Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is undoubtedly one of the greatest hurlers of all time. She has broken the 400m hurdles record six times now, with the latest coming in the Paris Olympics. In the 400m hurdle finals at Paris, McLaughlin-Levrone surged through the track in the record time of 50.37s, claiming her second Olympic gold in the event after the Tokyo Olympics. However, her record-breaking run continued the 4x400m relay event as well. With the fastest split in the relay, she steered her team to the golden victory, bringing her Paris Olympic gold medals tally to two.

Since the culmination of the summer events, track and field fans have been eagerly hoping to witness the spectacle of the New Jersey native again. However, after her smashing performance in Paris, McLaughlin-Levrone has taken a break. She even took a trip to Greece with her husband, Andre Levrone, staying at the Dolli at the Acropolis in Athens. Now, after three diamond league meets that went through without McLaughlin-Levrone appearing in any race, fans finally have good news.

The Olympic champion is finally returning to the tracks ahead of the Brussels Diamond League finals. She teases her return in her Instagram story, where she posts a picture of her on the purple tracks. However, there’s a catch in her appearance in the diamond league. Instead of the main events featuring the 4x400m Olympic gold medalist Femke Bol, McLaughlin-Levrone will compete in two races specially organized for her.

She will appear in the Memorial Van Damme meet in 200m and 400m races. But why special races for the 400m hurdles queen?

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone’s Diamond League drama

On September 3, the 2x Olympic gold medalist announced her return after a month-long break since the Paris Olympics. She revealed that she would enter the Brussels Diamond League finals via wild card entry and participate in the 200m and 400m events. Track & Field Gazette confirmed her comeback on X with the post, “CONFIRMED: Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone 🇺🇸 will compete at the Diamond League final in Brussels!”

But her wild card entry stirred controversy as fans were quick to point out that the 400m hurdles queen is ineligible to participate in the diamond league finals. Rules dictate that the world card entry in the finals is only possible if the participants have participated in at least one of the league events. Since McLaughlin-Levrone hasn’t appeared in any race in the diamond league this season, her inclusion in the race met with an uproar alleging the organizer for showing favoritism.

Reeling from the pressure, Diamond League CEO Petr Stastny quickly confirmed that the American Champion won’t be participating in the finals event. Speaking to letsrun.com, he said, “It is about rules and criteria which must be fulfilled by all to becoming eligible to compete at the WDL Final. Ms McLaughlin-Levrone does not fulfill those criteria, either by accumulating enough points or receiving a wild card. The final leg of the Diamond League is not an invitational meeting, and any athlete proposed for a Global Wild Card must have competed at least in one of our events during this season.”

However, to honor the unprecedented achievements of the McLaughlin-Levrone, organizers decided to schedule two special races for her. They took to Instagram and announced that 400m hurdles Olympic champion Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone will compete at the Allianz Memorial Van Damme. Hence, there are two special races for the US sprinting sensation.

While her diamond league entry could have offered the fans another level of thrill, the prospect of McLaughlin-Levrone hitting the tracks in any race is enough for them to flock in hoards and witness the magic of the hurdle queen.