The U.S. Olympic track and field trials concluded with two of Team USA’s biggest stars in Rai Benjamin and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone.
The penultimate event was the men’s 400-meter hurdles featuring Benjamin. The 26-year-old hurdler led from start to finish as he posted a meet record and world-leading time of 46.46.
But U.S. track and field saved perhaps its best athlete for last – and McLaughlin-Levrone delivered.
The defending Olympic champion and world-record holder in the women’s 400-meter hurdles put on a dazzling display around the track, basically running by herself. When McLaughlin-Levrone crossed the finish line she quickly found out she had broken her previous world record with a time of 50.65.
McLaughlin-Levrone is the only woman in the history of the event to run sub-51 seconds in the 400 hurdles.
McLaughlin-Levrone and Benjamin highlighted what was an exciting final day at the U.S. Olympic track and field trials.
Nikki Hiltz, a 29-year-old mid-distance specialist who identifies as transgender and non-binary and uses they/them pronouns, won the women’s 1,500 Sunday at Hayward Field, narrowly edging out the second and third place finishers to take gold at the U.S. track and field trials.
