IAAF Ratifies Sydney McLaughlin's Improvement on Own World U20 400-Meter Hurdles Record

By Adam Kopet

The IAAF announced Wednesday that Sydney McLaughlin's time of 53.82 seconds in the 400-meter hurdles at the 2017 USATF Outdoor Championships has been ratified as the new world U20 record.

McLaughlin's mark came in the 400 hurdles final, where she placed sixth. The race was one of the deepest women's 400 hurdles races ever.

McLaughlin held the previous world U20 record at 54.15 from the U.S. Olympic Trials last year. She finished third in that race, qualifying for the Rio Olympics, where she made it to the semifinals.

Now a Kentucky freshman, McLaughlin will likely focus on the 100-meter hurdles in the spring before making a return to the longer event in the future.