"I could vividly hear God say, ‘Are you done?'; I would tell him 'No'" -When Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone opened up about her journey with faith

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, the four-time Olympic champion, once made revelations about her personal spiritual experiences. She recounted a moment when she dismissed a divine prompting within her, questioning if she was ready to relinquish control of her life.

McLaughlin-Levrone made waves at the recently concluded Paris Olympics 2024, where she successfully defended her 400m hurdles title and played a key role in helping Team USA reclaim their 4x400m relay title. Not only did she win her second consecutive 400m hurdles gold but also broke the world record in the distance with a time of 50.37 seconds.

In the 4x400m relay finals, the 25-year-old ran the second leg. Teaming up with Gabby Thomas, Shamier Little, and Alexis Holmes, the American team shattered the continental record with a time of 3:15.27. This remarkable performance fell just 0.10 seconds short of the world record held by the Soviet Union, which stands at 3:15.17.

Beyond her athletic achievements, the Olympian is a devout believer in Gold who considers herself "a child of God." However, the New Jersey native shared in a July 2022 interview with Sports Spectrum that she had to temporarily set aside her faith to discover her own identity and individuality. When God challenged her to relinquish control of her life, she resisted.

"For a long time growing up, I viewed being a follower of Christ as you can't do this, you can do this; these are your restrictions and limitations of what's good and what's bad, but I didn't think there was any freedom in that, and I was afraid that in doing that I would be handing over my individuality and identity." she said during the conversation [0:10 Onwards].

"So I kind of put that off and just walked in the world and lived a very secular life, and it never fulfilled me, it never sustained me, and I could vividly hear God in a couple instances just be like, Are you done? like are you ready to give your life over to me? Are you ready to let me have the control? And I would literally tell him ''no" because I wasn't sure in doing that it would turn out the way I wanted it to turn out," she added.

McLaughlin-Levrone also shared that she was advised not to discuss this openly as it could potentially jeopardize her endorsement deals. However, she chose not to worry about such concerns.

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"I'm just grateful for my faith, and to God" - Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone after defending her title at Paris Olympics

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone at the Olympic Games Paris 2024 (Image via Getty)

Following her historic victory as the double 400m hurdles Olympic champion in Paris, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone expressed her gratitude to God, acknowledging His guidance throughout her journey.

"I'm just grateful for my faith, and to God for guiding me through all of that and finding my identity in him and not in myself or in my performance. I think that's given me so much freedom to just run the race," She said (via Olympics.com).

"He's called me to it. And I think that this is testimony of just how much growth has taken place in me, not by my own strength, but by Him," she added.