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Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone credits Sanya Richards-Ross for inspiring her career in athletics.
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone has opened up about how Jamaican-American icon Sanya Richards-Ross inspired her to take up athletics as a career.
If not for the legendary sprinter, Sydney might have taken a different career path but watching her compete at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China changed her perspective.
At the 2008 edition of the Olympic Games, Richards-Ross claimed a bronze medal in the 400m before propelling the women’s 4x400m relay team to a gold medal.
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This warmed Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone’s heart and by the time Richards-Ross crossed the finish line, the American hurdler had already decided concerning her career and she whispered it to her mother who had no problem.
Her father had competed at the US Olympic trials in a previous year but that never triggered Sydney to take up athletics until she saw the scintillating run from Richards-Ross.
"I distinctively remember watching in 2008 and seeing Sanya running and I remember turning to my mom, being like 'I want to do that'. And she was like 'Ok, great.'," Sydney said in an interview with Olympics.com in 2021.
"I remember those moments just looking and seeing myself in that same position and wanting to be able to accomplish the things that some of these amazing woman have and just being able to have the opportunity to even possibly do that.”
Sydney has made a name for herself, thanks to the inspiration from Richards-Ross. She made her Olympic debut at the 2016 Rio Olympics but did not make it to the final of the women’s 400m hurdles.
She made a comeback at the 2019 World Championships in Doha, Qatar where she claimed a silver in the women’s 400m hurdles and was part of the gold-winning 4x400m women’s relay.
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At the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, Sydney claimed the gold medal in the 400m hurdles and was very vital as Team USA claimed the gold in the women’s 4x400m relay.
She extended the hot streak to the 2022 World Championships at Hayward Field, achieving the double feat. The 2023 season was a bit of a setback for Sydney who was down with an injury.
In 2024, Sydney bounced back, breaking her world record twice, at the US Olympic trials and the Olympic Games where she also successfully defended her Olympic title. The American talent also anchored the women’s 4x400m relay team to victory.
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