As a track and field athlete, there are few accolades Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone has yet to claim. From the World Championships to the Olympic Games, the 400m hurdles specialist’s achievements shine brightly on every stage. However, the 25-year-old’s extraordinary feats are also a testament to the brilliant minds who have guided her along the way. Yet, at times, even those coaches have managed to turn McLaughlin’s week into a living nightmare.

During her time at the University of Kentucky, Sydney won the 2018 NCAA title in the 400m hurdles event and was crowned the SEC champion thrice in 400m indoor, 400m hurdles, and 4x400m relay. She has also grabbed the all-American honor five times. However, Sydney suggests that all these came for a price.

In her book, Far Beyond Gold: Running From Fear to Faith, the 4x Olympic gold medalist recalled why training in college wasn’t the best experience. Training under her then-coach Edrick Floreal was a tough struggle, especially with the high expectations he set for the athletes. “With Coach Flo, there were no days off,” Sydney remembers how she had to wake up early in the morning almost every day of the week to keep up with Floreal’s tightly packed schedule.

Revealing how Mondays were jam-packed for everyone, Sydney went on to note how the rest of the week was no better. However, it wasn’t like it was only the training regime McLaughlin-Levrone had to deal with. A staunch believer in God, she often wanted to spend Sunday off the track and pursue her spiritual needs but couldn’t. “I wish I’d pushed back, insisted on going to church instead of Sunday treatment. I can’t help but wonder what the response would have been,” the Diamond League gold medalist reiterates about how Floreal maintained a hard stance on keeping the athletes under immense pressure.

But there were even more things that caught the Olympian off-guard. Having a coach who pried into her private life in the name of trying to keep her from distractions was something she thought was improper. “I gave everything I had to the sport, to my peers, and to myself. Yet I was miserable. My high hopes of coming to a place where I thought I would flourish quickly turned into a nightmare,” she said further, underscoring how things got frustrating for her. Despite all this, Floreal remains the one who shaped Sydney during her formative years to turn her into the athlete she is. In fact, Sydney herself has admitted this just a few months back, contrary to what she wrote in her book.

Shortly after her success in Paris, she was inducted to the University of Kentucky’s Hall of Fame on September 21. In her induction speech, she credited Floreal for his contribution to her career. “I learned more than I ever could have imagined. IIt was here on this track that I learned for the first time that 50 seconds was possible 400 hurdles. Thanks to coach Flo and the way he pushed me to where I was on the track seeing jellyfish flying around. That’s how hard the workout was,” Sydney said. However, on that occasion as well, she admitted that her one year with the program was hard.

“My year here was hard, I’m not going to act like it wasn’t as it is for many college athletes all over the country. But I wouldn’t change it for the world, honestly. I would not be the woman that I am had I not attended UK,” Sudney had stated. Maybe this is because of coach Floreal’s vision. Here is how he shapes it.

The vision of perfection is the starting point for Floreal’s coaching approach and then he works backwards. He measures and looks at what his athletes can do based on their ability and tries to fit that to the imagery in his mind. “You’re chasing something that you hopefully never catch because when you do then it’s the end. it’s kind of fun to know that you’ve got the potential to improve on whatever you’ve done. Perfection is not really attainable but if you chase it, you can attain excellence,” Floreal says about his technique. Thankfully, later on in her career, Sydney found someone who took it forward from where Floreal had left it.

A change in personnel further molded Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone

In 2020, McLaughlin-Levrone began training under Bob Kersee, husband of three-time Olympic gold medalist Jackie Joyner-Kersee. Since then, her career has transformed, with results becoming evident almost immediately. At the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, Sydney secured gold in the 400m hurdles and the 4x400m relay, solidifying her status as an elite sprinter. She defended both titles at the 2024 Paris Games, further cementing her legacy. However, Kersee has occasionally drawn criticism from fans for prioritizing Sydney’s health, often limiting her participation in various tournaments to ensure her well-being.

“First, it’s based on health. Then, it’s just based on performance and what’s needed. With all due respect to Europe, I like America. I like to race at home as much as possible. I get criticized for not going to Europe but I coach United States athletes to put them on teams. You can go to Italy, France, Germany or whatever. Same thing – we can go to Atlanta, New York or wherever. For us, it’s a 14-hour or seven-hour time difference, language change and food change.”

“It’s kind of difficult for us to go to Europe and base camp over there and then come back home and then make our American teams and stay healthy. As many races as we can get like here at Morehouse with the Edwin Moses Meet and keep our athletes competitive here in the United States. And then if we go to Europe when it’s reasonable for us to go, I think it’s better for our mental and physical health of our athletes,” Kersee had said about it.

Say, for instance, since becoming the 400m hurdles Olympic champion in 2021, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone has never competed in the 400m hurdles at a Diamond League meet. Last year, she only competed in the 400m at the Paris Diamond League in preparation for the U.S. Championships. This year, she did not compete in any Diamond League meets before the Paris Olympics. But on the other hand, Kersee went above and beyond to help the sprinter with all his resources.

“As surges of COVID-19 came and went throughout the season, Bobby and I had to look far and wide for a place to train. At times, I drove more than an hour from my apartment to the nearest available track. When looking for a track became too much of a hassle, Bobby took me out to the median…in the middle of San Vicente Boulevard, one of the busiest streets in Los Angeles…We looked absurd,” she hailed her mentor for his never-say-die attitude to find a way to make everything work. Why do you think Kersee and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone’s partnership worked so well? Tell us below!