Sydney McLaughlin

Sydney Michelle McLaughlin (born August 7, 1999) is an American hurdler and sprinter who competed for the University of Kentucky[6] before turning professional. She won the silver medal at the 2019 World Championships in the 400 m hurdles, setting her new personal best of 52.23 seconds. McLaughlin holds a number of age group world bests and won the Gatorade National Girls Athlete of the Year trophy for both 2015–16 and 2016–17. She placed third in the 400 metres hurdles at the 2016 United States Olympic Trials, qualifying for the 2016 Summer Olympics. McLaughlin has a personal best of 50.07 in the 400m.

Sydney McLaughlin

McLaughlin at the 2018 NCAA Division I Championships
Personal information
Birth name	Sydney Michelle McLaughlin
Nationality	American
Born	August 7, 1999 New Brunswick, New Jersey[1]
Height	5 ft 9 in (175 cm)[1]
Weight	132 lb (60 kg)
Sport
Sport	Track and field
Event(s)	400 m hurdles 400 m 4×400 m relay
College team	Kentucky Wildcats (2018)[2]
Team	New Balance[3]
Turned pro	June 2018[4]
Coached by	Joanna Hayes (Since 2019)[5] Edrick Floréal (2017-2018)[6] Mike McCabe (2013-2017)
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)	400 m hurdles: 52.23 (Doha 2019) 400 m: 50.07 (Gainesville 2018) Indoor 400 m: 50.36i (College Station 2018) 200 m: 22.39 (Gainesville 2018) Indoor 200 m: 22.68i (College Station 2018) 100 m: 11.07w (Knoxville 2018)
Medal record Women's track and field Representing the  United States World Championships 2019 Doha 4×400 m relay 2019 Doha 400 m hurdles World Youth Championships 2015 Cali 400 m hurdles

Family background

McLaughlin belongs to an athletic family; her father Willie was a semi-finalist in the 400 meters at the 1984 Olympic Trials, her mother Mary was a runner in high school, and her older brother Taylor won silver in the 400-meter hurdles at the 2016 IAAF World U20 Championships.[7]

Early life

A resident of Dunellen, New Jersey, she is a member of the class of 2017 at Union Catholic Regional High School in Scotch Plains, and has been successful academically.[7][8][9] McLaughlin took up running at an early age, following Taylor and their older sister Morgan.[7]

Early career

McLaughlin placed a close second behind Shamier Little in the 400-meter hurdles at the national junior (under-20) championships in 2014; her time of 55.63 was a national high school freshman record and a world age-14 best.[10][11] She would have qualified to represent the United States at the 2014 IAAF World Junior Championships, but was a year too young to be eligible.[12] McLaughlin also set a world age group best (13.34) in the 100-meter hurdles over 76.2 cm (2 ft 6 in) hurdles that summer.[11]

McLaughlin improved her 400-meter hurdles best to 55.28 at the 2015 national youth trials; the time was an age 15 world best, and ranked second on the all-time world youth list behind Leslie Maxie's world youth best (and national high school record) of 55.20 set in 1984.[12] She qualified for the 2015 IAAF World Youth Championships in Cali, Colombia, where she won gold in 55.94; she finished the year as the world youth and junior leader in the event.[13]

McLaughlin won the 400-meter hurdles in 54.46 at the 2016 New Balance national outdoor high school championships; the time broke Maxie's prep record and world youth best, as well as Lashinda Demus's American junior record of 54.70.[14] In addition, she ran on Union Catholic's team in the Swedish medley relay, running a fast 50.93 split for 400 meters as the team set a new high school record of 2:07.99.[14] McLaughlin won the USATF junior championship in 54.54 the following week; in recognition of her accomplishments, she was named Gatorade National Girls Athlete of the Year.[8][15]

McLaughlin won her heat (55.46) and semi-final (55.23) in the 400-meter hurdles at the 2016 United States Olympic Trials.[13][16] In the final she placed third in 54.15, setting a new world youth best and world junior record and qualifying for the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.[17] McLaughlin is the youngest athlete to make the American Olympic track and field team since Carol Lewis and Denean Howard qualified for the boycotted Moscow Olympics in 1980.[18] At the olympics she placed 5th in her semi-final heat, failing to advance to the finals.[19]

University of Kentucky

In November 2016, McLaughlin signed a National Letter of Intent to attend the University of Kentucky and compete for their track and field program.[20][21]

McLaughlin was part of an American Record quartet that broke the indoor distance medley relay world record with a time of 10:40.31, set at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix on January 28, 2017. The splits for the four legs were: 3:18.40 (1200 m) by Olympic medalist Emma Coburn,52.32 (400 m) by McLaughlin, 2:01.92 (800 m) by Brenda Martinez, and 4:27.66 (1600 m) by Olympic medalist and former world 1500m champion Jenny Simpson.[22] Later that indoor season, McLaughlin lowered her own national 400-meter record to a 51.61 at the New Balance Nationals in New York City on March 12, 2017.[23]

In April 2017, McLaughlin continued the positive momentum from the 2017 indoor campaign by opening her outdoor season in style—breaking the 300m hurdles national high school record at the Arcadia Invitational running 38.90. The record was previously held by Lashinda Demus who ran 39.98 in 2001. The record was the first ever attempt over 300m hurdles for McLaughlin as high school track meets in New Jersey do not contest the 300m hurdles. Her time of 38.90 is considered to be a North American Record and number 2 all-time worldwide behind Zuzana Hejnova who ran 38.16 in 2013.[24] Later that month, McLaughlin ran the fastest ever high school girls (400m) relay split during the Championship of America high school girls 4x400 at the 123rd Penn Relays. After taking the baton at the back of an eight-team field, McLaughlin posted a split of 50.37, passing five teams to lead her Union Catholic relay team to a third-place finish in 3:38.92.[25] She bettered this mark at the New Balance Nationals Outdoor Meet on June 18, 2017. Taking the baton in 6th place on the final handoff, she passed five runners to lead Union Catholic to victory, posting a split of 49.85 seconds.[26]

In March 2018, McLaughlin set world junior 400-meter record in (50.36) at 2018 NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships.

On May 13, 2018, McLaughlin broke the collegiate and NCAA record in the 400-meter hurdles, running 52.75 to win the event in her first SEC championship appearance.[27]

Professional career

In October 2018 she turned professional, and signed with the New Balance team.[28]

Achievements

International championships

Year	Competition	Position	Event	Venue	Time	Notes
Representing the United States
2015	World Youth Championships	1st	400 m hurdles	Cali, Colombia	55.94	CR
2016	Olympic Games	16th	400 m hurdles	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	56.22
2019	World Championships	2nd	400 m hurdles	Doha, Qatar	52.23	PB, #3 all-time
		1st	4×400 m relay		3:18.92	WL, 48.8 split

National championships

Year	Competition	Position	Event	Venue	Time	Notes
Representing the Union Catholic Vikings
2014	USATF Junior Championships	2nd	400 m hurdles	Eugene, Oregon	55.63	PB
2015	USA World Youth Trials	1st	400 m hurdles	Lisle, Illinois	55.28	PB
2016	USATF Junior Championships	1st	400 m hurdles	Clovis, California	54.54
	U.S. Olympic Trials	3rd	400 m hurdles	Eugene, Oregon	54.15	PB
2017	USATF Championships	6th	400 m hurdles	Sacramento, California	53.82	PB
Representing the Kentucky Wildcats
2018	NCAA Division I Indoor Championships	2nd	400 m	College Station, Texas	50.36	PB
		5th	4×400 m relay		3:30.08
		4th	200 m		22.80
	NCAA Division I Championships	1st	400 m hurdles	Eugene, Oregon	53.96
		4th	4×400 m relay		3:30.52
Representing New Balance
2019	USATF Championships	2nd	400 m hurdles	Des Moines, Iowa	52.88	SB

New Balance championships

Year	Competition	Position	Event	Venue	Time	Notes
Representing the Union Catholic Vikings
2014	New Balance Indoor Nationals	11th	60 m hurdles	New York, New York	8.67	[29]
		4th	4×200 m relay		1:40.61	[30]
	New Balance Nationals	2nd	100 m hurdles	Greensboro, North Carolina	13.34	+0.5 m/s wind, PB[31]
		7th	4×200 m relay		1:41.42	[32]
		1st	400 m hurdles		56.89	PB[33]
2015	New Balance Indoor Nationals	1st	60 m hurdles	New York, New York	8.17	PB[34]
	New Balance Nationals	1st	400 m hurdles	Greensboro, North Carolina	55.87	SB[35]
2016	New Balance Indoor Nationals	1st	400 m	New York, New York	51.84	CR, PB[36]
		1st	4×400 m relay		3:40.28	CR[37]
	New Balance Nationals	1st	400 m hurdles	Greensboro, North Carolina	54.46	CR, PB[38]
2017	New Balance Indoor Nationals	1st	400 m	New York, New York	51.61	CR, PB[39]
	New Balance Nationals	1st	400 m hurdles	Greensboro, North Carolina	54.22	CR[40]

Personal bests and progression

Personal bests

Surface	Distance	Time	Date	Location	Notes
Outdoor	200 m	22.39	March 29, 2018	Gainesville, Florida, U.S.
	400 m	50.07	March 30, 2018	Gainesville, Florida, U.S.
	100 m hurdles	13.34	June 14, 2014	Greensboro, North Carolina, U.S.
	300 m hurdles	38.90	April 9, 2017	Arcadia, California, U.S.	High school NR
	400 m hurdles	52.23	October 4, 2019	Doha, Qatar	3rd fastest all-time
Indoor	200 m	22.68	March 9, 2018	College Station, Texas, U.S.
	300 m	36.12	December 8, 2017	Bloomington, Indiana, U.S.	WU20R[41]
	400 m	50.36	March 10, 2018	College Station, Texas, U.S.	AU20R[note 1]
	60 m hurdles	8.17	March 15, 2015	New York, New York, U.S.

400 m hurdles progression

Year	Time	Location	Day
2014	55.63	Eugene, Oregon, U.S.	July 6
2015	55.28	Lisle, Illinois, U.S.	July 1
2016	54.15	Eugene, Oregon, U.S.	July 10
2017	53.82	Sacramento, California, U.S.	June 25
2018	52.75	Knoxville, Tennessee, U.S.	May 13
2019	52.23	Doha, Qatar	October 4

Notes

1. Though her indoor 400 m time of 50.36 s is faster than the world under-20 record as recognized by World Athletics, it has not been ratified and is not listed as pending ratification as of January 2020.[42][43]

References

1. "Sydney McLaughlin". United States Olympic Committee. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
2. "SYDNEY MCLAUGHLIN KENTUCKY". Track & Field Results Reporting System. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
3. Zaccardi, Nick (October 15, 2018). "Sydney McLaughlin signs with New Balance". NBC Sports. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
4. Fisher, Chris (June 10, 2019). "Kentucky freshman phenom Sydney McLaughlin to turn pro". 247Sports. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
5. Cherry, Gene (January 25, 2019). "Athletics: McLaughlin set to start pro career but not in hurdles". Reuters. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
6. Boylan-Pett, Liam (October 24, 2017). "The Track Phenom Who Chose College Over Riches". Bleacher Report. Retrieved October 24, 2017.
7. "Track: Union Catholic siblings Taylor and Sydney McLaughlin were born to run". The Star-Ledger. January 29, 2014. Retrieved July 10, 2016.
8. Konecky, Chad (June 27, 2016). "Sydney McLaughlin wins Gatorade National Track & Field Athlete of the Year". USA Today. Retrieved July 10, 2016.
9. Staff. "Union Catholic Track Star Will Be Youngest U.S. Track Star in Olympics", TAP into Union, July 11, 2016. Accessed July 13, 2016. "Sydney McLaughlin a member of the Class of 2017 at Union Catholic High School in Scotch Plains, set a high school and new world junior record in the women's 400 hurdles at the U.S. Olympic trails. 'All the pressure I put on myself,' McLaughlin, a resident of Dunellen, said in her post-race interview on NBC, which will air the games from Brazil next month."
10. Mazzone, Stephen (July 14, 2014). "Sydney McLaughlin is Too Good to Be Only 14". MileSplit. Retrieved July 10, 2016.
11. Butler, Mark (ed.). "IAAF World Championships Beijing 2015 Statistics Handbook". IAAF Communications Department: 525. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)CS1 maint: extra text: authors list (link)
12. Mulkeen, Jon (July 1, 2015). "McLaughlin, Hill and Lyles impress at US Youth Championships". Retrieved July 10, 2016.
13. Sydney McLaughlin at Tilastopaja (registration required)
14. "McLaughlin's record-shattering performances earn AOW honors". USA Track & Field. June 21, 2016. Retrieved July 10, 2016.
15. Jordan, Jason (July 13, 2016). "Gatorade Female Athlete of the Year Sydney McLaughlin has rare talents away from the track". USA Today. Retrieved July 17, 2016.
16. Lambert, Jim (July 10, 2016). "Rio 2016: N.J. high school phenom McLaughlin aims to make Olympic Team on Sunday". NJ.com. Retrieved July 10, 2016.
17. Young, Dennis (July 10, 2016). "16-Year-Old Sydney McLaughlin Makes Olympic Team With World Junior Record". FloTrack. Retrieved July 10, 2016.
18. Lambert, Jim (July 10, 2016). "Rio 2016: N.J. HS phenom Sydney McLaughlin runs her way onto the Olympic team". NJ.com. Retrieved July 11, 2016.
19. "Olympic Track & Field Results: Sydney McLaughlin Doesn't Qualify In 400M Hurdles". NESN.com. August 17, 2016. Retrieved January 29, 2017.
20. Lambert, Jim (November 14, 2016). "N.J. teen Olympian Sydney McLaughlin has picked her college. The winner is..." nj.com. Retrieved June 19, 2017.
21. "UKTF Signing Sydney McLaughlin Sweeps 2016 Awards". University of Kentucky. Retrieved June 19, 2017.
22. "Coburn, McLaughlin, Martinez, Simpson Break DMR World Record". FloTrack. Retrieved January 29, 2017.
23. http://www.milesplit.com/articles/204761-sydney-mclaughlin-lowers-own-national-record-to-5161
24. http://www.flotrack.org/article/54447-sydney-mclaughlin-breaks-300m-hurdles-national-high-school-record#.WQQGZFMrKRs
25. http://usatodayhss.com/?p=101192889
26. http://www.espn.com/video/clip?id=19684486
27. https://www.iaaf.org/news/report/sydney-mclaughlin-sec-champs-400-hurdles-reco
28. Stunson, Mike (October 16, 2018). "Former UK track star McLaughlin signs with New Balance after 'huge bidding war'". Lexington Herald-Leader. Retrieved October 16, 2018.
29. "Event 16 Girls 60 Meter Hurdles Championship". Delta Timing Group. March 16, 2014. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
30. "Event 18 Girls 4x200 Meter Relay Championship". Delta Timing Group. March 16, 2014. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
31. "Event 16 Girls 100 Meter Hurdles Championship". New Balance. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
32. "Event 30 Girls 4x200 Meter Relay Championship". New Balance. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
33. "Event 18 Girls 400 Meter Hurdles Championship". New Balance. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
34. "Event 16 Girls 60 Meter Hurdles Championship". Delta Timing Group. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
35. "Girls 400 Meter Hurdles Championship". New Balance. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
36. "Event 6 Girls 400 Meter Run Championship". Delta Timing Group. March 16, 2016. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
37. "Event 20 Girls 4x400 Meter Relay Championship". Delta Timing Group. March 16, 2016. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
38. "Event 18 Girls 400 Meter Hurdles Championship". New Balance. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
39. "Event 6 Girls 400 Meter Run Championship". Delta Timing Group. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
40. "Event 18 Girls 400 Meter Hurdles Championship". New Balance. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
41. Most, Jake (December 8, 2017). "Sydney McLaughlin Sets World Junior 300m Record in UK Debut". Kentucky Wildcats. Retrieved January 25, 2020.
42. Fleming, Joe (May 10, 2018). "What will record-breaking Kentucky freshman track star Sydney McLaughlin do next?". USA Today. Retrieved January 25, 2020.
43. "World U20 Records". World Athletics. Retrieved January 25, 2020.

External links

• Sydney McLaughlin at World Athletics
• Sydney McLaughlin at Olympics at Sports-Reference.com (archived)