Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is in a league of her own.

On Thursday, she became the first woman in almost 40 years to run the 400 meters in under 48 seconds, running 47.78 on her way to winning the gold medal at the World Championships in Tokyo. Her time was just shy of German Marita Koch's world record time of 47.60, which was set in 1985.

After dominating the hurdles for the last several years,  McLaughlin-Levrone won her first global title in the 400 flat.

Second-place finisher Marileidy Paulino clocked in at 47.98 and third-place finisher Salwa Eid Nasar posted a time of 48.19.

After the race, McLaughlin-Levrone praised her competitors.

"You don't run something like that without amazing women pushing you to it," McLaughlin-Levrone said.

The victory marked McLaughlin-Levrone's 19th straight victory in a one-lap race - hurdles and flat. She hasn’t lost since June 2023.

“I had faith in my training,” she said. “I knew I had it in me to run that fast. It was just a matter of time.”

“My coach Bobby Kersee uses boxing terms all the time,” the New Jersey native said. “He said, ‘You got to go out there and take the belt. It’s not yours, and you got to go earn it.”

McLaughlin-Levrone, who is a two-time Olympic gold medalist and the 2022 world champion in the women’s 400m hurdles, can add 400m world champion to her impeccable resume.

It may be a new race, but it's the same result: McLaughlin-Levrone taking home the top prize.