'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
American track athlete Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone shed light on the change to her training sessions before making the transition to the 100m hurdles in Philadelphia. The reigning 400m hurdles Olympic champion announced that she would be competing in the shorter hurdles category after her first race in the Miami leg of GST.
She was part of the long hurdles category in the first two legs of the event in Kingston and Miami. She won both the 400m hurdles and 400m dash at the Jamaican capital.
Following this, she continued her winning run with another hurdles victory in Miami, where she also clocked a world leading time of 52.07 seconds. The 25-year-old finished ahead of challengers Andrenette Knight and Anna Hall, who eventually finished second and third in 54.08 and 54.43 seconds, respectively.
Trending
Speaking about her event transition in an interview after this 400m hurdles victory, Mclaughlin-Levrone stated that she would need to work on her hurdles technique in training sessions, and it would be a challenging feat for her. She expressed her excitement for this transition and said (via Citius Meg):
"I'm going to start coming out the blocks. Start working on my drive phase and hurdle technique but it's good, it'll challenge me. Just training through, having some fun, switching it up. So, I am excited." (00:24 onwards).
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone's last 100m hurdle race came last year during the Occidental Invitational in Los Angeles. She clocked a run time of 12.71 seconds to win the race.
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone on the hardships of running 400m hurdles
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone reflected on the hardships and effort required to run a 400m hurdles race. The event specialist also shed light on the technical aspect of the event during a talk with Grand Slam Track founder, Michael Johnson, in March.
McLaughlin-Levrone said that running a good hurdle requires a lot of strength, speed, and the mindset of switching up legs mid-race. She further termed this event as the most physically challenging event for an athlete. McLaughlin-Levrone remarked (via Upfront Ventures, 3:54 onwards):
"It requires the speed, strength, endurance, flexibility to be able to hurdle. It requires the skill to be able to switch legs when you get tired or whatever. So, I really feel like it is one of the most grueling events because you're running full speed, be strong enough to hold it and be flexible and wise enough to know which leg to take each hurdle with."
During the conversation, McLaughlun-Levrone remarked further that this gruesome and challenging aspect of the 400m hurdles is a major reason behind her love for the event.
