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Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone recently opened up about what she is like just before competing in races during a conversation with Justin Gatlin. The American hurdler is currently gearing up for her upcoming event of the 2025 track season.
McLaughlin-Levrone opened her 2025 season by competing at the first stop of Michael Johnson's Grand Slam Track, which was held in Kingston, Jamaica. She ran in the 400m hurdles, where she stood atop the podium after clocking a world-leading time of 52.76s. She also competed in the 400m race, where she again earned the first position by recording 50.32s.
The 25-year-old also competed in the second and third stops of GST, which took place in Miami and Philadelphia, respectively. She is now gearing up to compete at the Prefontaine Classic, scheduled for Saturday, July 5, at Hayward Field, Oregon. Amid the preparations, she appeared in the recent episode of Justin Gatlin and Rodney Green, where she opened up about her pre-race rituals.
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When asked if she listens to music just before competing, she replied: (29:58 onwards):
"Headphones on at all times. I can't hear what's going on outside of that. I'm completely locked in. It almost frustrates me if I have to take my headphones off, it actually frustrates me. Yeah, which, like, I think people around me have kind of learned, like, okay, leave her alone. I'm working. Unless it's like really serious, like but once you just get into that flow state of like, 'I'm locked in, I'm replaying the race in my head, I'm focused, I don't like to be disturbed.'"
"I am a bit more relaxed at training, but once I leave the hotel room for a race, everything until the race is done is focused on the race," she added.
In the third stop of the GST, McLaughlin-Levrone ventured out of her comfort zone, as she ran in the 100m hurdles and 100m flat race.
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone discussed her goals before concluding her track career
In the aforementioned podcast, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone also spoke about the things she wants to achieve before wrapping up her track career. The star athlete revealed that she wants to achieve the best results in all the events she has competed in. Along with the 400m hurdles, she also showcased her desire to sharpen her skills in the races outside of her comfort zone, including the 100m and 200m races.
"I want to walk away from track and field having the best score sheet I can in terms of every event that I've run. So, I'm like, how can I get my 100m time faster? How can I get my 100m hurdle time faster, my 200m, my 400m, my 400m hurdles. It's like the hep without the hep. To me, that's fun. Being able to retire and be like, we didn't zone in on, but if we did, I could just imagine where we could have gone," Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone said.
Following the Prefontaine Classic, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is expected to be seen at the upcoming World Championships in Tokyo, which is scheduled to take place in September 2025.
