Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone Gives Up Her Confirmed Gold Medal, Now Aims To Fight Past Demons

How many times can you break a world record? Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone did it six times in a span of about three and a half years. Had she been going to the Tokyo Olympic Championships as a 400m Hurdler, there is no doubt a gold medal might’ve been guaranteed. But no, 400m is where she wants to test herself. “I felt like this year, I wanted to step out of the box and really push myself in a different way.” And that’s where the story unfolds…

The American only ran 400m in the 2023 season, looking to go to the Budapest World Championships as a 400m runner, though the knee injury had her sitting out. McLaughlin-Levrone was undefeated in all her 400m races that season, except one. When Marileidy Paulino and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone came face to face. And that race is something Sydney would love to avenge in Tokyo.

June 9, 2023 – Paris Diamond League. The 400m World Champion lined up alongside the 400mh Olympic gold medalist. Sydney shot out of her block quickly from lane, taking the lead ahead of Paulio in lane 5, on the very first curve, and as the commentator summed it up, “a very aggressive first 100 meters.” For the first 300 meters, no one could touch Sydney, but in the 400m, a great start does not always guarantee a win. The last curve and the straight were still to go.

“Is Paulino coming back at her?” wondered the commentator as the Dominican accelerated. As for Levrone? “It looks like Levrone went too quickly. McLaughlin has been reeled in here; she’s paid for that aggression,” the commentator summed it up. 41 seconds into the race, and Paulino overtook the American and still kept accelerating; it wasn’t even competitive anymore. Marileidy Paulino (49.12)  defeated Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone (49.71) in her 400m season debut by 59 hundredths of a second. But the story continued…

Despite this, Levrone is going to the 400m, taking up the challenge to defeat the woman who has outrun her before. Moreover, Sydney’s PB in 400m is 48.74, clocked in the US trials in 2023, while Paulino’s PB is 48.17, winning gold in Paris last year. It’s going to be a tough battle for the Americans, but the Dominican is not her only worry.

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone’s troubles in the Tokyo World Championship

To start with, as a track and field coach, Rob summed up in his video, “Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone has really not run a competitive race this year in the open 400.” This means there was almost no competitiveness on the track. Every time she has stepped foot in the 400m race this season, the Olympian has not lost one, and in many of them she has won by more than a second. At the Kingston Slam on April 6, 2025, she claimed first place in 50.32 seconds. Win margin? About 1.77 seconds over Dalilah Muhammad (54.59). But this would not be the case in world championships.

Well, at the worlds, we might see her break Sanya Richards-Ross’s American record of 48.70. But to win the gold, even the silver would require something more than that. The flat 400m has specialists who have refined the distance for years. For instance, Salwa Eid Naser has shown her form just before the Tokyo World Championships.

In the Diamond League final, she clocked a time of 48.70 for the win. Not only is this the same as the American record, but also a time Sydney has not yet recorded on the clock in the 400m. Not to forget the 48.67 Naser clocked in Kingston GST. But if Sydney McLuaghlin Lverone has taken the challenge, then she might have thought all these through. Maybe she is saving something special for the Worlds. So, till that happens, would you join us in predicting the 400m podium for the World Champions in the comments?