New Jersey writer predicted greatness for Sydney McLaughlin in 2016 and he was exactly right

Sydney McLaughlin, center, was all smiles after not only winning the gold medal but breaking her own world's record in the 400-meter hurdles. (Team USA Photo)

As soon as Sydney McLaughlin announced she would sign with Kentucky, I knew it would be big news. She had qualified for the 2016 Olympics when she was 16 years old and actually made the semifinals in the 400-meter hurdles. What I didn’t know was just how special the young hurdler might be until I called Jim Lambert, a reporter then for NJ Advance Media. He had seen her compete often as a high school athlete in New Jersey and his words from five years ago are golden today after McLaughlin not only won the 400-meter hurdles in Tokyo Tuesday but broke her own world’s record.

“She is a once in a generation type athlete. Once she stepped on the track and I saw her, I knew she had ability I had not seen. I knew she was destined for greatness,” said Lambert.

At age 13, McLaughlin broke the New Jersey state record in the 400-meter hurdles. At age 16, she made the U.S. Olympic team in a world junior record time of 54.15 seconds. She was the youngest United States Olympian in 44 years.

“She captivated the hearts of the country by making the Olympics at age 16,” Lambert said five years ago. “A lot were shocked when she picked Kentucky but anyone who knows her sees why UK is the perfect fit for Sydney. She went to USC (Southern California) and Kentucky and then canceled the rest of her visits.”

Her father was a U.S. semifinalist in the 400 Olympic Trials. Her sister was a state track champion. Her brother was a Big Ten champion at Michigan. She honed her skills at Union Catholic High School in Scotch Plains, N.J., and then for one year at UK under coach Eric Floreal — who also coached hurdle medalists Jasmine Camacho-Quinn and Keni Harrison at UK before McLaughlin arrived.

“She has great genes along with a great work ethic. She is willing to do everything it takes to be special along with having a lot of God-given ability,” Lambert said in 2016. “You need to get to the track and see this girl. She made the Olympics when she was 16, which is mind-boggling. But she’s only scratching the surface of what she will be.

“For Sydney to do what she did at that age blows my mind. Most hurdlers reach their peak in their mid-20’s. She was competing against women who have been doing this for 10 years. For her to get to Rio is one of the greatest accomplishments in track and field history. To do something that has not been in 44 years says it all. We may never see this again.”

McLaughlin was a skilled soccer and basketball player in middle school before deciding to concentrate on track where some have compared her to nine-time Olympic medalist Alyson Felix, who is also on this year’s U.S. Olympic team.

“That’s how great Sydney could be. The baton could be passed from Felix to her in the future,” Lambert said five years ago. “As long as she stays healthy and keeps this passion, it could happen.

“You are going to see greatness and UK fans are going to be treated to something special. You have to go see her. I can’t sleep the night before I am going to see her run. She is unbelievable.”

If anything, she’s even more unbelievable now than she was in 2016 when I first talked to Lambert and everything he said about her has come true. She’s one of the nation’s elite athletes now and a superstar at age 21.