Where would Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone's 400m Invitational timing rank in Brussels Diamond League final? All about the hurdler's exploits in Belgium

Reigning Olympic champion Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone won her 400m finals invitational race at the 2024 Brussels Diamond League in 49.11 seconds. Had she participated in the official final, she would have won, as she was three-tenths of a second faster than Marileidy Paulino, who was declared the winner of the women's 400m finals. McLaughlin-Levrone was barred from competing in the finals for not meeting the eligibility criteria.

The New Brunswick native participated in her first event since her standout 2024 Paris Olympics campaign, where she broke the 400m hurdles world record to secure the gold with a time of 50.37 seconds and anchored team United States to a 3:15.27 seconds victory in the women's 4x400m relay, setting a new American record. She ran her leg in 47.71 seconds, making it the fourth-fastest relay split in history.

McLaughlin-Levrone was scheduled to compete in the women's 400m and 200m finals at the Memorial Van Damme in Brussels. However, she was restricted from competing due to not having competed in any of the Diamond League events in the regular season. Nonetheless, the organizing committee arranged special invitational 200 and 400m flat races to honor her Paris Olympics achievements.

Reigning 400m Olympic and World champion Marileidy Paulino stood atop the podium on Friday after winning the finals in Brussels in 49.45 seconds. In contrast, McLaughlin-Levrone won her invitational race in 49.11 seconds making her the potential winner had she faced Paulino in the official final.

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Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone reflects on running the 400m at season's end - "It definitely hurts"

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

After her race, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone said it was challenging for her to run the 400m at the end of the season and that she was feeling cramped, which led her to run in long pants (via Olympics):

"Running the 400m at the end of the season definitely hurts a little bit more and I felt the cramping. That is why I chose to run with long pants, just to be safe."

The 25-year-old further mentioned that it was a thrilling race for her and she hopes to participate in the finals.

"I'm just happy to be here. I do think it would have been an exciting race but I'll just have to wait and hopefully have that opportunity in the future," she added.

McLaughlin-Levrone also said that she was eager to rest and will decide whether to run Saturday's 200m race.