“The pre-programme events aren’t part of the two-hour broadcast window,” informed an initial report of Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone‘s Diamond League finals participation amid the controversy. While the Olympic champion had earned a wild-card entry for Brussels, CEO Petr Stastny later ruled her intelligible. Yet, the League wanted to honor the dominant force in the 400m hurdles, including McLaughlin-Levrone in special 200m and 400m races.

American broadcasting giant Peacock has now decided to break the rules for McLaughlin-Levrone. “For those wondering, we ARE carrying her races live on @peacock before the DL Finals window begins,” Paul Swangard, the NBC play-by-play analyst for track & field, informed fans on X. Although broadcasters maintain a tight schedule for each event, the 25-year-old American’s stardom compelled them to adjust.

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone has competed in only five events this season, including the Olympics, and not a single DL event. The two-time gold medalist in Paris started in May with a 200-meter sprint at the Onyx Invitational. The 400m hurdles world record holder competed three more times before facing off against the best in the world at Stade de France. However, in just five events, she set multiple records.

McLaughlin-Levrone broke her world record at the U.S. Olympic Trials, clocking 50.65s. However, that was only a teaser of what she had in store for the 2024 Summer Olympics. At the much anticipated 400-meter hurdles, the New Jersey native left arch-rival Femke Bol in the dust. McLaughlin-Levrone decimated her previous time, setting a new Olympic and world record at 50.37s.

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone did all this after staying away from the tracks for the better part of a year due to a knee injury. While the athlete hoped to close her season with a Diamond League gold, she had to settle for the special race. But given her insane track record, Brussels DL organizers weren’t about to let the season end without giving her some serious love. They wanted to “honour” everything she achieved at the Paris Olympics, and hence even Peacock is ready to break a few rules so fans can witness the record-breaker one last time this season. Yet what prevented the dominant champion’s entry into the Diamond League finals and did she lose her wild card?

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone finds herself in a unique predicament

Following the former world champion’s dominance at the 400m hurdles and 4x400m relays, the Diamond League granted her an international wild card entry. However, fans and experts raised concerns about the League being its rules for the star. That’s because earning a wild card requires the athlete to meet two very specific criteria.

After earning gold in Paris, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone became partly eligible for the wild card. Unfortunately, none of the five events she appeared in before the Paris Olympics was a Diamond League event. Since the rules state that a participating athlete must run in at least one such event ahead of the League finials, even McLaughlin-Levrone’s Olympic champion status wasn’t enough. So she’s technically “ineligible to compete on a Global Wild Card,” since she didn’t make at least one appearance in the series this season.

However, the prestigious event decided to include the ground-breaking champion for her short yet incredible 2024 season. “To honor Sydney’s remarkable achievements, including her unforgettable 400m hurdles world record in Paris, we’ve added two special races,” the Allianz Memorial Van Damme’s Instagram page clarified on September 5.

This isn’t how Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone or her fans envisioned her 2024 season-ending. Many fans hoped for another clash between Femke Bol and the American. However, fans are glad they’ll at least see their icon run thanks to Peacock.