It was a dream! How Kipyegon reacted to new world record

• Kenyan athlete Faith Kipyegon has June 2 as the best day in life
• She recorded a new world record of 3:49:11 and crushed the previous 3:50.07 set by Genzebe Dibaba
• Kipyegon said that she still can’t believe that she achieved a long-life dream

Kenyan athlete Faith Kipyegon has June 2 as the best day in her life after breaking the women’s 1500 metres at the Florence Diamond League, in Italy.

She recorded a new world record of 3:49:11 and crushed the previous 3:50.07 set by Genzebe Dibaba of Ethiopia in Monaco in 2015.

Kipyegon said that she still can’t believe she achieved a long-life dream that was always in her heart.

Posting a new world is something she eyed in 2022 but she decided to take it slow and 2023 was the year she did it.

“I am really thankful, today was a wonderful day in which everything came together. The world record was in my mind since last year, but I wanted to approach it slowly by slowly to see what was possible this year.

Faith Kipyegon. Photo/Runner’s World

I can’t believe it! Now I have achieved what I wanted and what was in my heart and in my mind. All the athletes waiting for me at the finish line made me emotional. Thanks so much for all the support, it means a lot,” she said shortly after winning the race.

Kipyegon is a two-time Olympic Gold medalist and a double world champion making her one of Kenya’s finest female athlete.

The Kenyan athlete finished 12 seconds ahead of Laura Muir, the current European champion, and Jessica Hull of Australia.

DID FAITH KIPYEGON EVER LOSE A RACE IN FLORENCE?

Kipyegon lost the Florence race at Luigi Ridolfi Stadium where she narrowly lost to Sifan Hassan in a nail-biting 1500-meter race in 2021.

Hassan finished first after by setting a Meeting Record with a time of 3:53.63, while Kipyegon finished second in 3:53.91.

However, Kipyegon lowered this mark by more than three seconds to 3:50.37. She originally set this record in August 2022 at the Monaco Diamond League event, where she became the second-fastest woman in the world.

It is then that she trailed Dibaba, who was the immediate record holder in 3:50.07, also set in Monaco in 2015. Kipyegon, who has won 18 Diamond League events overall, has yet to claim a victory at the Golden Gala.

WHO WERE THE OTHER COMPETITORS RIVALING FAITH KIPYEGON?

She overcame stiff competition from Muir, a 1500-meter silver medalist from the Tokyo Olympics, who entered this race with a personal best and national record time of 3:54.50.

Kipyegon also trounced Diribe Welteji of Ethiopia, the reigning global indoor 3000m champion. Welteji had hopes of building on her successful season after being second behind Kipyegon in Doha in a time of 3:59.34.

The Ethiopian won the Los Angeles Grand Prix in a time of 3:57.84.

Faith Kipyegon Egerton. Photo/Egerton University

Gabriela Debues, the current Canadian record holder, was also eyeing major victory in Florence.

She entered this event with a personal best time of 3:58.93, which she earned in Tokyo. American athletes Jessica Hull,  and Linden Hall; Clara Mageean of Ireland, Josette Andrews Norrie of the United States, and Sage Hurta Klecker, were also in Florence.

Further, the home crowd was all out for Federica Del Buono, and 2015 European Indoor 1500m bronze medalist, Ludovica Cavalli, who improved her personal best to 4:04.79 in Rabat.

Another major contender was Sintayehu Vissa, the national indoor mile record holder with a time of 4:24.54 from the Millrose Games in New York.