Faith Kipyegon/ FILETriple Olympic 1,500m champion Faith Kipyegon is bullish ahead of her 3,000m appearance today at the Silesia Diamond League, where she could launch an audacious assault on one of the sport’s most enduring records.
It is expected that Kipyegon will have a crack at the long-standing women's 3,000m mark of 8:06.11 set by Wang Junxia in 1993 in Beijing.
Kipyegon's best over the distance stands at 8:23.55, a mark she set back at the 2014 Doha Diamond League, where she placed third.
Her time from Doha 2014 places her in position 39 in the all-time women's rankings.
The four-time World Champion has featured in two other 3,000m races.
In 2015, she clocked 8:38.91, placing eighth at the Prefontaine Classic.
Her last 3,000m race was in 2022 at the Doha meeting, where she clocked 8:38.05 for a second-place finish.
Speaking during the Silesia Diamond League press conference on Friday afternoon, Kipyegon exuded confidence of top results during today's race.
"I am grateful to be back in Poland, this is the country I ran my very first international race barefoot, so it holds a lot of memories for me. I am looking forward to tomorrow's race to see what I can do over 3,000m," Kipyegon said.
Kipyegon noted that attacking the 3,000m mark is part of her way to inspire young female athletes to dream and believe in themselves.
"I would like to see young girls pushing themselves to do the impossible just like my race at the Breaking 4," she added.
At the Nike Breaking 4 attempt on June 26, Kipyegon was attempting to become only the first woman in history to run a mile in under four minutes.
She, however, fell short, clocking 4:06.42.
Since launching her 2025 campaign in Xiamen on April 26, Kipyegon has been in imperious form.
She opened her season with a sizzling 2:29.21 in the 1,000m, just shy of Russia's Svetlana Masterkova’s 1996 world record of 2:28.98.
At the Prefontaine Classic on July 5, Kipyegon obliterated her world 1,500m record, stopping the clock at a swift 3:48.68, to become the first woman ever to dip under 3:49.
In that race, she led Ethiopia's Diribe Welteji (3:51.44) and Australia's Jessica Hull (3:52.67).
Meanwhile, Reynold Cheruiyot hopes for victory in the men's 1,500m to boost his chances of a Diamond League finals appearance in Zurich on August 28.
Cheruiyot sits third in the rankings with 14 points, joint with five-time trophy winner Timothy Cheruiyot.
Only Azeddine Habz has qualified for the finals, having amassed 19 points.
In Silesia, Reynold will team up with Timothy, Abel Kipsang and Festus Lagat to form a formidable Kenyan contingent.
They will, however, have to face off against two-time Olympic 3,000m steeplechase champion Soufiane El Bakkali of Morocco and Americans Yared Nuguse, Josh Hoey and Hobbs Kessler.
