In February 2021, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone made her much-anticipated return to competition. With the COVID-19 restriction relaxed enough to allow for competitive events, the 25-year-old recounted brimming with confidence ahead of her season opener. Although the indoor 60-meter hurdles event was not her forte, Levrone had it all planned out.

McLaughlin-Levrone was confident in the improvements she made behind closed doors after the 2019 world championships. “I’d even adjusted well to the shorter steps and different strategy of the 60-meter hurdles,” the 400-meter hurdles world record holder wrote in Far Beyond Gold: Running from Fear to Faith. However, in an act of self-sabotage, the Olympian threw her tactics to the wind, leading to a disastrous defeat.

What was supposed to be a confidence-boosting race turned into a 60-meter nightmare for Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone. “Since I started running at six years old, I’d never finished last in a race. Not until my first competition after COVID,” wrote McLaughlin-Levrone. After her embarrassing exit from the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix, she headed straight for her hotel room.

Finishing last in a race for the first time in her life crushed the Olympian. However, what made things even worse was the fact that her now husband, Andre Levrone Jr., had decorated her hotel room as a Valentine’s Day surprise. “I laid down in the dark, surrounded by Andre’s gestures of affection, and started to cry,” the four-time Olympic gold medalist wrote in her book.

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone could only focus on the mistakes she made. From losing her focus to “taking short jabs for strides,” the champion hurdler felt embarrassed about her performance. Recalling the post-race interview with NBC made it even worse. In February 2021, McLaughlin-Levrone was still three months away from setting her first world record.

So she felt guilty when NBC eagerly wanted to know what went wrong with the rising star instead of interviewing the winner, Keri Harrison. “Why am I here? I thought. I felt like apologizing to her,” the 25-year-old author explained. Even Andre Levrone Jr.’s arrival didn’t change how the Olympic record holder felt.

Not even a surprise from Andre Levrone could cheer up Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone

Embarrassed and defeated, the 400m hurdles specialist returned to her hotel room. However, instead of a dark empty room, she found balloons, flowers, and candy on the bed. “I suddenly remembered it was Valentine’s Day,” added the athlete. Jordan Chiles’ mystery man did something very similar to cheer her up after the Paris 2024 bronze medal controversy began.

“When he brings you flowers ’cause you haven’t had the best day,” the Olympic bronze medalist posted on social media. However, neither the surprise nor Andre Levrone Jr. himself could console Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone that day. “I couldn’t hear over the sound of my self-pity,” revealed the successful 2024 Paris Olympic champion.

While the athlete admitted to feeling grateful for the romantic gesture, “The negative thoughts outweighed the good,” added McLaughlin-Levrone. Thankfully, the three-time world champion dusted off her self-pity and got back to the drawing board. For the following three months, the 25-year-old rectified her mistakes before facing Dalilah Muhammad at the U.S. Olympic Trials.

On June 27, 2021, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone made no mistakes. Facing off against the 400m gold medalist at the 2019 World Championships, McLaughlin-Levrone avenged her loss in a world record time of 51.90 seconds. A month later in Tokyo, the track and field icon earned her first Olympic gold, improving the record to 51.46 seconds. Although her season started with a crushing defeat, it may have been a blessing in disguise. What do you believe? Write your views in the comments.