Sydney McLaughlin
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is a prominent American track and field athlete, renowned for her achievements in the 400-meter hurdles. Born on August 7, 1999, in New Brunswick, New Jersey, she comes from an athletic family, with both parents and siblings actively involved in sports. McLaughlin-Levrone made headlines early in her career, becoming the youngest member of the U.S. national track team for the 2016 Olympic Games at just sixteen. She opted to attend the University of Kentucky, where she continued to break records before turning professional after one year.
Throughout her career, McLaughlin-Levrone has set multiple world records and earned numerous accolades, including gold medals at the Olympic Games and World Athletics Championships. Notably, she became the first woman to run the 400-meter hurdles in under 51 seconds, achieving this milestone in 2021 and again in subsequent competitions. In addition to her athletic endeavors, she is involved in charity work and is married to former NFL player Andre Levrone. As she prepares for the 2024 Paris Olympics, McLaughlin-Levrone continues to be a significant figure in the world of athletics.
Sydney McLaughlin
- Born: August 7, 1999
- Place of Birth: New Brunswick, New Jersey
Track and field star Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone earned a reputation as one of the greatest American runners of all time. Best known for her dominance in the 400-meter hurdles event, she set several world records and won multiple gold medals at the Olympic Games and the World Athletics Championships.
Early Life
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone was born Sydney McLaughlin on August 7, 1999, in New Brunswick, New Jersey, to Willie and Mary McLaughlin. She grew up with two brothers, Ryan and Taylor, and a sister, Morgan. Everyone in her family was athletic. Her father had been a track star in high school and college and made it to the semifinals in the 400-meter sprint at the 1984 Olympic trials. Her mother was also a talented runner in high school and managed her college's men's track team. All three of McLaughlin-Levrone's siblings also went on to run track. Her brother Taylor notably earned a silver medal in the 400-meter hurdles at the 2016 World U20 Championships.
McLaughlin-Levrone herself started running at a young age and quickly showed great promise. She won a New Jersey youth track meet when she was just six years old. She went on to attend Union Catholic Regional High School in Scotch Plains, New Jersey, where she emerged as a record-setting youth athlete. In high school, she ran the 400-meter race for the first time in 2014 and promptly set a school record. Soon after, she broke the national record for a high school freshman. She never lost a race in high school. McLaughlin-Levrone was named the Gatorade National Female Athlete of the Year in both 2016 and 2017, making her the first person to win that honor twice. She graduated from high school in 2017.
Competitive Career
While still in high school, McLaughlin-Levrone began competing in national and international track and field competitions. She experimented with numerous events, including 100-meter hurdles, 200 meters, 60-meter hurdles indoors, and long jump, but came to specialize in the 400-meter hurdles. In 2014 she ran in the USA Track and Field (USATF) Junior (U20) Championships and won the silver medal in the 400-meter hurdles. She won the gold in the same event in 2016. She also won a gold medal at the 2015 World Youth Championships.
In 2016, McLaughlin-Levrone came in third in the 400-meter hurdles at the US Olympic Trials with a world junior record time of 54.15 seconds. This qualified her for the US national track and field team ahead of the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. At just sixteen years old, she was the youngest person to make the national team since 1980. At the Olympics, however, she did not make it out of the semifinals and finished sixteenth overall.
Although she could have turned professional immediately after high school, McLaughlin-Levrone instead opted to attend the University of Kentucky. She continued to excel with the university's track and field team as a freshman. In early 2018 she set a world junior record of 53.6 seconds in the 400-meter hurdles, only to improve on that just weeks later with a 52.75 mark at the Southeastern Conference (SEC) Championships that May. She also won two other SEC championship titles. McLaughlin-Levrone then took the gold medal in the 400-meter hurdles at the 2018 NCAA Outdoor Championships.
After just one year at Kentucky, McLaughlin-Levrone cut her collegiate career short and turned professional. She quickly signed a lucrative endorsement deal with the athletic apparel company New Balance. Many media commentators also noted that she made the unusual move of signing with the talent agency William Morris Endeavor, known for its work in the entertainment industry, rather than with a typical sports agent.
In 2019, McLaughlin-Levrone won the silver medal in the 400-meter hurdles at the World Athletics Championships. She also won a gold medal as part of the US team in the 4x400-meter relay. She won another silver medal in the 400-meter hurdles at the USATF Outdoor Championships. That same year, she also earned the 400-meter hurdles title in the Diamond League, a track and field series organized by the World Athletics governing body.
McLaughlin-Levrone qualified for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, which were delayed to 2021. At the Olympic trials, she became the first woman to break the 52-second mark in the 400-meter hurdles. At the Olympics, she beat her own world record with a time of 51.46 to win the gold medal. She also won another Olympic gold as part of the US women's 4x400-meter relay team.
In 2022, McLaughlin-Levrone broke her own world record in the 400-meter hurdles, running a 51.41 to win a gold medal at the USATF Outdoor Championships that June. That July, she broke the record yet again at the World Championships, taking the title with a time of 50.68 seconds—and becoming the first woman to break the 51-second mark in the event. She also earned another 2022 World Championships gold medal in the 4x400 relay. In 2023, McLaughlin-Levrone also began running the 400-meter sprint (without hurdles) professionally. She set a USATF Championships record of 48.78 seconds in that event that July. However, she missed the 2023 World Championships while recovering from a knee injury.
McLaughlin-Levrone returned to the Olympics for the 2024 Games in Paris, France. There she broke her own world record once again in the 400-meter hurdles, winning the gold medal with a time of 50.37 seconds. She added another Olympic gold medal in the 4x400 relay.
Personal Life
In addition to her track career, McLaughlin-Levrone became known for her charity and volunteer efforts, working with organizations such as the Central New Jersey Chapter of Hope Worldwide. She married former NFL player Andre Levrone in May 2022 in Madison, Virginia, after becoming engaged in August 2021.
Bibliography
Boylan-Pett, Liam. “The Track Phenom Who Chose College Over Riches.” Bleacher Report, 24 Oct. 2017, bleacherreport.com/articles/2740308-sydney-mclaughlin-college-olympian-track-and-field-interview. Accessed 10 May 2023.
Fisher, Chris. “Kentucky Freshman Phenom Sydney McLaughlin to Turn Pro.” 247 Sports, 10 June 2018, 247sports.com/college/kentucky/article/kentucky-wildcats-track-freshman-phenom-sydney-mclaughlin-to-tur-118934442/. Accessed 10 May 2023.
Fleming, Joe. “#TBT: What Will Record-Breaking Kentucky Freshman Track Star Sydney Mclaughlin Do Next?” USA Today Sports, 10 May 2018, usatodayhss.com/2018/tbt-what-will-record-breaking-kentucky-freshman-track-star-sydney-mclaughlin-do-next/. Accessed 10 May 2023.
Greif, Andrew. "After Shattering Hurdle Record, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone Considers New Challenge: More Events." Los Angeles Times, 22 Aug. 2022, www.latimes.com/sports/olympics/story/2022-08-22/sydney-mclaughlin-levrone-new-challenges-track-field. Accessed 3 Sept. 2024.
"McLauglin-Levrone Wins Hurdles Gold in World Record." BBC Sport, 8 Aug. 2023, www.bbc.com/sport/olympics/articles/ceq5x5zzwyxo. Accessed 19 Aug. 2024.
Strout, Erin. “Sydney McLaughlin on Taking Her Career Into Her Own Hands.” Women’s Running, 6 Jan. 2020, www.womensrunning.com/culture/people/sydney-mclaughlin-owning-her-career/. Accessed 10 May 2023.
"Sydney McLaughline-Levrone." Team USA, www.teamusa.com/profiles/sydney-mclaughlin-levrone. Accessed 3 Sept. 2024.
"Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone." Olympics, olympics.com/en/athletes/sydney-mclaughlin. Accessed 3 Sept. 2024.
"Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone." USA Track & Field, www.usatf.org/athlete-bios/sydney-mclaughlin-levrone. Accessed 3 Sept. 2024.