Kenyan athlete Faith Kipyegon has once again made history by breaking her own world record in the women’s 1,500 meters at the Diamond League track and field meeting in Paris on Sunday, July 7, 2024.
Kipyegon finished the race in an astonishing 3:49.04, surpassing her previous record of 3:49.11, set in Italy last year.
“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.”
The race was remarkable not only for Kipyegon’s record-breaking performance but also for the achievements of other competitors.
Nine other runners achieved personal bests, with Jessica Hull of Australia finishing second in 3:50.83, smashing her own Oceania record by five seconds. Laura Muir of Great Britain finished third, setting a British record of 3:53.79.
At 30 years old, Kipyegon is a two-time Olympic gold medalist in the 1,500 meters, having won in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 and Tokyo in 2021. Before this race in Paris, she had only competed twice in 2024, in the 1,500 and 5,000 meters, to secure her spot for the Paris Olympics at the Kenyan trials in June.
Kipyegon’s stunning performance came less than an hour after Ukraine’s Yaroslava Mahuchikh broke the world high jump record with a leap of 2.10 meters, adding to the excitement of the event.
