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Senior Year - 2017
Sealing a Legacy...and Deciding Her Future
Big news came out in November of 2016, as McLaughlin announced she would be attending the University of Kentucky. She pledged to join a history of hurdling success at the school, guided by the successful coach Edrick Floréal.
McLaughlin's indoor season opened with a focus on making track and field fun -- and to break up the grind after a very long outdoor stretch in 2016 with the Olympic run. She did that very thing by jumping into the top three all-time for the New Jersey long jump with her 20-7.25 first place attempt at the Hall of Fame Invitational. She'd win three more long jump competitions by the end of the season, including her last jump and career best of 20-07.75 at Eastern States Championships.
The track wasn't forgotten during that early season, mind you, because she also posted a US No. 2 all-time 300m performance of 37.11 at the Molloy Stanner Games, along with some quick relay splits at other meets along the way.
In late January, it was announced that the high senior was asked to join a DMR world record attempt with Emma Coburn, Brenda Martinez and Jenny Simpson at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix. As usual, she stepped up and ran 52.32 seconds over her 400m split and the team broke the old world record by over two seconds, running 10:40.31.
In the heart of state championship season, McLaughlin headed to New York for the Artie O'Connor Invitational and broke the 300m national record with her time of 36.82 seconds. A weekend later, she didn't miss a beat at the NJSIAA Meet of Champions, where she ran a facility record of 53.17 on an aging flat track in the 400m before anchoring a 51.8 second split on the 4x400 during a dramatic comeback victory.
She closed out her last indoor high school race by lowering her own national 400m record to 51.61 in front of a roaring crowd at New Balance Nationals Indoor.
A Legend's Last Season..
The legendary high school senior opened her last spring season by breaking the national record in the 300m hurdles, an event she had never run before. The 38.90 second performance came during the Arcadia Invitational, shattering the previous standard of 39.98.
At the state Group Championships, she added the state 200m dash record to her collection, running 22.99 seconds after she had lowered her own world junior record in the 400m hurdles to 54.03 -- running all alone. The following weekend at the Meet of Champions, she became the only four-time winner of the 400m hurdles and finished tied for the most Meet of Champions titles in state history with Olivia Baker at 11 total.
Her farewell tour continued through New Balance Nationals Outdoor, where she anchored a 49.85 second split to help her team set a national record of 2:05.93 in the 1000m Swedish Relay. She also completed her four year reign over the 400m hurdles title with a time of 54.22, her best in the meet series.
One of her most impressive performances came at a meet she didn't even win -- her last race was a huge career best of 53.82, in the 400mH, lowering her own world junior record.
Not only was this the young Olympian's first time breaking the 54 second barrier, but she did so out of lane eight. The entire race itself was wicked fast, as three women went under 53 seconds -- Dalilah Muhammad won with a time of 52.64, the sixth fastest all-time in the event.
Sunset of Accolades...
Rightfully so, awards have rolled in for the young star. She is the only back to back recipient of the Gatorade Athlete of the Year Award and was placed on the Sports Illustrated July cover (see below).
Sydney McLaughlin's high school career was one for the record books. From the wins and the countless records, to the Olympics and the gracefulness with which she has handled the extra attention and pressure.
It's all amounted to one of the best if not the best high school athletic careers of all-time.
You have to believe there are still great things to come.
