Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is targeting more records after cementing her place as the greatest women’s 400m hurdler in history with a jaw-dropping defence of her Olympic crown. The 25-year-old American star electrified the Stade de France on Thursday after storming to victory over rival Femke Bol in a new world record of 50.37sec. The emphatic nature of the win suggested that McLaughlin-Levrone, who wore a sparkling tiara on her lap of honour, is poised to reign over her event for years to come. While McLaughlin-Levrone may yet take another crack at mastering the flat 400, as she did in 2023, she also has her sights set on becoming the first woman to duck under 50 seconds. Thursday marked the sixth time McLaughlin-Levrone has bettered the world record since 2021, when she ran 51.90sec to break Dalilah Muhammad’s mark of 52.16sec. McLaughlin-Levrone believes given how rapidly the record has progressed, sub-50 is achievable. “I think this is an event that wasn’t very popular, but we’ve made it very popular very quickly,” she said.