Latest news with #Kenya
The Guardian
8 hours ago
- Sport
- The Guardian
Faith Kipyegon certain a woman will break four-minute mile barrier within a decade
Faith Kipyegon remains convinced that a woman will break the four-minute mile barrier within 10 years, despite falling more than six seconds short in her record attempt in Paris. It was a disappointing result for Kipyegon and her sponsor Nike, who had hoped that aerodynamic skinsuits, lighter super spikes and a team of 13 pacers would help the 31-year-old Kenyan get within touching distance of the famous mark. But speaking to the Guardian on the morning after running 4min 06.42sec in Paris, Kipyegon insisted she was still proud to have rolled the dice – and to have run a mile quicker than any woman in history. She also predicted that new technology was coming that would also help Britain's Keely Hodgkinson break the women's 800m world record of 1min 53.28sec, which has stood since 1983. 'Absolutely there will be a woman running a mile in under four minutes,' she said. 'And I think it will take less than 10 years. And if it doesn't come my way, it will be someone else doing it.' Asked why she was so confident, given the gap was still more than six seconds, she replied: 'Going forward, the technology will be even higher than what I was using yesterday. So I think one day, one time, it will happen.' Kipyegon admitted that she had struggled in the final 200m, having heard the bell in 3:01. But she insisted she would not have changed anything about her attempt. 'Birds sometimes fall but they fly again,' she said. 'I believe I will still lower the world record of 4.07. I want to get it very close to the four minutes mark. And I believe I can still run under 4.05 in a race with female pacemakers.' Kipyegon's next race will be over 1500m at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Oregon, next week, and she insists she is in shape to challenge her world record of 3:49.04. However she said there are no plans yet to have another crack at the four-minute mile barrier. In Paris she spoke to Hodgkinson, who told her she is hungry to go faster once she has recovered from a hamstring injury. 'I talked with Keely yesterday about everything,' said Kipyegon. 'And my run was a huge inspiration for her. She's hungry to go under 1.54 in the 800m. And I think Keely Hodgkinson one day, one time, will run under 1.53. She is so fast.' Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend's action after newsletter promotion Nike's chief innovation officer, Tony Bignell, who has worked with the company since helping design spikes for Michael Johnson at the Atlanta and Sydney Games, promised that there would be more innovation and attempts at breaking records. 'Yes, I've seen things in the lab, and I've put things on my foot where I've thought: 'I've never felt that before,'' said Bignell. 'And that's coming. 'Last night could have been anywhere on a scale of zero to 10, but we took the risk. And taking risks is a good thing.'
The Guardian
16 hours ago
- Sport
- The Guardian
Faith Kipyegon misses four-minute mile barrier by six seconds
Faith Kipyegon ran a 4:06.42 mile in an attempt to become the first woman to run a mile under four minutes. Running as a part of Nike's 'Breaking4' project, the three-time 1500m Olympic Champion broke her own record by 1.22 seconds. However, the new time won't count because she was being paced by men, which is against World Athletics rules. Speaking after the race, Kipyegon said: 'I will say I gave it all.' She added: 'I think that next time I will still keep giving it all and see where I will make it but I hope, one day, one time, it will be there.'
National Post
16 hours ago
- Sport
- National Post
Olympic champion Faith Kipyegon falls short in her attempt to break 4-minute mile
Three-time Olympic champion Faith Kipyegon failed in her bid Thursday to become the first woman to run a mile in under four minutes. Article content Kipyegon, the Olympic 1,500-meter gold medalist from Kenya, ran in 4 minutes, 06.42 seconds — the fastest mile in history by a woman — at Stade Charlety in Paris. Article content Article content Her time was better than her world record of 4:07.64 but won't be recognized by the international federation because the Nike-sponsored event dubbed ' Breaking4: Faith Kipyegon vs. the 4-Minute Mile ' was unofficial. She was supported by pacemakers and equipped with Nike's latest innovations, from her aerodynamic track suit to her spikes. Article content Article content 'I gave everything today to try, it was not about running a tactical race' Kipyegon said. 'It was the first trial. I have proven that it's possible and it's only a matter of time. I think it will come to our way. If it's not me, it will be somebody else. I know one day, one time a woman will run under 4:00. I will not lose hope. I will still go for it.' Article content The 31-year-old Kipyegon looked exhausted as she reached the finish and fell on her back as she was surrounded by photographers. Article content Her attempt took place on a balmy summer's evening with a temperature of 25 degrees Celsius (77 Fahrenheit) and limited wind, in front of an audience of a few thousand people. She used a team of 13 elite pace setters made of 11 men and two women who were positioned in front and behind her to reduce drag. Article content She stayed on the inside of the track throughout her punishing effort. She appeared to struggle midway through the race and failed in her attempt to shave at least 7.65 seconds off her world record. To achieve the feat, Kipyegon would have needed to run each of her four laps an average of about two seconds faster. Article content Article content 'I think next time we will catch up with the light,' Kipyegon added, joking about the Wavelight, a pace-setting system using a series of LED lights on the inside of the track making it easier to follow whether an athlete is ahead, or falling behind. Article content Kipyegon also had a message for her daughter and young girls watching. Article content 'I will tell them we are not limited,' she said. 'We can limit ourselves with thoughts, but it is possible to try everything and prove to the world that we are strong. Keep pushing.' Article content Among the guests in Paris were Carl Lewis and Kipyegon's fellow Kenyan runner, longtime friend and training partner Eliud Kipchoge. Article content It was more than 71 years ago when British runner Roger Bannister became the first man to eclipse four minutes in 3:59.4. Article content
Al Jazeera
16 hours ago
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Kenyan minister caught urging police to shoot protesters
Kenyan minister caught urging police to shoot protesters NewsFeed enya's Interior Minister Kipchumba Murkomen has been caught on video appearing to authorise police to shoot protesters. Murkomen made the comments after at least 16 people were killed during protests over police brutality on Wednesday. Video Duration 00 minutes 39 seconds 00:39 Video Duration 01 minutes 49 seconds 01:49 Video Duration 00 minutes 39 seconds 00:39 Video Duration 02 minutes 43 seconds 02:43 Video Duration 02 minutes 39 seconds 02:39 Video Duration 02 minutes 20 seconds 02:20 Video Duration 02 minutes 33 seconds 02:33
The Guardian
18 hours ago
- Sport
- The Guardian
Faith Kipyegon certain a woman will break four-minute mile barrier within a decade
Faith Kipyegon remains convinced that a woman will break the four-minute mile barrier within 10 years, despite falling more than six seconds short in her record attempt in Paris. It was a disappointing result for Kipyegon and her sponsors Nike, who had hoped that aerodynamic skinsuits, lighter superspikes and a team of 13 pacers would help the 31-year-old Kenyan get within touching distance of the famous mark. But speaking to the Guardian on the morning after running 4min 06.22sec in Paris, Kipyegon insisted that she was still proud to have rolled the dice – and to have run a mile quicker than any woman in history. She also predicted that the new technology was coming that would also help Britain's Keely Hodgkinson break the women's 800m world record of 1min 53.28sec which has stood since 1983. 'Absolutely there will be a woman running a mile in under four minutes,' she said. 'And I think it will take less than 10 years. And if it doesn't come my way, it will be someone else doing it.' Asked why she was so confident, given the gap was still more than six seconds, she replied: 'Going forward, the technology will be even higher than what I was using yesterday. So I think one day, one time, it will happen.' Kipyegon admitted that she had struggled in the final 200m, having heard the bell in 3:01. But she insisted that she would have changed anything about her attempt. 'Birds sometimes fall but they fly again,' she said. 'I believe I will still lower the world record of 4.07. I want to get it very close to the four minutes mark. And I believe I can still run under 4.05 in a race with female pacemakers.' Kipyegon's next race will be over 1500m at the Prefontaine Classic next week, and she insists she is in shape to challenge her world record of 3min 49sec. However she said there are no plans yet to have another crack at the four-minute mile barrier. Meanwhile in Paris she also spoke to Hodgkinson, who told her she is hungry to go faster in the future once she has recovered from a hamstring injury. Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend's action after newsletter promotion 'I talked with Keely yesterday about everything,' said Kipyegon. 'And my run was a huge inspiration for her. She's hungry to go under 1.54 in the 800m. And I think Keely Hodgkinson one day, one time, will run under 1.53. She is so fast.' Nike's chief innovation officer, Tony Bignell, who has worked with the company since helping design spikes for Michael Johnson at the Atlanta and Sydney Games, promised that there would be more innovation and attempts at breaking records. 'Yes, I've seen things in the lab, and I've put things on my foot where I've thought: 'I've never felt that before,'' said Bignell. 'And that's coming. Last night could have been anywhere on a scale of zero to 10, but we took the risk. And taking risks is a good thing.'
