her strengthen her leg strength and agility.
After she graduated high school, she attended the University of Kentucky. She selected the school because of its renowned hurdling program, as well as for the chance to compete alongside other runners, such as Kendra Harrison.
During her freshman year, McLaughlin-Levrone won the 400-meter hurdles, setting a collegiate record with a time of 52.75 seconds. Success came naturally, and she soon transitioned to a professional running career after just one year at Kentucky.
She ended up competing in both the 2020 and 2024 Olympic Summer Games. Both times, she won gold medals for the 400-meter and the 4✕400-meter relay.
Also in 2024, McLaughlin-Levrone broke the record for the 400-meter for the sixth time.
In September of 2024 , McLaughlin-Levrone was inducted into the UK Athletics Hall of Fame. In her induction ceremony speech, she expressed her gratitude for the community, coaching and friendships she found while at Kentucky.
“I learned more than I ever could have imagined. It was here on this track back that I learned for the first time that 50 seconds was possible in the 400 hurdles thanks to coach Flo…. I learned what true friendship looks like and I learned how to do my laundry for the first time. I want to thank UK for propelling me into the career that I am so grateful for now and for taking care of me,” McLaughlin-Levrone said.
“There will always be people moving faster and slower than you, and if you’re not focused on your own lane, you could miss what’s right in front of you,” McLaughlin-Levrone said.
