
Olympic Track Champ Conquered Fear with Faith: ‘Never Truly Alone’
By Movieguide® Contributor
Track and field star Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is keeping her eyes on God after an impressive 2024 season.
The athlete set multiple world records and won two Olympic Gold medals for Team USA. But her faith in Jesus helped her accomplish it all.
She reflected on her relationship with God in a recent Instagram post:
Walk with grace,
though the path is narrow
even when peace seems far
no matter the distance to go
though the flesh is weak
keep walking in His will
not by your own strength
walk in a manner worthy of
of the calling to which you’ve been called
even if you walk alone,
you’re never truly alone
fix your eyes ahead,
where He is waiting
though valleys will come
and arrows will be drawn
keep walking in faith.
“For so long, I thought everything was up to me. What pressure to put on myself! No wonder fear had me in its grip. It wasn’t until the Covid pandemic that I opened up to two people who ended up changing my life,” Levrone explained in an article for Guideposts.
READ MORE: HOW SYDNEY MCLAUGHLIN-LEVRONE’S FAITH INFORMS LIFE: ‘NO FEAR OF NOT BEING ENOUGH’
She began to find freedom when she started opening up to coaches, church friends and her now husband, Andre.
“In January 2021, Andre came to visit me. One night he suggested we listen to a sermon on Colossians 3. Verses 8 through 10 jumped out at me, especially the part about putting on the new self, ‘which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its creator,'” Levrone recalled.
“That’s when it clicked for me,” she added. “I’d been keeping faith, family, track and relationships on their own separate islands. But the Lord wanted every part of me. He wanted my hopes and ambitions and my insecurities and anxieties. Everything.”
That night, Levrone got on her knees and asked the Lord into her heart.
“An indescribable joy swept over me in that moment,” she described. “Surrendering to God was not giving up my freedom; it was finding it.”
Now the Olympic champ knows that her value doesn’t come from her achievements but rather who she is in Christ.
“Your value is not based in whether you win or lose this race,” McLaughlin-Levrone said. “You are loved before and after. You are secure in Christ. You get to do what you love and glorify God on that stage.”
READ MORE: OLYMPIAN KNOWS WHERE TO FIND HER VALUE, AND IT’S NOT IN GOLD MEDALS