Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone made history by beating the 400-metre hurdles world record for the fifth time at the US Olympic trials, finishing with a performance record of 50.65 seconds.
The 24-year-old athlete reduced 0.03 seconds off her previous mark, which she established two years ago at Eugene’s Hayward Field, and won a spot on the US Olympic team for the upcoming Paris Olympics.
About her achievement, McLaughlin-Levrone said: “Honestly, I wasn’t expecting that time… Knowing that there is more there and there is more to fix just is a confidence booster heading into Paris.”
Despite only running the 400m hurdles once this year before the Olympic trials, McLaughlin-Levrone effortlessly got through her heats and advanced to the final round.
On defending her Olympic title
McLaughlin-Levrone will now compete at the Paris Olympics as one of the stars of the US team and a strong favourite to defend her championship title from three years ago, with Dutch athlete Femke Bol expected to give the most difficult competition.
“I would love to dip under 50 at some point… I don’t know if that’s this year or if that’s next year. Just always chipping away, seeing what’s possible and continuing to improve the race… There are so many different ways to run it and I feel like every time I’m on the track, I’m figuring out what’s the best way,” she declared.
McLaughlin-Levrone currently has seven of the top ten fastest 400m hurdles times in history.
In related news, Anna Cockrell and Jasmine Jones finished second and third at the US trials, with personal best times of 52.64 and 52.77, respectively. Both qualified for the Paris Games.
Source: CNN