EUGENE — Looking about as emotional as if she had just strolled through the park, Sydney McLaughlin made history Friday at Hayward Field.
McLaughlin didn’t just break her own world record in the 400-meter hurdles in the World Athletics Championships, she blew it up.
Leading by 30 meters on the home straight, McLaughlin crossed the finish line in 50.68 seconds. That smashed the record of 51.41 she set in last month’s USA Track & Field Outdoor Championships.
It’s the fourth time McLaughlin has left the world record in tatters in the last 13 months.
Afterward she sat back on the track, elbows on her knees, head bowed as a crowd of 12,054 roared in approval.
“It’s unreal,” she said.
Imagine how the other runners in the race felt. It’s as if they weren’t in the same ZIP code.
Femke Bol of the Netherlands was a distant second in 52.27. Team USA’s Dalilah Muhammad, the 2019 world champ, finished third in 53.13.
Asked if she ever thought the 51-second barrier could be broken, Muhammad smiled.
“I definitely thought ‘50′ was possible,” Muhammad said. “After that race, I think ‘49′ is possible.”
Bol nodded her assent.
“I think the same,” she said. “It’s just amazing to run ‘50.’ I mean, one year ago ‘51′ was for the first time.”
At the tender age of 22, McLaughlin is that transcendent. At her postrace news conference she was asked whether she would transition to other events, as if there is nothing left to conquer in the 400 hurdles.
The open 400 has been mentioned by some, including Bobby Kersee, her coach.
“Bobby and I have talked about possibly looking at other events,” McLaughlin said. “But I don’t know if that is going to happen. I think we’re going to just figure out this season, end it up strong with a couple more meets and then figure out what we want to do from there.”
She arrived at Hayward Field on Friday primed for a good race.
“We knew warming up it was going to be one of those days,” McLaughlin said.
“We were ready and tried so hard to go out there and execute. I knew coming home that if I kept my cadence and stayed on stride pattern, we could do it.”
Her cadence and stride were perfect, and McLaughlin got the job done.
The crowd made a difference. The fans could see the clock and see the yawning gap McLaughlin had opened on the rest of the field. They willed her on.
“I was aware of the crowd,” she said. “I was more aware of the lactic acid in my legs. But the crowd was definitely helping me. The louder they get, the faster you want to run.”
It’s hard to imagine what more she could have done, although McLaughlin wanted to see the video before passing judgment on how well she ran.
The 400-meter hurdles can be an unforgiving race, with athletes running at top speed while also having to clear 10 hurdles on their way around the track.
After the race, when McLaughlin was sitting silently on the track, hands on her knees, surrounded by photographers, she was deep inside herself.
“I was taking a moment to really enjoy what had just taken place,” she said. “So many times the race goes by and you forget what happened.
“I really just wanted to sit there for a moment and soak it all in.”
Here are results for the World Athletics Championships.
— Ken Goe for The Oregonian/Oregon Live
KenGoe1020@gmail.com | Twitter: @KenGoe
