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Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone expressed her thoughts about the women's 400m world record. The American athlete missed the world record by a small margin at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo with a performance of 47.78s.
In the process, she broke the American record as well as became the first person in 40 years to break the 48-second barrier in the event. The world record in the event was set by Marita Koch of East Germany on October 6, 1985.
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone spoke to L'ÉQUIPE and expressed her thoughts about the world record when asked about Marie-José Pérec's claim of being the 'true' world record holder, as well as the 1980s, when doping was reportedly prevalent in track and field.
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The American athlete shared that there was no point in wondering about the past, but the world record just raised the bar of the event, and that milestone has helped her to be more motivated to work hard and push her limits.
"Actually, I believe that you can't change the past, whatever the truth about it. So, I think it just raises the bar. And the point is to keep working until you reach it. And once you reach it, then you don't have to think about it anymore. It's just another goal, another bar that's been set, right, wrong, or whatever. That's what you're chasing," she said.
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone shared that breaking the 400m world record as well as surpassing the 50-second barrier in the 400m hurdles are some of her major goals.
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone opens up about her conversation with her coach after the world championships
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone opened up about her conversation with her coach after the World Championships in Tokyo. While she was elated to win the gold medal in a new event, McLaughlin-Levrone shared that she felt as if she could have pushed herself even further.
Moreover, the American athlete expressed how an athlete always strives to achieve something greater, and she asked her coach about points where she could have improved herself.
“I’m sure every athlete to a degree feels this interesting balance of pride and content, but also discontent, and wanting more; it’s this back and forth,” she says. “I’m already asking Bobby: ‘Where’s the two-tenths [of a second] at? What did you see that I could have done differently or better?’ As a competitor, your mind goes to, ‘Man, like why couldn’t I be two-tenths faster?’ But I’m also super grateful for the leaps and bounds we were able to make this season," she said.
McLaughlin-Levrone concluded her 2025 season after the World Championships and hopes to improve her performances with bigger goals in the upcoming season.
