2020 Tokyo Olympics: Sydney McLaughlin dethrones Dalilah Muhammad, wins gold in 400m hurdles

McLaughlin broke her own world record time in the win

Track and field is coming down the home stretch at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and on Tuesday night one of the most anticipated final events on the women's side, the 400-meter hurdles, took place. It lived up to the hype.

American Sydney McLaughlin, the favorite to win it all, won gold in her first ever Olympic finals, finishing in 51.46 to dethrone Dalilah Muhammad, who was the defending champion. McLaughlin broke her own world record time in the win. Muhammad finished second at 51.58. Only once before has a woman posted a time under 52 seconds in this event, and both McLaughlin and Muhammad did so in Tuesday's final. 

"It was definitely a journey, full of ups and downs," Muhammad said after the race. " ... grateful to earn the silver medal for the U.S.A." 

HER GOLDEN MOMENT!@GoSydGo takes the gold in world record fashion in the women's 400m hurdles final! #TokyoOlympics x @TeamUSA

📺: NBC
💻: https://t.co/xHOJq5UwlD
📱: NBC Sports App pic.twitter.com/xFGFzaW6Gu

— #TokyoOlympics (@NBCOlympics) August 4, 2021

At 21, McLaughlin is the youngest person to ever medal in the event.

McLaughlin and Muhammad have gone head-to-head in the past, including at the U.S. Olympic Trials in June. McLaughlin finished first at the Olympic Trials and in the process broke Muhammad's world record with a 51.90-second time. At that point, McLaughlin became the first woman to run that race in 52 seconds or less. She had a semifinal time of 53.03 seconds, which was .27 seconds faster than Muhammad's time. 

Respect. pic.twitter.com/Wsoa06IRDP

— #TokyoOlympics (@NBCOlympics) August 4, 2021

Team USA had yet to win gold in the women's 200-meter hurdle before Muhammad did so in 2016. With McLaughlin growing into a rising star in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, that medal-winning trend should continue for the Americans for the foreseeable future. 

[Aug 3, 2021 at 10:35 pm ET · Wajih AlBaroudi]

McLaughlin blows by Muhammad in the final meters to win her first ever Olympic gold. They both broke the event's world record, with McLaughlin finishing in 51.46 and the silver-medalist Dalilah Muhammad coming just behind at 51.58. The U.S. now has two consecutive golds in this event. 

[Aug 3, 2021 at 10:31 pm ET · Wajih AlBaroudi]

McLaughlin may be the youngest athlete in this race, but her production is far beyond her years. The New Jersey native set a world record in the women's 400-meter hurdle in June with a 51.90. She was the first woman to ever finish under 52 seconds.

[Aug 3, 2021 at 10:29 pm ET · Wajih AlBaroudi]

Muhammad and McLaughlin competed competed against each other in the 2019 World Athletics Championships, with the former finishing first and latter finishing second. A similarly-close and exciting finish should be upon us here.

[Aug 3, 2021 at 10:27 pm ET · Wajih AlBaroudi]

Muhammad, 31, won gold in the women's 400-meter hurdle in the 2016 Rio Olympics. The 21-year-old McLaughlin is seeking her first Olympic medal.

[Aug 3, 2021 at 10:25 pm ET · Wajih AlBaroudi]

The women's 400-meter hurdle final is up next. Americans Sydney McLaughlin and Dalilah Muhammad are the world's top-two ranked athletes in this event, and the former is expected to win gold. Anna Cockrell, also of Team USA, is running as well.

[Aug 3, 2021 at 10:21 pm ET · Wajih AlBaroudi]

Holloway will join fellow American Devon Allen in the 110-meter hurdle finals. Allen, a 26-year-old two-time Olympian, won his semifinal with a 13.18. Team USA's Daniel Roberts finished fifth in his semis and will not advance to the final. 

[Aug 3, 2021 at 10:19 pm ET · Wajih AlBaroudi]

Grant Holloway advances to the 110-meter hurdle final with a first-place finish of 13.13 in the semis. The 23-year-old from Virginia is the defending 2019 world champion in this event.