Faith Kipyegon of Kenya, is widely regarded as the greatest women’s distance runner of all time, and this season has solidified that claim. To start off, she broke 3 of the most coveted world records in distance running: the 1500m, 1 mile, and 5000m. On June 2nd, Kipyegon broke the 1500m world record, running 3:49.11 and becoming the first woman to break 3:50. This was an astonishing record many expected from Faith. What was unexpected, however, was that Faith would come back a week later and shatter the 5000m world record, running 14:05.20. No one saw this coming, and by the look on her face, neither did Kipyegon. It was a thrilling week for the track and field community, and one can only imagine how Faith was feeling about it…on second thought, it was evident how she was feeling: hungry for more. On July 21st, Faith broke the women’s mile world record in another blistering time of 4:07.65. This was the cherry on top of her world records, as she demolished the world record by almost five seconds! On top of breaking record after record, Faith did not disappoint with her winning nature.
Faith Kipyegon competed in the 1500m final during the August World Athletic Championships held in Budapest. Faith blew the competition out of the water, and it was no easy feat. To put it in perspective, Faith was competing among the best women distance runners in the world, including Sifan Hassan, the previous record holder of the women’s mile. After this performance, Kipyegon’s Goat status had been solidified; many thought it would be her last race of the season. But everyone was wrong when Faith decided to toe the line at the legendary Steve Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Oregon. She broke the meet record as she casually ran the 4th fastest time in history, running 3:50.72. This was extraordinary and shows just how dominant Faith’s 2023 has been. Many are incredibly excited for 2024 and the Paris Olympics, and there is no doubt that Faith will be there to challenge the 1500m gold.