Running News Daily

Faith Kipyegon has the marathon in mind

In the new issue of AW, the Olympic and world 1500m champion reveals that close friend Eliud Kipchoge has inspired her to tackle the 26.2-mile event in future

Many view already her as a true athletics great, but Faith Kipyegon doesn’t quite see it that way. Yet. Despite being a two-time Olympic and world champion over 1500m, the Kenyan believes she has more work to do before any such tag can be justified.

In a wide-ranging exclusive interview with Euan Crumley in the latest issue of AW, which is on sale from November 10, among other things the Kenyan discusses how she wants to leave a legacy, as well as outlining what she believes needs to happen in the fight against doping in her home country.

The 28-year-old still has more ambitions to fulfil on the track, too, but admits that the future will see her heading down a road which she hopes will lead to even more success.

Kipyegon trains at the camp in Kaptagat from which her close friend Eliud Kipchoge hones his mastery of the marathon, and admits that seeing the world record-holder at work has inspired her to tackle the 26.2-mile event in the future.

“I don’t see myself as a great, yet,” says Kipyegon who, like Kipchoge, is also coached by Patrick Sang. “I need to achieve more towards the marathon and I’m really looking forward to following in Eliud’s footsteps.

“He has already shown us the way and, training with him, I see what he does every day.

“I will work my way up towards the marathon in future and I will be the greatest.

“When you stay with marathon runners, you don’t see yourself as a 1500m athlete any more – you see yourself as a marathoner. You follow them on long runs, you follow them on fartleks and you see every day what they do. [It makes you feel like] ‘I need to do this’.

“That’s motivation from Eliud, from the whole group in Kaptagat that has really inspired me to see myself in the marathon in future.

“[When I will run one] is something I can’t predict, but I want to build myself and build my commitment towards marathon and just go step by step [through the distances] towards it.”

Kipyegon is one of the nominees in this year’s AW Readers’ Choice Awards, which launch this week in the magazine and online. This is your chance to pick which individuals, across a range of categories, you think have excelled in 2022.

Elsewhere in the issue, we take a deep dive into the state of play when it comes to officials. What does the future hold for those who make athletics tick? Paul Halford finds out, plus we feature a brilliant extract from new book Unsung, in which Alan Bell takes us into the world of the starter.

As we come to the end of the major road racing events season for the autumn, a trend of lower event entry levels is becoming all too evident. Tim Adams asks where all the runners who were expected to provide a boom for mass participation races post Covid have gone, while author Damian Hall examines the environmental impact of events and outlines what runners can do to make a difference in the climate crisis.

Elsewhere in the issue, there is also an exclusive interview with international marathon runner Callum Hawkins, who continues his recovery from injury, while our packed performance section features plyometric tips from coach John Shepherd, training insight from Amelia Quirk and running shoe guru Paul Freary tests out the best gear for off-road adventure this winter.

With coach and commentator Geoff Wightman the focus of this month’s Ask The Athlete, Richard Whitehead recalling his greatest race and columnist Katharine Merry looking at the huge impact felt when the rules are broken, there are plenty of reasons to pick up your copy.