Kenyan Faith Kipyegon and Ethiopian Lamecha Girma broke the world records in the 5,000m and 3,000m steeplechase during a wild evening at the Paris meeting on Friday. One year from the 2024 Olympic Games, the two cross-country skiers from East Africa sent their first athletic thrill to the French capital. They ignited the blue track of a boiling Charléty stadium (filled with around 18,000 people) before hoping to shine on the purple tartan of the huge Stade de France next year.
After a breathtaking mano a mano with the Ethiopian Letesenbet Gidey, former record holder (14:06.62 in 2020), Kipyegon took off with a final supersonic lap to cut the line in 14 min 05 sec 20. “It’s like a dream. I don’t know how to say it, I’m so happy. To be honest, I didn’t expect to run so fast today, it’s incredible,” commented the champion in the mixed zone. Training partner of marathon king Eliud Kipchoge, the petite Kenyan (1.57m) has just achieved the feat of breaking two records in two different disciplines in one week, after clocking 3 min 49 sec 11 last Friday at Florence (Italy) over 1,500 m.
Double Olympic champion and double world champion in the 1,500m, her specialty for several years, Kipyegon had not finished 5,000m for eight years, and had never done better than 14 min 31 sec 95.
An hour later, Girma managed a crazy ride, far ahead of the light signal of the “wavelight” which gave him the rhythm at the edge of the track, to finish his 3,000 m steeplechase in 7 min 52 sec 12. The vice-champion Olympian and vice-world champion in the specialty thus erased the mark of Qatari Saif Saaeed Shaheen (7:53.63), which had held since 2004. “I feel happy and very proud. I felt so fast, confident. The record is not a surprise, it was my plan to beat it tonight. It is the result of my determination,” he said.
These two records were preceded by the best performance in the history of the 2 miles (about 3.2 km), achieved by the cador Jakob Ingebrigtsen. In 7 min 54 sec 10, the 22-year-old Norwegian, Olympic champion in the 1,500 m, broke the Kenyan Daniel Komen’s time (7:58.61 in 1997). This discipline, very little run, does not have an official world record according to the rules of World Athletics, the international federation.
Highly anticipated, the queen of the 400m hurdles Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone (Olympic champion and world record holder) experienced the bitter taste of defeat. The 23-year-old American had decided to test herself in the 400m at the start of the season, where her immense potential is still unknown. Half surprised, she was beaten by a pure specialist, the Olympic vice-champion and vice-world champion Dominican Marileidy Paulino. After a super fast start, McLaughlin-Levrone (23) got stuck at the end of the race, conceding defeat to her rival, victorious in 49 sec 12. McLaughlin-levrone finished 2nd in 49 sec 71, still beating her record staff (50.07) which dated from 2018.
On the straight, the Italian Marcell Jacobs experienced similar disappointment. After two withdrawals in recent weeks in Rabat and then in Florence due to back problems, the Olympic champion in the 100m has finally made his comeback in 2023. But he was quickly overwhelmed by bleeding rivals, finishing only 7th in 10 sec 21 (wind of -0.9 m/s). The American world champion in the 200m Noah Lyles won in 9 sec 97 ahead of the Kenyan Ferdinand Omanyala (9.98).
