“I have a lucky Minions blanket” – When Star Sydney McLaughlin opened up on her good luck charm

Two-time Olympic gold medalist Sydney McLaughlin is now a well-known face in the sports fraternity. But before she went on to participate in the Tokyo Olympics, she went on a talk show to discuss her prior success and the secrets behind it.

About a year ago, a YouTube Channel called Today uploaded a video of Sydney McLaughlin before she went on to become an Olympic gold medalist. When the interviewer asked McLaughlin about her lucky charm, she replied,

"I do have a lucky Minions blankets that I take to every meet. I always charge up before a race with some gummy bears."

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Sydney McLaughlin opened up on her gummy bear attachment and what she learned from competition, training, and rivalry

McLaughlin talked about various things that influenced her to become a successful track and field athlete. When Sydney McLaughlin was initially asked about what learning she took from the Rio Olympics that might help her in the Tokyo Olympics, she said,

"So much, I'm super grateful for that opportunity. I think it taught me what it 's like to be on the biggest stage in the world to compete with the biggest athletes. So many things from that whole year that I'm taking with me into Tokyo."

Later on, the female interviewer asked McLaughlin about her Instagram post that said her faith was being tested and other things. McLaughlin replied,

"Absolutely! Coming out of COVID and the year of so much uncertainty, I really found stability in Christ and in my faith and even in crazy meets where there's so many on the line. I always have something to hold on to."

Later on, the interviewer asked Sydney McLaughlin how many gummy bears she had in her bag. She revealed,

"Okay! I - listen, I love to try to self control, but if it ends up being the whole pack, then I can't be mad at myself, you know..."

Breaking the gummy bear conversation, the interviewer asked McLaughlin what she thought about her rivalry with fellow American athlete, Dalilah Muhammad. She said,

"You know, media is always going the make it out to be bigger than what it is. I look at it as iron sharpening iron. I wouldn't be able to run these super fast times if I didn't have her pushing me the same way. I'm always there to kind of push her. So it's awesome to just have someone there and all of us, you know, representing Team USA. It's really cool to just see us go back and forth all the time."

Team USA at the Tokyo Olympics

Sydney McLaughlin was asked how she felt about getting trained by the famous Bobby Kersee, who coached Jackie Joyner-Kersee and Allyson Felix. She said,

"Absolutely! I looked up to Allyson the whole time I was growing up. To be able to train with her now and the knowledge they have and experience, I feel like every day I'm constantly picking up and learning things that I can take with me throughout my career."

Sydney McLaughlin went on to win two Olympic golds: one in the 400-meter hurdle race clocking a time of 51.46 and the other in the 4x400-meter hurdle race.