Faith Kipyegon gave a sold-out Hayward Field the show they came for on Saturday in the women’s 1500 meters.
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On the 50th anniversary of the Prefontaine Classic, with a deep Diamond League field featuring some of the world’s fastest women, the Kenyan great chased after her limits once again, breaking her 2024 world record (3:49.04) in a new time of 3:48.68—with a last lap split of 59.02.
Early on, Australian Jessica Hull nipped at Kipyegon’s heels, keeping the Olympic champion at bay. But with the Kenyan showing another gear in the final lap, Hull couldn’t keep up and Ethiopian Diribe Welteji slipped into second, finishing in 3:51.44. Hull was third in 3:52.67.
After the race, Kipyegon said that the high-quality field helped motivate her. “To be honest, the ladies are pushing me, too, because they are running quick now, and I’m happy that when I broke a world record, they are all running very fast, and that is what I wanted, to motivate the younger generation to come and do even better,” she said.
Kipyegon’s performance came just nine days after a historic attempt at the sub-4 mile, where her Another world record had commenced, amid a glitz of media and marketing exposure. She ended up coming up short of her intended goal on June 26, clocking a non-World Athletics sanctioned time of 4:06.42—about a 0.5-percent improvement from her previous mark of 4:07.64—even with the bevy of pacers and technology afforded to the attempt.
But Kipyegon’s window for history apparently hadn’t closed. And neither had her poise.
Days before the women’s 1500 meters, Prefontaine Classic organizers moved the race so it would be the meet’s final event, which signaled a world record attempt could be in order.
Kipyegon, the winner of the gold medal in the women’s 1500 meters over the last three Olympic Games, didn’t wait long to reset after Breaking4. The last time she broke a world record, last July at the Paris Diamond League in 2024, she waited 26 days before her next performance.
Saturday’s race was Kipyegon’s seventh win in a 1500 meter race at Prefontaine.
Nikki Hiltz was the top American in the race. They were part of a chase pack that narrowed the race into the final lap, and they finished in fifth in 3:55.96.
