“It’s so overwhelming, you eat next to World Champions” - When 17-year-old Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone was left in awe upon her Olympic debut

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone has cemented her name among the legends of track and field, but she hadn't always been the dominant force that she is today. Before the American became a two-time Olympic medalist, multiple times world-record holder and a World Champion, she was just a teenager making her Olympic debut in Rio and was left understandably overwhelmed by the entire experience.

McLaughlin-Levrone had marked herself as the one to watch out for since her high school days, and she shocked the world in 2016 when she finished third at the U.S Olympic Trials, subsequently qualifying for the Rio Games. She set a world junior record with her time of 54.15s at the Trials and became the youngest athlete to make the American Olympic track and field team since 1980.

At Rio, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone made it through to the semifinals, where she finished fifth and failed to move further. Opening up about her Olympic debut, the then 17-year-old hurdler termed the entire ordeal overwhelming, telling NJ.com,

"It's so overwhelming. It's been so much. You eat next to people you're going to race against, world champions and Olympians. It hasn't hit me yet that I'm here. There's so much to take in at one time.”

She also called the experience intimidating, saying,

"It's exciting to be here, but it's also a little intimidating. A lot of people have done this before and are more experienced to me, but just to be here at my age representing my country is amazing.”

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone calls her Paris Olympics experience surreal

Since the 2016 Rio Olympics, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone has come a long way. In 2020, she won gold in the 400m hurdles at the Tokyo Olympics and set the world record while doing so. The American has since gone on to set five more world records, win a World Championships, as well as a second-consecutive Olympic gold.

Breaking down her feelings about her win at the Paris Olympics, the 25-year-old explained to Olympics.com that it felt surreal, saying,

"It hasn't really fully hit me yet. Blessed, honestly. And excited. It's a surreal moment. But now an amazing, amazing opportunity. And I'm grateful.”

While Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone hasn't raced since the Games, fans will get a chance to see her in action in Brussels in September. The American was originally slated to run in the Diamond League Finals but was later deemed ineligible for the event, only for the meet organizers to add “two special races” to their schedule to allow the hurdler to compete.