At the US Olympic trials on Sunday, Sydney McLaughlin not only clinched the 400m hurdles title but also smashed the world record, becoming the first woman to finish the race in under 52 seconds.
McLaughlin, a 21-year-old, completed the 400m in 51.90 seconds, surpassing the previous world record set by Dalilah Muhammad in 2019 by 0.26 seconds. Muhammad also competed on Sunday but was defeated by McLaughlin by 0.52 seconds. Both athletes have secured spots on the US team, creating excitement for their upcoming showdown on 4 August as they vie for the Olympic gold medal.
Muhammad had set the former world record (52.16 seconds) at the World Championships in Doha. In achieving this, she bested her own record she had set just a few months earlier when she raced against McLaughlin at the US nationals (52.20 seconds). At the beginning of 2021, Muhammad had expressed her struggles to break the 55-second mark. Following the race, she stated, “So to get a 52 feels pretty good.”
Under the guidance of coach Bobby Kersee, McLaughlin had been honing her skills, paying particular attention to her form and practicing on shorter tracks. Reflecting on her work with Kersee, McLaughlin mentioned, “It was a trusting process. Just having the childlike faith in trusting everything is going to work out.”
Upon learning about McLaughlin’s new world record, Muhammad congratulated her and envisioned their Tokyo encounter as a fierce “battle.”
