All About Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone's Parents, Willie and Mary McLaughlin

Willie and Mary McLaughlin watched their daughter Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone develop into a star athlete.

The Dunellen, NJ resident is a two-time Olympic gold medalist with a penchant for breaking records. In the 13-month period from 2021 to 2022, she broke four records – including her own – in the 400m hurdles.

“She’s really blessed with a talent that other people just don’t have,” Willie told The Associated Press in 2017 about his daughter’s success.

For her part, Sydney admits that her parents provided her with a strong foundation.

“I give them a lot of credit for how they put up with my young years,” said Sydney to Jesus is calling podcast in 2024. “They didn’t want to burden me with rigorous training at a young age. They really wanted me to grow and develop number one, my body, and number two, my love for sports naturally.”

“It’s crazy now,” Willie said in an interview with Runnerspace.com in 2017. “Everybody wants to take a picture with her, get an autograph. It’s hard to even walk to dinner or lunch sometimes, people stop you because she’s on the Olympics (team). Sometimes it’s unreal. She’s a minor celebrity.”

From their college romance to raising four successful athletes, here’s everything you need to know about Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone’s parents, Willie and Mary McLaughlin.

They are former athletes

Team USA’s Sydney McLaughlin during the 400 meters at the Meeting de Paris Wanda Diamond League on June 9, 2023.

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Willie collected a number of accolades as a collegiate track and field star: he attended Manhattan College in New York, where he was a three-time NCAA All-American in the 400m, a three-time IC4A outdoor champion in the 400m and a four-time All-East honoree in the indoor 400m .

Willie was also a semifinalist in the 400m at the 1984 US Olympic Trials and was inducted into the Manhattan College Athletic Hall of Fame in 1997.

Meanwhile, Mary was a high school track star in Tonawanda, NY and held the role of student manager of the men’s track and field team at Manhattan College.

Marija competed in the boys’ team

Team USA’s Sydney Mclaughlin at the event on October 16, 2022.

Masatoshi Okauchi/Shutterstock

While her daughter has broken several records in her award-winning career, Mary is a trailblazer herself.

The Buffalo, NY, native, who was then known as Mary Neumeister, ran on the men’s team with her brother John at Cardinal O’Hara High School in the 1970s.

“O’Hara didn’t have a women’s team when I was there,” Mary explained during an interview with Buffalo News 2021 “I ran summer track before I even got to O’Hara, so it was a natural fit for me to run on the boys’ team. I think the year before I came there were a few girls in the team, so I wasn’t the first.”

She often faced boys from other schools in the 400-meter race and in relays.

“I held on,” Mary added. “I’m fine.”

They met at university

Team USA’s Sydney McLaughlin sets a new world record in the women’s 400m hurdles final at the IAAF World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon on July 23, 2022.

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College sweethearts Willie and Mary reminisce about their first meeting in an op-ed for Runnerspace.com in 2023.

“Just over a year after I started running, I met my wife, Mary, the first day I arrived on campus at Manhattan College,” he wrote. “Mary was a runner long before that and was the student manager of the men’s track and field team.”

Willie added: “It’s hard to say whether she’s more in love with the sport now or before, because her passion for it never fades.”

They have four children

Sydney McLaughlin at the Tag Heuer event in Beverly Hills, California on October 7, 2021.

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Sydney, who was born on August 7, 1999, is the third of Willie and Mary’s four children. Their oldest, Morgan, was born on May 5, 1994. She competed as a hurdler and long jumper for the University of St. Peter’s in New Jersey, and her father described her as “extremely strong and deceptively fast” in his op-ed for Runnerspace. ”

She was followed by their son Taylor, who Willie playfully noted in the same text was apparently born with “fully defined abs and massive quadriceps.”

Taylor attended the University of Michigan, where he competed in the 400-meter hurdles and made the 2016 Olympic team. Their youngest, Ryan, was a talented hurdler and shot putter in high school, but chose not to compete at the collegiate level.

All the children followed in their parents’ footsteps, but according to Willi, it was not planned.

“Mary and I saw tremendous potential in our children at an early age and tried to protect and nurture it in a way that would allow them to fall in love with the sport themselves,” he told Runnerspace.com in 2023. “It wasn’t as important to us as performed well as young athletes, but it became all the more important when we were looking to secure a college scholarship.”

“We wanted them to be at their best when it mattered most,” he added. “And that is still the case today.”

Sydney’s strong faith comes from her parents

Team USA’s Sydney McLaughlin poses during the medal ceremony for the women’s 400m hurdles final at the 18th World Athletics Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon on July 22, 2022.

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Sydney has never been shy about talking about her faith in post-race interviews and on social media. After winning the gold medal and breaking her own world record in the 400-meter hurdles at the 2022 World Championships in Athletics, the athlete revealed her motivation to NBC Sports.

“For the past few days as I have been preparing for this race, Hebrews 4:16 has been on my mind – to come boldly to his throne to receive grace and mercy. And I think (God) really gave me the strength to do it today, so all the glory goes to God,” she said.

And her parents share that unshakable belief.

“It’s our Christian faith that guides my wife and I on this path,” Willie revealed in an op-ed for Runnerspace.com in 2023. “And it’s the same faith we’ve instilled in our children.”

He continued: “This is important to us because it dictates how we view the world and how we relate to the many people we meet along the way. Life is not always easy and we make mistakes here and there.”

They knew Sydney was special

Team USA’s Sydney McLaughlin during the semifinals of the women’s 400m hurdles at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

FRANCK ROBICHON/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

The world got its first glimpse of Sydney’s remarkable athleticism when she won the 400m hurdles at the 2015 World Youth Championships as a 15-year-old. It was the start of a dominant career on the world stage, but her parents were not surprised by her success.

“We had our older daughter and our older son running, and they were very gifted,” Willie told NJ.com in 2016. “Then we saw (Sydney) running at 6, and we just knew, okay , the others are very good, but this one is a little different. It was obvious.”

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Source: HIS Education