Faith Kipyegon is not done with her 2024 season despite a great run at the Diamond League Meeting final in Brussels where she claimed her fifth trophy.
Following her impressive win in Brussels, she now shifts focus to Alex Ohanian’s women-only event, Athlos, scheduled for September 26. The three-time Olympic champion will be out to showcase her talent and also hopes to bag the hefty prize money of $60,000 for the winners with the second-place and third-place finishers set to walk away with $25,000, and $10,000.
Kipyegon ends season on a high by setting another record in Brussels to take home the 1500m Diamond League title yet again.
In a post-race interview, Kipyegon recounted starting her season with an injury but was grateful for how things turned out throughout the season. She made history at the Paris Olympics, becoming the first woman to win the 1500m title three times in a row. She also claimed the 5000m silver medal in Paris.
“Hopefully, I will finish my season in New York in a good way. It will be my last race of the season. I am still looking forward to the race. I started my season very late because of a small problem and I still feel strong,” Kipyegon said.
In Brussels, the three-time world 1500m champion clocked a stunning meeting record time of 3:54.75 to win the race ahead of Diribe Welteji and Jessica Hull who finished second and third in respective times of 3:54.75 and 3:56.99.
She explained that the world record was not in her plans to race in Brussels and noted that she did not expect to clock such a fast time owing to the cold weather conditions.
“It was a good race and I really thank God for that. The world record was not on my mind today. My goal was to finish my Diamond League season in a good way and I did. It was a good race, but definitely not an easy one. It was a bit cold to run 61 seconds in the first lap and 62 seconds for the next lap. I tried to be myself and focus on the finish line,” she said.