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Faith Kipyegon breaks women’s 5,000m world record in Paris

In the past seven days, Kenya's Kipyegon has made history by rewriting the record books in middle-distance running, setting not just one, but two world records

faith kipyegon Photo by: Kevin Morris
June 9, 2023
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Kenya’s Faith Kipyegon is officially the queen of the middle distance. A week after setting a 1,500m world record at the Diamond League meet in Florence, Italy, Kipyegon stepped up to the 5,000m and did not disappoint. She clocked an unbelievable world record time of 14:05.20 at Paris Diamond League on Friday, beating the former record holder, Ethiopia’s Letesenbet Gidey, in a heroic final lap performance.

This remarkable achievement comes just a week after Kipyegon had already made headlines by smashing the 1,500m world record in a sensational time of 3:49.11. The 29-year-old mother and athlete surpassed the previous 5,000m world record of 14:06.62, held by Gidey, who came second to Kipyegon in the race in 14:07.94. This 5,000m was Kipyegon’s first in nearly eight years, resulting in a staggering improvement of her previous personal best by 26 seconds.

Kipyegon engaged in a captivating duel against Gidey, sharing the lead three to four times over the final two kilometres. On the final lap, the Kenyan 1,500m specialist unleashed a remarkable sub-60-second lap, propelling her to victory in record time. Kipyegon sat in the lead pack for the first 3,000m and did not push the pace at the front until the final five laps. Kipyegon may have the potential to become the first woman to break the 14-minute barrier.

The Kenyan wasn’t the only runner to break a world record at the Paris Diamond League on Friday. Norway’s Jakob Ingebrigtsen smashed the two-mile world best of 7:58.61 by four seconds, which has stood since 1997.

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