"Much closer"- Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone’s training partner Athing Mu makes her feelings clear on progress and closing in on top form 

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone's training partner, Athing Mu, opened up about her form after competing at the 2025 USATF Championships. The event commenced on July 31 and will conclude on August 3 in Eugene, Oregon, at Hayward Field.

Mu competed in the first round of the 800m at the USATF Championships, where she earned a second-place finish. She qualified for the final round by clocking a time of 2:00.06, behind Sage Hurta-Klecker, who claimed the first position with a time of 1:59.28. Following this race, Mu fielded questions surrounding the ins and outs of her form.

Mu was asked about how close she felt to being at the level she expected. Giving a positive reply, she shared all the adversities she navigated while honing her skills. Talking about reaching her top form, Athing Mu said:

"I think we're much closer. Way closer than how I started. I think we had to get a couple weeks of training and just overcoming a couple of obstacles mentally and so I think it's a good opportunity to be here and be able to have these three rounds and obviously the USA's where it's a bit more heightened of a meet. So, I think it's going to be really helpful for me and leading up to the end of summer, the fall, I guess."

The 800m runner is usually seen hanging out with the 400m hurdles champion, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, as they train together at the same camp. Mu was seen hyping up the hurdler, as she commended her for her look, calling it 'classy.'

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone's training partner Athing Mu opened up about her struggles after hitting a career low

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone's training partner, Athing Mu, opened her 800m of the 2025 season at the 50th edition of the Prefontaine Classic. Here, she finished last after registering a time of 2:03.44s.

Following this upsetting race, the American sat for a conversation with track and field analyst Katelyn Hutchinson, where the former expressed how she kept herself motivated despite the setbacks.

Talking about the hard work and how she built her hope, Mu said:

“Yeah, I mean, honestly, it's been super challenging. I think coming from Olympic Trials, at first it was like, all right, then going through a bit of summer training and hoping to compete a little bit, I had some injuries, and so that kind of made us just cancel out our season and look forward to the next year.”

The 2024 US Olympic trials didn't pan out as expected for Mu, as she tripped and fell in the first 200m, shattering her Olympic dreams. The injury she sustained here forced her to end the season and focus on 2025.

“That was a little bit challenging on top of Olympic Trials, so I've had to try and find my love again. I don’t know, I feel like saying ‘find my love for the sport’ is a little bit cliché,” she added.

On the other hand, her training partner, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, delivered a dominant performance in the 400m hurdles at the Paris Olympics, as she clocked a world record in the event.

Edited by Hitesh Nigam