When this 21-year-old donned the University of Michigan women’s track and field sprint suit for one last race, she knew it was the end of her four years of dominating the hurdles in the NCAA — and that she had to go out with a bang. She had to leave a legacy. And so she did. Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone set the collegiate 400 m hurdles record of 52.75 seconds while representing the University of Kentucky on May 13, 2018, during the SEC Championships. This Wolverine thought that 7 years was enough, and starting in lane number 6 for the 400 meters of the NCAA Championships, she gave it all she had. For the first 30 seconds, she ran parallel to the rest of the field, but then she jumped another hurdle and sped up.

Savannah Sutherland clocked a time of 52.46 seconds- a win so legendary that not a single athlete was in the frame when she crossed the line. And with that, she broke Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone’s collegiate record. Further, she tied with Femke Bol for No. 2 in the world this year and set a new Canadian record as well.

Reflecting on how the event went for her and on breaking the 25-year-old’s record, she said, “I grew up looking up to Sydney, and so I was able to meet her this summer running in the Olympic final, and so it kind of felt full circle for me.” Sutherland made her Olympic debut at the Paris 2024 Games, competing in the 400m hurdles, finishing 7th with a time of 53.88 seconds. But more importantly, she has updates on her career.

In her post-race interview posted by Citius Mag on June 14, a journalist wished her good health for the World Championship and asked her if she was a medal contender. To this, she responded, “Yeah, I don’t want to get ahead of myself, but I’m definitely not going to put a cap on it, definitely not going to put a ceiling over myself.”

At the 2021 World U20 Championships in Nairobi, she earned a bronze medal in the 400 m hurdles with a time of 57.27 seconds. In 2023 (Budapest), she reached the semifinal in the women’s 400 m hurdles, clocking 54.99 s, but narrowly missed qualifying for the final. She sure would like to better this in the next one.

Another journalist asked her once again, noting that she had broken Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone‘s record: “Even after such a brilliant performance like that, is that almost something to be as equally excited about, the fact that there’s still a lot of time to get that much better before Japan?” Answering this, the 21-year-old said, “Yes, that definitely is exciting. It’s almost as if we have a whole other season coming up because we’ve got three more months. So, we’re going to take some time off to decompress and kind of soak it all in, and then get right back to it for the next season, I guess you could call it.” 

The 2025 World Athletics Championships are scheduled to take place in Tokyo, Japan, from September 13 to 21, 2025, at the National Stadium—the same historic venue used for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Savannah Sutherland has run her last for the Wolverines in June, bringing the dawn over a glorious collegiate career.

Savannah Sutherland’s collegiate career

Savannah Sutherland began her collegiate track and field career at the University of Michigan in the 2021–22 season. As a freshman, she made her outdoor debut in the 400 m hurdles at the Mt. SAC and Drake Relays. She competed at the Big Ten Championships and the NCAA East Prelims. She clocked times of sub-59 in all these competitions but did not have any major wins. In her sophomore season (2022–23), she made a national breakthrough. Indoors, she set a school record in the 400 m (51.60 s) and earned All-America honors at the NCAA Indoor Championships.

Outdoors, she won the NCAA 400 m hurdles title with a personal best of 54.45 s—setting new Michigan and Canadian U23 records. During her junior year (2023–24), Savannah continued her dominance. Indoors, she won the Big Ten 400 m title, and outdoors, she broke the Penn Relays meet record in the 400 m hurdles. At the Big Ten Championships, she defended her title with a meet record, 55.01 seconds. At the NCAA Championships, she ran an astonishing 53.26 s to place second, again breaking her records. She was named Big Ten Track Athlete of the Year for the second straight season and received Academic All-District honors.

In her senior season (2024–25), Savannah opened with a school-record 200 m indoors (23.26 s) and placed fourth in the 400 m at the NCAA Indoor Championships with another Michigan record (51.23 s). Outdoors, she claimed her third straight Big Ten 400 m hurdles title and advanced through the NCAA East First Round with strong performances in both individual and relay events. Now she broke Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone’s collegiate record to claim the 400 m H NCAA title again. A glorious end to a great collegiate career, don’t you think?