Sydney McLaughlin’s story is interesting; the American track and field athlete is one of the best to have raced in the 400m Hurdles, setting up the world record for 4 times; she even brought an Olympic silver to the USA in 2021, and yet criticism does not leave her, sometimes for her personality on the track and sometimes for not showing up at the track at all. But what makes the Olympian immune to all this is her husband.

The Levrones showed up on the 34th  episode of Jinger and Jeremy Vuolo’s podcast, where, among many interesting discussions like the runner cheating herself, they were asked about the ways the two athletes support each other. Andre Levrone very much had her wife’s back over the critics. “If she’s putting on a show, there’s other people who put on shows and do their own thing and I think she’s just very authentic; it honestly rubs some people the wrong way, um, her glorifying God and being a humble leader,” said the former NFL player.

The man talked of his wife’s perspective over the critics, citing, “I mean, there’s people who will say, Oh, you’re ruining the sport because you aren’t a showman or a showwoman, and she’s just like that’s not who I am, like I’m a humble servant of the Lord, and I’m very talented and I’m going to be diligent at what I do.” This was just another instance of the couple showing their strong religious values, something that is common for both Sydney and Andre.

Once the youngest player to have ever qualified for the Olympics, she intentionally missed out on many races like the several Diamond League meets in Europe, such as the Monaco Herculis and Zürich Weltklasse, to reduce stress. Similarly, she has previously opted out of other non‑essential international meets that don’t contribute directly to her preparation, choosing instead to focus on key domestic competitions like the USATF Championships and Olympic Trials.

This has brought a lot of negative comments towards the Paris Olympics Gold Medalist in the 400m Hurdle event. In her own words, “I get a lot of flak for not showing enough personality on the track.” This has even been surprising to her husband over the nature of track and field and its enthusiasts.

Sydney McLaughlin’s husband believes track and field to be harsh

On the very same episode of Jinger and Jeremy Vuolo’s podcast, the couple was also asked about their relationship with anxiety, to which the 29-year-old gave a beautiful answer, “I think our relationship together with anxiety has been intense; it’s been unique; it’s been refining,” and also recalls how he has not and at the same time has experienced the pre-Olympic night.

He continues, “I haven’t experienced the night before an Olympic final but I’m doing it almost vicariously with you and I’m walking shoulder to shoulder with you.” Cleary, every time the olympian looks to her right or left, she would see her husband, although he is a little skeptical of track and field.

The Maryland native said, “It’s an individual sport. Um, I will take a second to say, like you mentioned, it’s the most unforgiving sport, right? Like she’s saying, if I run more than 50 seconds, I did something wrong. You know what I’m saying—that’s a blink of an eye.” Of course, when you are the Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, you are bound to some expectations. Having set up the record of 50.37 seconds for 400m Hurdles, taking a second more is a big no-no.