After breaking her own world record 6 times since 2021 and securing 2 Olympic gold medals in the 400m hurdles, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone decided to switch it up. At the Tokyo World Athletics Championships, the 26-year-old gave up the hurdles entirely in favor of a new challenge: the 400m flat. She’s overcome the challenges posed by the likes of Femke Bol and Dalilah Muhammad, but can she do it against Marileidy Paulino and Salwa Eid Naser? Well, the answer, as it turns out, was yes. Emphatically.

Because Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone didn’t just win the women’s 400m, she dominated it with ease. And in doing so, set the championship record at 47.78. Marileidy Paulino followed in at 47.98s, a national record, and Salwa Eid Naser was third with 48.19s. McLaughlin-Levrone was the relative newcomer of the three, but her heats and semis performances showed that she had the gold medal well within reach as she blazed to 48.29s in her semi-final, beating her PB by an entire half second.

She promised to run even faster in the final—which she did—setting a new PB, a new American women’s record (she already went past Sanya Richards-Ross’ 48.70s in the heats by recording 48.29s), and the fastest time run in 40 years. But despite all the glory, there’s one record that the American couldn’t break. Though it’s now in her sights. And that record is Marta Koch’s controversial 47.60s, set in 1985.

Controversial because Koch, representing East Germany at the time, clocked that time during an era where her country was mired deep in state-sponsored systematic doping. In the years since, criticisms have flown in from all corners, suggesting that Koch’s record was aided by the use of PEDs.

Because Koch’s record has long since looked unassailable. As of 2019, no sprinter had made it to even a second within Koch’s time. But suddenly Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone has redefined the limits of what is considered impossible. If she continues her upward trajectory, then it wouldn’t be a surprise to see that 40-year-old record finally fall, putting to rest the years-long controversy surrounding it.

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone has avenged herself

Watching the 2023 World Championships might have been tough for Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone because the world title she had been dreaming of was robbed from her. “After consulting with my doctors and coaches, I need to take care of a minor knee issue so that I can be fully healthy for next year’s Paris Olympics. I look forward to seeing everyone back on the track soon!” she said in a statement. A knee injury had knocked out her dreams. Next year, she broke the 400m hurdles world record twice and went on to win the Olympic gold medal.

The 400m World Championships was not a dream that the Olympian saw in 2025; it goes way back to 2023. From her outdoor season debut in the Paris Diamond League to her last race in the USA Championships, she only ran the 400m. Had the knee injury not been there, Paulino would have had some serious competition from Sydney for the world title. Interestingly, that year McLaughlin-Levrone did not lose a single race except the one in Paris. Who was the opponent? 2023 World Champion: Marileidy Paulino.

At the Paris DL in 2023, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone shot out of the blocks, ahead of Paulino in lane 5 on the opening curve. The commentator captured it best: “a very aggressive first 100 meters.” For the first three-quarters of the race, McLaughlin-Levrone stayed untouchable, but in the 400m, a fast start doesn’t always secure victory, with the final curve and home straight still ahead. “Is Paulino coming back at her?” the commentator asked as the Dominican began to accelerate.

Meanwhile, McLaughlin-Levrone appeared to have gone out too hard. “It looks like Levrone went too quickly. McLaughlin has been reeled in here; she’s paid for that aggression.” By the 41-second mark, Paulino had swept past the American and kept pulling away, leaving no contest.

McLaughlin-Levrone was second with 49.71, and Paulino won with a time of 49.12. But after the 2025 World Championships, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone has not only redeemed what she long dreamed of but also taken her revenge. The world record awaits her. Can she break it?