The world-record holder had been set to compete in all three events at the US Olympic trials this month, but as of Tuesday, she was marked as a "scratch" in the 200 and 400. At a media event in Los Angeles introducing Michael Johnson's new track league, McLaughlin-Levrone confirmed her decision to concentrate on the hurdles, which she referred to as "my first love, per se."

"I think we kind of just knew we wanted to come back to the hurdles," McLaughlin-Levrone told The Associated Press. "Last year was fun trying the (400-metre flat race) and kind of dabbling in that, and you know, in the future we might come back to that as well, but I think this is kind of just our focus right now."

Nearly three weeks ago in Atlanta, McLaughlin-Levrone ran her first 400 hurdles race in almost two years, finishing in 52.70 seconds, meeting the Olympic standard. McLaughlin-Levrone also enjoys "to show my range," and she has demonstrated that recently. Nine days ago, she ran a 400 flat at the NYC Grand Prix in 48.75 seconds, the third fastest time in US history.

This year alone, the 24-year-old has competed in five different events: the 100 and 400 hurdles, the 200 and 400 flat, and the 4x100 relay. She also has an Olympic gold medal in the 4x400 relay. While she has hinted at taking on more significant challenges since her Tokyo victory, her specific plans were unclear until recently. 

However, running both the 400 flat and hurdles was not feasible due to schedule conflicts in Paris. Thus, McLaughlin-Levrone is focusing on the hurdles, which her coach, Bobby Kersee, recently called her "No. 1 event." 

She first broke the 400 hurdles world record at the 2021 Olympic trials and has since lowered it three times, most recently to 50.68 seconds at the 2022 World Championships in Eugene, Oregon, where the trials will be held starting Friday. Heading into her third trials, McLaughlin-Levrone, now a seasoned competitor, is well aware of the pressure but embraces it.

"I feel like trials is always a good time to figure out what the rounds look like and the fitness is at," she said. "We have some time still before Paris, but it's always the hardest team to make, so we've obviously got to go out there and put on a performance first."

McLaughlin-Levrone was injured during last year's World Championships, allowing Femke Bol of the Netherlands to claim the title. Bol will be her main competitor in Paris. The first round of the 400 hurdles at trials is on 27 June. "Just feeling strong, feeling healthy, and getting ready for these trials," she concluded.