Paris 2024 Olympics: "I want to defend my title, make history and inspire young girls"

Faith Kipyegon was determined to blow everything away this season. Her main goal was to break the 1500 m world record. It was, after all, the only thing missing from her glittering list of achievements. "I was working hard to get the 1500 m world record because I have a great record from the youth ranks through to the senior category (in the discipline) with medals, but no world record. If you do something and someone says to you: 'She's a world champion, she's an Olympic champion, she's a world junior champion... but... BUT!... she doesn't have a world record'", the queen of middle-distance running told World Athletics.

The Kenyan legend continued. "I wanted to get rid of that 'but'; to hold the 1500m world record and complete my historic journey over 1500m. It's something special."

Faith Kipyegon achieved her goal in phenomenal fashion. On 2 June in Florence, she took the record from Genzebe Dibaba with a time of 3min 49sec 11. She did not stop there. Kipyegon broke the world records for the 5,000 m and the mile before completing a historic 1,500 m and 5,000 m double at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest. Those performances earned her the 2023 World Athlete of the Year award. "I'm so proud of myself. Achieving what I achieved this year was wonderful. It was a dream come true," exclaimed the 29-year-old.

Patrick Sang's magic touch

Kipyegon's ability to deliver such performances is partly down to her coach, Patrick Sang. He has coached her since 2019, the year she returned to the track after the birth of her daughter, Alyn. "Faith started the season with a lot of optimism. She felt she had done good work. She had won two Olympic medals and four medals at the World Championships, but in all that collection, a world record was missing, especially over 1,500 m, an event she has been running for ages", said Sang, who also coaches two-time Olympic marathon champion Eliud Kipchoge.

The Kenyan coach added: "She was focused. We changed a few things in training because we wanted her to try the 5000m as well. Because of the few changes we made, she didn't expect to be able to run (the world record at this early stage of the season). So we went to Florence, and she told me: 'OK, I'm starting.' And she breaks a world record!"

Faith Kipyegon is now focused on 2024, and in particular the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. She is aiming for a third 1500 m title. "The goal for 2024 is of course the Paris Olympics. It's the big objective. I want to defend my title, make history and inspire young girls and mothers to know that anything is possible", said the two-time Olympic champion.