Faith Kipyegon sets record after opening track season in Xiamen Diamond League
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Reading Time: 2min | Sat. 26.04.25. | 16:19
Kipyegon crossed the line ahead of Australians Abbey Caldwell and Sarah Billings, who finished second and third in 2:32.94 and 2:33.45, respectively
Three-time Olympic 1500m champion Faith Kipyegon launched her 2025 track season in style, setting a new meet record and world lead of 2:29.21 in the 1000m race at the Xiamen Diamond League in China on Saturday.
Kipyegon crossed the line ahead of Australians Abbey Caldwell and Sarah Billings, who finished second and third in 2:32.94 and 2:33.45, respectively.
The four-time world champion, who already holds the African record over the distance at 2:29.15, came just 0.2 seconds shy of Svetlana Masterkova’s long-standing world record.
JUST OUTSIDE 🤏
— Wanda Diamond League (@Diamond_League) April 26, 2025
Faith Kipyegon 🇰🇪 just misses the World Record in the women’s 1000m.
She goes a stellar 2:29.21 but will have to continue to chase what alludes her!
📸 Marta Gorczyńska for Diamond League AG#DiamondLeague 💎 #XiamenDL 🇨🇳 pic.twitter.com/b0PleJQwc5
A serial record-breaker on the Diamond League circuit, Kipyegon rewrote the history books four times between 2023 and 2024.
Now, with her sights firmly set on the Tokyo World Championships in September, she hopes this strong start will pave the way for more success in the months ahead.
Kipyegon began her training for the season back in January. Saturday’s race marked her first competitive appearance since the inaugural Athlos Meeting in September, where she claimed victory in the 1500m with a time of 4:04.79.
In the first Diamond League meet of the season, Kipyegon looked every bit the champion she is.
She reclaimed the world lead, surpassing Georgia Griffith’s previous best of 2:34.50 set in March.
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The world record — 2:28.98 — has stood untouched since 1996, held by Russia’s Svetlana Masterkova.
While Kipyegon didn’t break it this time, she came agonizingly close.
She already owns the Diamond League record, which she set in 2020 in Monaco with a time of 2:29.15.
In her first race of the year, Kipyegon showed no signs of rust, unleashing a powerful finishing kick that saw her fall just short of the world mark.
The 31-year-old made her intentions clear from the gun, taking an early lead before easing into the rhythm of the race.
But when the bell sounded for the final lap, she shifted gears effortlessly, leaving her rivals trailing as she powered to an emphatic finish.
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