BUDAPEST, Hungary — Kenya's Faith Kipyegon pushed the pace early and pulled away down the stretch to defend her 1,500-meter title at the world championships on Tuesday night.
The 29-year-old Kipyegon only grew stronger as the race went along, finishing in a time of 3 minutes, 54.87 seconds to beat Diribe Welteji of Ethiopia by almost a second.
Sifan Hassan, running from back in the pack for a chunk of the race, surged into third place. Whether it's winning races or setting records, Kipyegon has been in quite a zone this summer.
Over a 50-day span, she set world marks in the 1,500 meters, 5,000 and the mile. In Budapest, it was all about medals for Kipyegon, not breaking records. «This is a great season for me,» Kipyegon said. «I told myself, 'You are the strongest and just keep going.'» No time for rest, though.