US runner Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone has done it again, winning the Women's World Athlete of the Year for the second time at the 2025 World Athletics Awards on Sunday.

In a pivot from her historic 400-meter hurdles dominance, McLaughlin-Levrone chose to master its flat counterpart this year, racing to an undefeated season in the 400-meter flat event in 2025.

"For me, 2025 was a year of stepping outside of the comfort zone and pushing the bounds of what was mentally and physically possible," the four-time US Olympic gold medalist said in a Sunday press release. "I want to continue pushing boundaries in 2026."

Already a winner of the 2018 World Athletics Rising Star Award, McLaughlin-Levrone snagged her first Women's World Athlete of the Year honor in 2022 following a first-ever individual world title in her signature 400-meter hurdles.

This year, the 26-year-old claimed a second individual world trophy in record-breaking fashion, winning the 400-meter with a Championships and North American record-shattering time of 47.78 seconds — the second-fastest of all time — at September's 2025 World Championships in Tokyo.

The victory cemented her as the first athlete to claim world titles in both the 400-meter hurdles and 400-meter flat, ultimately earning her Sunday's World Athlete of the Year honor.

"The culmination of the season in Tokyo was a really special moment. I'm so thankful for everyone who supported, watched, voted, and who was there throughout this whole process," McLaughlin-Levrone added.

US sprinter Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone blew past the competition this week, becoming the first women's track athlete to run a sub-48 second 400-meter dash in almost 40 years on Thursday, when she won the event final at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.

The four-time Olympic gold medalist clocked a blistering time of 47.78 seconds, breaking her own US record en route to becoming the new world champion.

Notably, Dominican sprinter Marileidy Paulino — the 400-meter gold medalist at the 2024 Paris Olympics — crossed Thursday's finish line right on McLaughlin-Levrone's heels, joining the US winner in breaking the near-impossible 48-second barrier with a time of 47.98 seconds.

"You don't run something like that without amazing women pushing you to it," said McLaughlin-Levrone afterwards, crediting the impact of the other contenders on her own historic pace.

McLaughlin-Levrone's new time is now the second fastest in the sport's history, trailing only the 1985 world record of 47.60 seconds set by East Germany's Marita Koch.

Thursday's win also marked the 26-year-old's first-ever major international 400-meter flat title after historically dominating the 400-meter hurdles, making McLaughlin-Levrone the only athlete to hold world titles in both races.

"I felt that somebody was going to have to run 47-something to win this," Bobby Kersee, the sprinter's longtime coach, told The AP. "She trained for it. She took on the challenge, took on the risk. She's just an amazing athlete that I can have no complaints about."

Star sprinter Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is reaching new heights, setting a new US record for the 400-meter race in the event's Tuesday semifinals at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.

The four-time Olympic gold medalist finished the flat event in 48.29 seconds, shaving more than 0.40 seconds off the previous US record of 48.70 seconds set by track legend Sanya Richards-Ross in 2006.

Both her personal best and the fastest time in the world for that event this year, McLaughlin-Levrone's performance also makes her the seventh-fastest woman of all time in the 400-meter dash — elevating expectations that she could challenge the long-standing world record of 47.60 seconds, set by then-East German sprinter Marita Koch in 1985.

Known for her dominance in the 400-meter hurdles, the 26-year-old made the decision to focus on the flat 400-meter event ahead of this year's competition. 

"I definitely wasn't expecting that time," she said afterwards. "It just shows the fitness is there. I'm excited for the finals and grateful to have taken down a record by an amazing woman."

How to watch McLaughlin-Levrone in the 400-meter final

McLaughlin-Levrone will take aim at the 2025 World Athletics Championships' 400-meter podium — and, perhaps, another record time — during the event's final on Thursday.

The US star will race against 2024 Olympic champion Marileidy Paulino and silver medalist Salwa Eid Naser when the final begins at 9:24 AM ET.

Live coverage will air on USA Network.

Five-time Olympic medalist and USA track star Gabby Thomas will miss this month's 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo due to a lingering Achilles injury, the 28-year-old sprinter announced on Tuesday.

Thomas, who captured a full trio of gold medals at the 2024 Paris Games, has been dealing with the injury since May, going on to re-aggravate it in July prior to August's 2025 USATF Outdoor Championships, in which she placed third in her favored 200-meter race — narrowly booking her spot at the World Championships by a mere one-thousandth of a second margin.

"I understand that it will be disappointing for some track fans to hear this news, but I've finally come to the realization that it's OK to be human and take care of myself," she said in a statement.

"As an athlete you always want to keep grinding, but sometimes you simply can't outwork an injury," Thomas explained. "Sometimes it's about patience and making the right decision for the long term. All the best to my Team USA teammates fighting for medals in Tokyo."

As one of Team USA's top talents in the 200-meter dash as well as the 4×100- and 4×400-meter relays, Thomas plans to return to competition in 2026.

Olympic hurdles legend Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is making strides on the flat track, winning the 400-meter race at this weekend's 2025 USATF Outdoor Championships to book a spot representing Team USA at the 2025 World Athletics Championships.

Following her winning finish just two-tenths of a second shy of the US record of 48.70, McLaughlin-Levrone is fast closing in on the mark set by track icon Sanya Richards-Ross in 2006.

Notably, the four-time Olympic gold medalist and three-time world champion opted to skip her signature 400-meter hurdles to focus on the 400-meter flat event, choosing to sit out her career-making race in order to chase a new goal.

"This is a challenge — I want to challenge myself," McLaughlin-Levrone explained. "I felt like this year, I wanted to step out of the box and really push myself in a different way."

"I think this year, and this event, has taught me patience," McLaughlin-Levrone said following her Saturday win. "I've learned a lot about myself…. Every day it's stepping on the track, being the best I can be, figuring out a race that is very foreign to me, and taking on new challenges and being comfortable doing it."

The newly minted US 400-meter champion will next hunt the event's world title at next month's 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo — the city where McLaughlin-Levrone earned her first two Olympic gold medals.

"That's a very daunting task in and of itself," she said about competing in the 400-meter race at Worlds. "It's a very competitive field.... I want to make sure I can give my all."