Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone once revealed a deeply personal moment from the 2016 Rio Olympics the semifinals of her first Olympic appearance. She started the race with typical pre-race nerves, but partway through, something unexpected happened: her usual competitive fire faded. She described feeling alone with her thoughts mid-race, realizing she lacked the drive to win a sharp contrast to her usual mindset.
In her 2024 memoir, Far Beyond Gold: Running from Fear to Faith, McLaughlin-Levrone detailed this mental battle, admitting that for the first time in her career, her instinct to compete disappeared. Although she was performing well and close to qualifying, the fatigue of a long season had taken its toll. She felt mentally and emotionally spent and had already exceeded her own expectations, leading her to stop pushing forward. The then-16-year-old ended her Olympic run in the semifinals, placing fifth, but went on to become a four-time Olympic gold medalist in the 400m hurdles and 4x400m relay events.
Switching to Short Hurdles at GST Philadelphia:
At the third meet of the 2025 Grand Slam Track series in Philadelphia, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone made an unexpected switch from her usual 400m hurdles to the 100m hurdles. After competing in the long hurdles at the Kingston and Miami events, she decided to challenge herself with a new race.
In a post-race interview, she explained that she enjoys mixing things up and wanted to revisit the short hurdles for the thrill and variation. She emphasized how the event helps her sharpen her speed and technique, noting the tighter spacing of the hurdles compared to the 400m. McLaughlin-Levrone finished second behind Ackera Nugent but confirmed she wouldn’t race the short hurdles again at the upcoming Los Angeles meet. Instead, she’s weighing whether to return to the long hurdles or test herself in the long sprints for the GST finale.
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