Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone has been playing a lot lately. Like, literally juggling. Last month, the Olympian showed off his skills during a visit to his hometown of New Jersey. He did the same during an appearance on the “Today” show, and at a University of Kentucky football game shortly after being inducted into the school’s hall of fame. They can play football, clubs… even mini-baguettes.
While McLaughlin-Levrone’s elite skills may seem like random talent — learned from her fifth-grade coach rather than passed on — it makes sense if you know the New Balance-sponsored hurdler’s support and focus.
“It’s joining and swinging while you’re walking, where you’re not in the mind, your body is just doing what it knows,” says PS. “Both require attention to detail, and real-time adjustments. Speed ​​can sometimes be the right thing to do, and I think balancing the pressure is also important.”
“It’s a fun party trick, and it’s also relaxing and therapeutic,” adds McLaughlin-Levrone, who skips jumps to calm her mind before a race.
But McLaughlin-Levrone has been doing a lot of math this year, too. In addition to winning two gold medals at the Paris Olympics (one of which involved breaking his own world record in the 400 meters), he also topped the 400m at the recent Diamond League invitational finals in Brussels. Now in the midst of a successful season, McLaughlin-Levrone spoke to PS about what he did in 2024, how he manages his career, and setting goals for the future.
PS: How much time do you like to take off after graduation? Is there anything you like to do that you usually don’t have time for, or don’t want to do because of how it affects your body?
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone: It changes every year, because the next season is always different depending on when the competition is. But I try to take a full month to rest my body, because the seasons are long. I eat food that I don’t like to eat – I live here with Chick-Fil-A right now. And then just being able to sleep and not get up early to study, and have rest days that are not very high. It’s nice to have moments of rest in my game. I think it’s healthy and normal, especially when there are long training seasons at very difficult times. That way, I come back refreshed and excited for the next season. I’ve missed it, but you can’t do that unless you take time to rest and recover.
PS: It seems like you’ve done some interesting things since the Olympics, like having a street named after you in your hometown. How was it?
SML: Respectfully, yes – they are not changing the name, which is good. I’m so glad no one has to change their mailing address [laughs]. But I was very surprised. I come from a small town, it’s like a mile square. Every time the Olympics come around, it’s useful and fun and it was great to go and celebrate.
PS: Looking back on this year’s Olympics and last season as a whole, what are the biggest lessons learned for you?
SML: I think the biggest lesson I’ve learned this past year was taking my life as an athlete. Every year as I grow, I understand more not only about the sport, but also about myself as a person and my body. I feel like this year was the biggest growth I’ve ever seen in terms of self-assessment of my work. This is something that I have found to be very rewarding, and I am excited about what growth means moving forward, not only on the road, but for me as a person.
PS: Are there any specific changes you made when you started managing your career that you found helpful?
SML: I think it was just moving from the role of childhood and the role of young adult to the role of womanhood. I am 25 years old now. I am a grown woman, this is my job. I can be in control, and I don’t want people to fix things for me. I know what I have to do, I know my body. I think it was flipping the switch, because I have an amazing way of helping, but I think because of my laziness I let others do a lot for me. This was me starting to take charge and take the next step.
PS: How was the Paris Olympics for you? Did they feel different from the other two Olympics you’ve experienced?
SML: This was like my whole game. In Rio, I was very young, and I didn’t know what to expect. Then in Tokyo, there were no fans in the stands. So having 70,000 fans and my family there – it was a whirlwind, and I was able to take it all in and see it for what it was.
PS: Are there any routines or rituals that helped you stay grounded in the game? How do you develop your passion?
SML: Just stuck inside my circle. When you enter some of the larger forums, it’s easy to get confused. You have the best players from all over the world coming to one place. We do a very good job of controlling what we can control, and that has been very helpful. I focus on my faith and how it helps me in this moment. So just keep it in the middle.
The main goal – is the environment. It’s not something I try to teach myself, it’s something that comes out when I step on the line. That’s the main goal of what I’m here to achieve, and then leave after the race is over. It has really helped me focus on my path and what is in front of me without looking to the right or left.
PS: Are you an athletic or post-Olympics type of person? What thoughts came to you afterwards?
SML: Surprised it’s over. I think about a week later, and I was like, “Wait, it’s over?” We’ve been working all these months on this, and it’s over. I think it comes down to realizing, ‘you can rest now,’ because there’s a lot of conflict that builds up to that point. It is time to get used to the time that is passing you by and look to what lies ahead.
PS: Speaking of what’s to come, what are you doing to set goals for the upcoming season? Do you have any ideas right now?
SML: I don’t know. Every season, I like to sit down and write down my goals and put them in a place where I can see them and remind myself every day. But until now, I have never had my teacher. As the weeks go by, we will sit down and look at the plan and what we want to do moving forward.
PS: After winning gold and breaking your record, you said there are things you want to improve. How do you stay motivated inside, especially with all the pressures and expectations that others place on you?
SML: The outside world, the media, the advertising world, they always have expectations of me and what they think I should do, and I appreciate that they care. But at the end of the day, when I put my spikes on, I have to be satisfied with what I’ve done. And I think that inner motivation for me just comes from the fact that there is always something that can be done right. Every time I step on the track, I’m looking to get that tenth of a second, one hundredth of a second. [faster]. The motivation is that personal change is being able to say that I was better than I was yesterday, whatever that looks like. I just love pushing myself to new places and new limits. And yes, there is no such thing as a perfect race, so there is always something you can do better.
PS: Do you have any advice for setting goals – running or fitness, or life goals?
SML: What I have found to be helpful is having goals that can be achieved and having a plan of how to get there. I think that goals without a plan are just dreams, so sitting down and making sure that, well, if this is what I want to do, what are the steps that will help me get there? So, having grace with yourself to know that maybe it won’t happen this month, this week, this year – it would be something that I should continue to strive for. But having such a system in place to see visible growth is what really gets you going.
Lauren Wingenroth is a freelance journalist who covers sports, fitness, and art. In addition to PS, her articles can be found in The New York Times, GQ, Outside magazine, Women’s Running, Well + Good, Dance Magazine, and more.
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