Who can beat Faith Kipyegon? As the Olympic 1,500-meter champion at Rio 2016 and at Tokyo 2021, two-time world champion on that distance (2017, 2022) and world record-holder in the mile (1.609.34 meters), 1,500 meters and 5,000 meters, the Kenyan crushes the middle-distance scene with her sharp stride. At the 2023 World Athletics Championships, the 29-year-old will add some spice to the competition: she will be vying for not one, but two gold medals.
"The 1,500m remains my favorite event, but I'm doing really well in the 5,000m. So I'm going to double up in both in Budapest," revealed the double Olympic champion in a World Athletics press release. She will be at the starting line for the 1,500-meter final on Tuesday, August 22, and the 5,000-meter final is scheduled for Saturday, August 26.
This double win has never been achieved, but it seems within reach for the athlete, who has been on the podium of each of her races since October 2019. The formidable Ethiopian athlete Gudaf Tsegay, who was unsuccessful on the same double in Eugene, Oregon, last year, no longer seems to be in a position to stand up to her. Kipyegon is now competing only against herself.
She has demonstrated her supremacy this season. In the space of a week, she swept aside the benchmarks set by Ethiopian Genzebe Dibaba on the 1,500m, in Florence, Italy (3 min 49.11 s) and Letesenbet Gidey on the 5,000m, in Paris (14 min 5.20 s) – a distance she hadn't run in eight years. "I went into the race thinking I just wanted to improve my personal best and take on a new challenge. I still can't believe it!" she told Le Monde in the corridors of the Charléty stadium on June 10.
Two months later, the scenario was the same in Monaco. Aided by the wavelight – a luminous marker at the edge of the track that gives information on the pace to be set – the athlete smashed the old world record for the mile, which was previously held by Dutch runner Sifan Hassan. The mile – inherited from Britain – is not on the program for the Budapest Worlds, but the feat confirms her outrageous domination.
With records and medals in the bag, asking what still makes Kipyegon run is a logical question. The 1.57m-tall athlete immediately answered, "Setting more records! I can see myself going all the way to the marathon." When it comes to versatility, the young woman has plenty to inspire her: She trains with Patrick Sang at the Kaptagat center in Kenya, alongside Eliud Kipchoge, world marathon record holder and former world champion in the 5,000 meters. Something to aspire to. "She never complains. She does the work. She is a very focused athlete," Sang told Agence France-Presse, comparing her to Kipchoge.
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