American track and field star Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone set a new world record and took the gold medal in the 400m hurdles final on Thursday, repeating her win in Tokyo. American Anna Cockrell took silver in an upset over world champion Femke Bol of the Netherlands, who finished third for bronze.
McLaughlin-Levrone finished the race in 50.37 seconds, breaking her own previous world record time of 50.65 seconds, which she set back in June at the U.S. Olympic Trials. It was the sixth time she set a world record in the 400 meter hurdles.
McLaughlin-Levrone went head-to-head with Bol at Olympics in Paris 2024 final — just the third matchup between the two best female hurdlers of this generation. McLaughlin-Levrone, the reigning Summer Games champion, has broken world records, time and time again. Bol is the reigning world champion — it probably helped that the American was injured and not there — and already won a gold in Paris with a stunning final leg for the Dutch in the 4x400m mixed relay on Saturday.
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Until Thursday’s final, McLaughlin-Levrone was 2-0 against Bol, beating her at the Tokyo Olympics three years ago, then again at the 2022 world championships.
“Iron sharpens iron,” McLaughlin-Levrone said Tuesday night at the Stade de France after each woman won her semifinal heat to qualify for the medal race. “It’s always fun to compete the best, and I know we’ll push each other.”