“The women’s 400 metres is really competitive at the moment, but that is healthy and sweet because we push ourselves all the time. You can not compete and be relaxed. You need to step up your game.” Following her bold stance at the heats of the 2025 World Athletics Championships, Salwa Eid Naser emphasized the need to go harder when times get tough. And now, after her 48.19s run, she’s preparing for yet another event to mark the end of her 2025 season. 

The Bahrain Athletics Association recently shared several visuals of multiple athletes preparing for the 6th Islamic Solidarity Games, scheduled to take place from November 7 to 21 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. And one of them was Salwa Eid Naser. According to reports, she’ll also run in the women’s 200m, 400m, and mixed relay. Well, this isn’t her first stint at the Middle-Eastern event.

In 2017, in Baku, Naser dominated the 400m race and won the gold with a clock-in time of 51.33 seconds. She also helped the Bahrain Team rank first in the 4x100m relay and the 4x400m relay. Now, with Riyadh hosting, there’s a quiet buzz around Naser. Can we expect her to win races and chase a record? 

Needless to say, Salwa Eid Naser will go all out like she’s always done, putting behind her disappointment at the Tokyo World Championships. As she sharpens her focus for Riyadh, the contrast between her renewed drive and the rising standards of the women’s 400m becomes impossible to ignore. But her every step emphasizes just one thing… 

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone sparked an intense desire in Salwa Eid Naser after the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo!

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone had left the entire world stunned with her performance. She secured gold with her 47.78s run and broke the American 400m record. Her time was so fast that it took her to second on the all-time list, leaping over the Czech Jarmila Kratochvilova, only second to Marita Koch’s world record of 47.60 seconds from 1985.

Additionally, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone defeated two of the strongest 400m runners in the women’s category. Marileidy Paulino and Salwa Eid Naser. With three Diamond League gold medals, four World Championships medals, and a silver in the 2024 Paris Olympics, Naser had already put herself up as one of McLaughlin-Levrone’s strongest rivals. However, the intensity has increased a notch. 

Remember what Naser said after finishing in third place in Tokyo? “Look at the results of our final. They say that I have to work harder. I think that very soon the women’s 400m world record will be broken. I never thought of it before, but after tonight’s race, I can see that the world record is around the corner. I need to catch up with Sydney and keep doing what I’m doing,” Naser said.

Naser now returns, carrying both motivation and unfinished business. Her Tokyo performance revealed the gap she must close. As she lines up in Riyadh, she’s chasing the level McLaughlin-Levrone set, and that pursuit is set to define the remainder of her season.