Olympic champion Faith Kipyegon falls short in her attempt to break 4-minute mile
Faith Kipyegon, from Kenya, lies on the track after crossing the finish line in her attempt to become the first woman to run a mile in under four minutes, at Stade Charlety in Paris, Thursday, June 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)
track & field
By SAMUEL PETREQUIN
Three-time Olympic champion Faith Kipyegon failed in her bid Thursday to become the first woman to run a mile in under four minutes.
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 Charléty in Paris.
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.
'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."
The 31-year-old Kipyegon looked exhausted as she reached the finish and fell on her back as she was surrounded by photographers.
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.
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.
"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.
Kipyegon also had a message for her daughter and young girls watching.
'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.'
Among the guests in Paris were Carl Lewis and Kipyegon's fellow Kenyan runner, longtime friend and training partner Eliud Kipchoge.
It was more than 71 years ago when British runner Roger Bannister became the first man to eclipse four minutes in 3:59.4.
Kipyegon set the women's mile world record nearly two years ago during a Diamond League meet in Monaco.
She won her third straight 1,500 Olympic title in Paris last August. A month before that, she broke her own 1,500 record on the same track where she ran on Thursday.
© Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Asahi Shimbun
14 hours ago
- Asahi Shimbun
Olympic icon Seiko Hashimoto elected 1st female JOC president
Seiko Hashimoto, the new president of the Japanese Olympic Committee, speaks to reporters on June 26. (Takeshi Teruya) Seiko Hashimoto, a former Olympian and Cabinet minister, was elected as the new president of the Japanese Olympic Committee on June 26. The election, the first in the JOC's 36-year history, also marks the first time a woman has assumed the organization's top post. Hashimoto, 60, a bronze medalist in speed skating at the 1992 Albertville Winter Olympics and a veteran of seven Olympics in both winter and summer events, was chosen during a JOC board meeting held in Tokyo. She succeeds Yasuhiro Yamashita, 68, who served three terms since 2019. The race for the presidency saw two other candidates: former Japan Football Association President Kozo Tashima, 67; and Japan Basketball Association President Yuko Mitsuya, 66. After multiple rounds of secret ballots by board members, Hashimoto emerged victorious in a runoff vote against Mitsuya. According to sources, Hashimoto gained support during a presentation ahead of the voting, where she pledged to pursue another bid for Japan to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games. At a news conference following the election, Hashimoto appeared solemn but resolute. 'This is the first election in JOC history, and I am honored to become its first female president,' she said. 'I will carry out my duties with humility and never forget my original intention.' Her election marks a departure from tradition, emerging from a rare internal contest rather than the organization's historically closed-door process often influenced by sports politics and behind-the-scenes maneuvering. Sources say Hashimoto received encouragement from influential international figures, including then-International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach during his visit to Japan last month. Hashimoto is a member of the Upper House from Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's Liberal Democratic Party. She previously served as Olympic minister and as president of the Organizing Committee for the 2021 Tokyo Games. In an ironic turn, she now becomes the first politician to lead the JOC since its independence from the Japan Sport Association in 1989, a move originally intended to ensure political neutrality. Addressing concerns over a 20.57 million yen ($142,000) discrepancy tied to her name in a recent political funding scandal, Hashimoto defended her integrity. 'There was no slush fund, no misreporting. I would not have run if there had been any suspicion over my actions,' she said. As JOC president, Hashimoto pledged to build on the legacy of the Tokyo Games and to revitalize the Olympic movement amid ongoing challenges, including declining sponsorship. 'It is precisely because we are in a difficult period that bold new reforms are needed,' she said.
The Mainichi
15 hours ago
- The Mainichi
Hashimoto elected Japanese Olympic Committee chief
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- The Japanese Olympic Committee elected former speed skater and cyclist Seiko Hashimoto as its new president on Thursday night, making her the first woman to head the governing body. The election of Hashimoto, 60, currently a House of Councillors member, however, is likely to draw criticism due to her involvement in a political funds scandal that has shaken the ruling Liberal Democratic Party to its core. It might also cause controversy from the perspective of political neutrality. After failing to agree on a candidate, the JOC held a board vote for the first time since it became independent of the Japan Amateur Sports Association, currently the Japan Sport Association, in 1989. The voting results were not disclosed, but Hashimoto received more votes than the other two candidates, Yuko Mitsuya, 66, who has served as acting JOC president, and former Japan Football Association President Kozo Tashima, 67. The JOC president's term is two years. Yasuhiro Yamashita, the open category judo gold medalist at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, suffered a cervical vertebrae injury in October 2023 during his third term as JOC president and has been unable to fulfill his duties since. "I'm honored to become the JOC's female president," Hashimoto said. "I believe the JOC's mission is to bid again to host the Olympics and Paralympics, and to show the world the games serve as a symbol of world peace." Hashimoto made a total of seven Olympic appearances, in speed skating at winter and cycling at summer games. She also headed the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic organizing committee during the games in 2021 after serving as Olympic minister.
Yomiuri Shimbun
19 hours ago
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Cooper Flagg Is the New Maine Man for the Mavericks as the No. 1 Pick in the NBA Draft
NEW YORK (AP) — Cooper Flagg is the new Maine man in Dallas. The Mavericks took the Duke forward with the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft Wednesday night, hoping they have found their next franchise superstar less than five months after trading one away. Mavericks fans were furious when Dallas traded Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers on Feb. 1, some immediately threatening to end their support of the team. But the ones who stuck around may quickly love Flagg, the college player of the year who averaged 19.2 points and 7.5 rebounds while leading Duke to the Final Four. The Mavericks quickly announced that Flagg would wear No. 32 in Dallas, where fellow Duke products Kyrie Irving and Dereck Lively II are on the roster. 'I'm really excited. I think I keep saying I'm excited to be a sponge, to get down there and just learn, be surrounded by Hall of Fame-caliber guys and just to be able to learn from them,' Flagg said. 'It's going to be an incredible experience.' His selection — considered likely ever since Flagg showed off his considerable game last summer after being invited to the U.S. Olympic team's training camp — was a daylong celebration in his home state for the 18-year-old forward from Newport, Maine. 'It means a lot to me to have the support of the whole state. I know how many people showed up today and supported me at some of the draft parties back home,' Flagg said. 'It feels amazing knowing I can inspire younger kids. I was in their shoes really not that long ago, so just to know I can give those kids those feelings and have the whole state behind me, it means a lot.' He joined Elton Brand, Irving, Zion Williamson and Paolo Banchero as Duke players drafted No. 1 since 1999, and he returned the draft to its longtime start with a one-and-done college player. That's the way the draft began every year from 2010 until Banchero's selection in 2022, but the last two No. 1 picks, Victor Wembanyama and Zaccherie Risacher, are both from France. Rutgers freshman Dylan Harper was taken by the Spurs with the No. 2 pick and will try to follow Wembanyama and Stephon Castle and give San Antonio a third straight NBA Rookie of the Year. 'It's definitely a goal of mine to make it three in a row,' said Harper, the son of former NBA guard Ron Harper. 'I think the coaching staff and the players are going to make it easy for me to go out there and showcase my talent, so definitely.' The 76ers then took Baylor's VJ Edgecombe, getting the first sustained burst of loud cheers of the draft from what seemed to be a number of Philadelphia fans who made the trip to Barclays Center in Brooklyn. The first two picks had long been expected, but the No. 3 spot was the first one where there was intrigue. Kon Knueppel made it two Duke players in the first four picks when the Charlotte Hornets took him at No. 4. When big man Khaman Maluach went at No. 10 — a pick made by the Houston Rockets but headed to Phoenix as part of the trade for Kevin Durant that can't become official until next month — it gave the Blue Devils three top-10 picks and 50 in the first round since 1989, moving past Kentucky (48) for most by any school. 'It was so emotional getting to see my teammates, my fellow freshmen getting drafted,' Maluach said. 'I was so happy for them because they deserve everything they have. They worked hard for it, for that moment, too.' Ace Bailey, Harper's teammate with the Scarlet Knights who could have been in the mix to go third but declined to work out for the 76ers, ended up going at No. 5 to Utah to end a draft process in which he was criticized for how his camp handled it. 'I'm glad it's over,' Bailey said. 'I'm ready to play some basketball now.' Then it was Tre Johnson of Texas to the Washington Wizards at No. 6 and Oklahoma's Jeremiah Fears to New Orleans at No. 7, before the host Nets took BYU's Egor Demin at No. 8, Brooklyn's first of potentially five selections in the first round. Toronto took South Carolina's Collin Murray-Boyles at No. 9. The Nets would later add French guard Nolan Traore at No. 19, North Carolina's Drake Powell at No. 22 (once a three-way trade with Boston and Atlanta is complete), Ben Saraf of Israel at No. 26 and Michigan center Danny Wolf at No. 27. The NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder took Georgetown center Thomas Sorber at No. 15, their first of two picks in the first round. The Thunder also had the No. 24 pick but traded the rights to Nique Clifford to Sacramento for a future first-round pick. The first night of the two-night draft, a format the NBA went to last season, had some mid-round trades involving some of college basketball's top players. New Orleans acquired the rights to Maryland forward Derik Queen, the No. 13 pick, from Atlanta for the rights to the No. 23 pick, Asa Newell of Georgia, and a future first-round pick. Walter Clayton Jr., the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four after leading Florida to the national championship, was drafted by Washington at No. 18 but his rights were dealt to Utah for the rights to Illinois' Will Riley, who went 21st. The draft will resume at Barclays Center on Thursday night. All of the players invited to the green room were taken in Round 1, with UConn's Liam McNeeley the last at No. 19, with Phoenix sending his rights to Charlotte.
