Two-time Olympics and World champion Faith Kipyegon says she wants to break the seven year old 3:50.07 World 1500m record held by Ethiopia’s Genzebe Dibaba.
Kipyegon ran 3:52.96 to win her second World 1500m gold in Oregon, USA last year and the Kenyan and came close to breaking Dibaba’s world record barely three weeks later at the Herculis EBS Diamond League meeting in Monaco when she stopped the clock at 3:50.37.
Ineterestingly, it was at the same Stade Louis II and same event in Monaco Dibaba set the world record in July 2015.
Kipyegon has now become the fourth woman after Dibaba and the Chinese duo of Yunxia Qu (3:50.46) and Jiang Bo (3:50.98) to run 3.50 in the 1500m.
The Kenyan is currently ranked second behind Dibaba in the event’s all-time list and now she feels she can become the fastest of all.
‘I’m hoping that this year will be a successful one for me and all Kenyan athletes. I have very high expectations. I intend to break the world record, and I hope to do
so in style. I narrowly missed out on the record last year, and I’m not sure how,’ Kipyegon told the Daily Star of Kenya.
The 29 year old also revealed she would be moving up to the marathon after conquering the 1500m with the world record.
She wishes to emulate fellow Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge, the Marathon world record holder who is regarded as the greatest marathon runner of all time.
‘As my career progresses, I will continue to look up to Eliud because he is the greatest marathoner of all time. That is something I hope to do in the future,” Kipyegon said.
