Sydney McLaughlin Shatters 400m Hurdles World Record at 50.68 Seconds

Sydney McLaughlin broke her own world record Friday night with a winning time of 50.68 seconds in the women's 400-meters hurdles at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Oregon.

McLaughlin shattered the previous mark of 51.41 seconds, which she set at the 2022 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in June.

"It's just putting everything that you've done in practice into the race to the point where you're just letting your body do what it does,'' McLaughlin told reporters.

The 22-year-old from New Jersey breezed past the rest of the field, winning the race by more than a second-and-a-half. The Netherlands' Femke Bol (52.27) captured the silver medal, while American Dalilah Muhammad (53.13) secured the bronze.

"It was crazy,'' Bol said. "She was so far in front at the end, I was almost doubting if I really had a good race. Then, I saw the time and I thought, 'Wow, that explains a lot.'''

It's the second World Championships gold for McLaughlin, who won her first as part of the United States' 4x400-meter relay team in 2019.

She won two golds at the Tokyo Olympics last summer, winning the 400-meter hurdles in what was at the time a record of 51.46 seconds along with the 4x400-meter relay.

McLaughlin said she's been talking with her coach, Bobby Kersee, about potentially taking on more races in the future, including the standard 400 meters.

"My coach thinks there's a lot more to be done,'' she said. "At some point, we could do maybe the 4, or maybe the 100 hurdles. He says to just really enjoy the 400 hurdles while I'm doing it, and then, if you want to expand, go from there. So, the sky's the limit for sure.''

Her latest standout performance helped the U.S. continue to lap the World Championships field with 26 total medals. Ethiopia is next on the medal table with eight.

The event is scheduled to wrap up Sunday, with the women's 4x400-meter relay among the races still to come at Hayward Field.