Published on July 7, 2024 by Agencies for Kenya Online News
Last Updated on 2 years by Agencies for Kenya Online News
PARIS — Olympic double champion Faith Kipyegon of Kenya broke her own world record in the women’s 1,500 meters at the Diamond League track and field meeting in the French City of Paris on Sunday, July 7th, 2024.
Kipyegon finished in 3:49.04, surpassing her record of 3:49.11, which was set in Italy last year.
Nine other runners in the race achieved personal bests. Jessica Hull of Australia finished second in 3:50.83, smashing her own Oceania record by five seconds. Laura Muir was third in a British record of 3:53.79.
Kipyegon’s performance came less than an hour after Ukraine’s Yaroslava Mahuchikh broke the world high jump record with a leap of 2.10 meters.
Kipyegon, 30, is a two-time Olympic gold medalist in the 1,500, having won in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 and Tokyo in 2021.
“I knew the world record was possible because I recently ran very fast in Kenya,” said Kipyegon, who clocked 3:53.98 at Kenya’s Olympic trials. “I was coming here to just run my race and to see what shape I’m in to defend my title at the Olympics.”
Before Sunday, she had only run twice in 2024, in the 1,500 and 5,000, to secure her spot for the Paris Olympics at the Kenyan trials in June.
Kipyegon is also the holder of the women’s mile World Record set during the Monaco Diamond League in 2023.
She clocked 4:07.64 in the mile, destroying Ethiopia’s Sifan Hassan’s four-year-old record of 4:12.33.
Kipyegon, 30, is also the former world record holder for the 5,000 metres.
