Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, the queen of the track and field world, added another gold jewel to her crown when the New Jersey native blew open the women's 4x400-meter relay with an historic second leg to spark Team USA to an American record and a blowout victory on Saturday at the Olympics at Stade de France in Paris.
McLaughlin-Levrone threw down an epic and blistering 47.71 split, the third fastest in world history, to give the U.S. a commanding lead, sending the American squad on their way to a near world record time of 3:15.27, an American record and the second fastest in the history of the world!!! The U.S., which has now won the women's 4x400 eight straight times at the Olympics, won the race by more than four seconds over the Netherlands, second in 3:19.50.
The previous American record of 3:15.51 was set at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, Korea when the U.S. won the silver medal behind
the Soviet Union, who won the gold with a world record time of 3:15.17.
The 47.71 by McLaughlin-Levrone is the fastest 400 split ever by an American and is No. 3 all-time behind the 47.6 run by Jarmila Kratochvilova of Czechoslovakia in 1982 and the 47.70 run by Marita Koch of East Germany in 1984.
The outcome of the 4x400 was never in doubt as all four runners went under 50.0!!!
Shamier Little led off for the U.S. with a 49.48 carry to give McLaughlin-Levrone a slight lead. McLaughlin-Levrone wasted no time putting the hammer down and ended any suspense with her 47.71 carry gave the U.S. a 25-meter cushion, 2.63 seconds in front. Gabby Thomas, who won her third gold medal of these Olympics, then split 49.30, and Alexis Holmes closed it out with a 48.78 anchor leg. Thomas also won the 200 and ran on the winning 4x100 relay
It was the second gold medal of these Olympics and fourth career Olympic gold for McLaughlin-Levrone, who seemingly makes history ever time she steps on the trackl!!!
Two days ago, the 25 year-old McLaughlin-Levrone (a 2017 graduate of Union Catholic High in NJ), became the first woman to ever win back-to-back Olympic titles in the 400 hurdles when she shattered her own world record with a head-spinning time of 50.37!!!!! It was the sixth time she's broken the world record in the 400 hurdles since 2021. She hasn't lost a 400 hurdles race since earning the silver medal at the 2019 World Championships!!!
McLaughlin-Levrone, who won the 400 hurdles and led off the wire-to-wire winning 4x400 at the Olympics in Tokyo, is now one of the most decorated track and field Olympians of all-time.
With four Olympic gold medals, McLaughlin-Levrone is now tied for the eighth most in Olympic track and field history and is the second most ever by a NJ athlete. The legendary Carl Lewis, who starred at NJ's Willingboro High, and Paavo Nurmi of Finland are tied for the most gold medals in Olympic track and field history with nine! Only five other athletes have won more gold medals than McLaughlin-Levrone.
These are the third Olympic Games for McLaughlin.
In 2016 when she was just a 16 year-old high school junior, McLaughlin became the youngest athlete to make the Olympic track and field team since Carol Lewis of Willingboro (long jump) and Denean Howard (400) made the 1980 U.S. team, but neither competed in the Olympic Games that year because of the U.S. boycott. When McLaughlin ran in Rio, she was the youngest U.S. track and field athlete to participate in the Olympic Games since 1972 when 15 year-old Cindy Gilbert competed in the high jump.
Five years later, McLaughlin-Levrone won the 400 hurdles at the Olympic Games in Tokyo in 2021 with a then world record time of 51.46, and also ran on the winning 4x400 relay.
And now, after what she did in Paris over the last three days, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is the greatest track and field athlete in the world today and arguably the greatest and most dominant female track and field star of all-time!!!
