Sydney McLaughlin breaks her own 400m record at U.S. Championships
Sydney McLaughlin crosses the finish line in the women’s 400-meter hurdles with a world-record time of 51.41 during Day 3 of the USA Track and Field championships from Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon on Saturday, June 25, 2022. Sean Meagher/The Oregonian
Listen to this article here

Sydney McLaughlin broke the 400m world record Saturday at the U.S. Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon. 

McLaughlin broke the previous record of 51.46 seconds set at Tokyo Olympics last year by none other than herself. She ran a 51.41 Saturday in Eugene, over a full second ahead of second place finisher Britton Wilson who ran a 53.08.

“It’s Track Town, USA, what can you expect?” McLaughlin told Reuters after her performance. “Any time I come here I can just feel something amazing is going to happen.”

Almost a year to the day, McLaughlin set the world record at the same track in Eugene in 2021 during the Olympic qualifiers. With temperatures reaching a high of 108 degrees, and the surface of the track exceeding 150 degrees, the 400m race was delayed a few hours to the evening once it cooled down.

Sydney McLaughlin runs past record

Then, in just her fourth 400m race of the year, McLaughlin did something that had never been done before by a woman. She broke the 52-second barrier in the 400m hurdle. 

“Trusting the process, a lot of things you really can’t see coming. Having that child-like faith and trusting that everything is gonna work out,” is what McLaughlin credits to her record-breaking run.

Being well under the 52-second barrier now, McLaughlin is showing no signs of slowing down and still thinks there is work to be done.

“This is just a great indicator of where we are and hopefully (we’re) going to go home and work on some things,” McLaughlin said.

McLaughlin will be finishing her season at the world championships in the middle of July, which are being hosted by the U.S. for the first time and will take place at the same track in Eugene. If she takes first at worlds, it will be her first world title.

“Anything is possible any time I step on the track,” said McLaughlin.

Mike Creef is a fighter for equality and justice for all. Growing up bi-racial (Jamaican-American) on the east coast allowed him to experience many different cultures and beliefs that helped give him a...

One reply on “Sydney McLaughlin breaks her own 400m record at U.S. Championships”

Comments are closed.