Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone's training partner Athing Mu announced for new meet after tough race at Prefontaine Classic

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone's training partner and former 800m Olympic champion, Athing Mu, is set to compete at the Ed Murphy Classic after her debacle at the Prefontaine Classic. Mu finished last in her 800m season opener at the Eugene meet.

Just a few days after this disappointing result, Mu will grace the 800m field once again in Memphis. This will be another important step in Mu's 800m preparations en route to the US Outdoor Championships, the qualifying event for the Worlds in Tokyo.

Murphy Classic's Instagram handle shared a post to announce Mu's inclusion in this competition, scheduled to take place later this week on July 11 and 12. The caption of the post stated:

"Fearless in the face of competition, charging towards US Champs, Athing Mu-Nikolayev is all set for Memphis!"

Notably, Athing Mu's training partner, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, will also be a part of this competition, where she will race another 400m flat after the Prefontaine Classic that she won. Both Mu and McLaughlin-Levrone are trained by the veteran track coach, Bobby Kersee, and are occasionally seen having fun and banter during their sessions with Kersee.

Athing Mu speaks up about her training plans after a disappointing Prefontaine Classic

Athing Mu (Image via: Getty)

Athing Mu spoke about her training plans after her disappointing campaign at the 2025 Prefontaine Classic. The former 800m Olympic champion had earlier admitted that her 800m plans for the season were forced to be changed after a few meets where she was scheduled to compete were canceled.

Speaking in an interview after the race, Mu said that she would continue a similar training regime she has been following until now in the season and will look to have some races under her belt before the US Championships. She said, via Citius Mag:

"I think we'll do similar to what we're doing coming into here. Hopefully get some tactical races in so that can help us, but we'll see what the next couple of weeks have for us and go from there."

The 23-year-old also spoke about her balance between the track and personal life, especially after the US trials last year. She added:

"Coming back from USA's last year had a lot of positives in my personal life. Getting engaged, married, and growing in my faith behind the scenes and I think there's been a little bit of turmoil of just my relationship with the track."

Notably, Mu was placed third at the World Championships in 2023 and lost her 800m World title to Kenya's Mary Moraa.