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Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone opened up about her conversation with her coach after missing out on the world record at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo this year. The American athlete competed in the 400m at the biggest stage of the sport in 2025 and broke the national record in the event with a performance of 47.78s.
The Olympic gold medalist's performance was slightly short of the women's 400m world record that stood at 47.60s set in 1985. She spoke about the aftermath of her performance as well as her conversations with her coach. Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone shared that it was a feeling of both content and discontent after her achievement on the global stage.
While Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone was happy to emerge victorious in the 400m, she shared that an athlete always has a feeling of wanting more, being able to push themselves even further. The Olympic gold medalist said that right after the race, she asked her coach about what she could have done better in order to break the long-standing world record.
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Moreover, the feeling of missing the world record by such a short margin always comes back to her mind.
“I’m sure every athlete to a degree feels this interesting balance of pride and content, but also discontent, and wanting more; it’s this back and forth,” she says. “I’m already asking Bobby: ‘Where’s the two-tenths [of a second] at? What did you see that I could have done differently or better?’ As a competitor, your mind goes to, ‘Man, like why couldn’t I be two-tenths faster?’ But I’m also super grateful for the leaps and bounds we were able to make this season," she said.
All in all, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone expressed her elation at being able to conclude her season successfully and shared that she would be carrying forward her lessons as she prepared to compete in 2026.
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone on breaking the 48-second barrier in the 400m
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone spoke about breaking the 48-second barrier in a post-race interview at the World Championships. The American athlete expressed her elation at being the first woman in 40 years to achieve this feat and shared that she enjoyed pushing her limits on the global stage.
The 26-year-old thanked her coach for instilling a competitive mindset in her and helping her to excel in the challenge of competing in a new event against some of the best athletes in the world.
"I see things online. I see what people say, and ultimately, that's okay, and that's what makes the sport great. I think they want to see great matchups. They want to see people be uncomfortable, and I think today was a really great race. I'm grateful to put myself in that position to bring an exciting event to our sport, and at the end of the day, this wasn't my title to hold on to; it's mine to gain," she said.
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone shared that she hopes to break the 400m world record in the future and expressed her anticipation of returning to the track in the next season.
