"The freedom is the relaxation for me"- Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone gets real about taking time off while aiming to push her limits in different events 

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone expressed her thoughts about pushing her limits and improving consistently as she reflected on her performances in the 2025 season. The American athlete won the gold medal in the women's 400m at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo and became the first athlete to break the 48-second barrier in the event after 40 years.

While she missed the long-standing world record that was set in 1985 by a small margin, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone expressed her elation about her performance and spoke to Telegraph UK about her future plans. The Olympic gold medalist shared that she aims to break the 400m world record in the future and revealed that she hasn't thought about her next steps as of now.

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone shared that as an athlete, one can never be too content about their performances, as there is always room for improvement, and track and field as a sport is limitless. She expressed that after the conclusion of the season, she often takes some time off before returning to training and planning. The American athlete shared a glimpse of her off-season vacation with her husband on her official social media handle and expressed that such moments bring about relaxation in her life.

“I could say the same thing about the 400 hurdles – I’m not fully content there either. I definitely want to take a moment just to enjoy, breathe, and take some time off. We take around four to six weeks of just downtime and then assess, ‘When do we really want to start slowly progressing back?’ Freedom is the relaxation for me," she said.

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Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone opens up about her goals

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone on Day 9 at the World Athletics Championships Tokyo 2025 - Source: Getty

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone spoke about her goals in an interview with Vanity Fair. Even after winning four Olympic gold medals as well as breaking six world records, the American athlete shared that she still had a lot more to accomplish in her career.

She wanted to push her limits and step out of her comfort zone as she aimed to break the 50-second barrier in the 400m hurdles.

"There's still a lot to do. I would like to get to 49 seconds in the 400 obstacles and aim for the world record in the 400 meters. The time will come to make decisions, but there is certainly a lot to work on," she said.

McLaughlin-Levrone expressed that she would be working on certain defining aspects of her performance in the off-season, which can ultimately help her achieve her goals.