Faith Kipyegon rewarded Ksh2M
By Joel Sang, June 20, 2023Faith Kipyegon has been awarded Ksh2 million by mobile service provider Safaricom on Tuesday, June 20, 2023.
Kipyegon received the award after impressive performances in Florence, Italy, and Paris, France, during the Diamond League circuits.
While acknowledging the reward from Safaricom, Kipyegon said she is still surprised by the achievement she posted within a week in the Diamond League.
Diamond League’s records
She became the first woman to run under three minutes, 50 seconds (3:49.11) to break the 1500-metre world record in Florence. She broke the second record in Paris on June 9 by clocking 14:05.20, beating the former world record holder, Letesenbet Gidey of Ethiopia.
“Beating two world records in a span of one week is amazing. It came as a surprise, and up until now, I am still shocked. I didn’t expect this, but again, I believe I was well prepared for a good race and to break my personal best. I thank Safaricom for recognising and honouring me; this is a big gesture in support of Kenyan athletes,” Kipyegon said.
Safaricom Chief Executive Officer, Peter Ndegwa, said the telco is proud of Kipyegon’s achievement.
“At Safaricom, we are committed to supporting talents in the country. We appreciate and feel proud of what Faith has achieved and for her stellar performance, breaking two world records in one week,” Ndegwa said in a statement by Safaricom.
“We joined Kenyans in celebrating world record holder, Faith Kipyegon, for her amazing achievement in setting two new world records in a week. She showed the world how it is done, and we couldn’t be more proud.
“This gesture comes in recognition of her truly remarkable feat of breaking not just one, but two world records in the 1500m and 500m races in Florence and Paris earlier this month,” the company posted on their Twitter handle.
Through the Safaricom Athletics series, launched in 2013, the company has been supporting athletics with the aim of transforming lives through sports, using sporting events to bring communities together while simultaneously identifying and nurturing new talents.
In the football arena, the telco has financed the Chapa Dimba national tournament, whose aim is to nurture talents at the school level.
Safaricom’s reward comes after President William Ruto rewarded her with Ksh5 million for one record and Ksh6 million for the other record.
Career Highlights
Kipyegon has, over time, established herself as a force to be reckoned with on the track.
In March 2014, at the African Cross Country Championships held in Kampala, Uganda, she claimed victory in the senior women’s race (8 km), and in May, together with Mercy Cherono, Irene Jelagat, and Hellen Obiri, she was a member of the team that won the gold medal in the 4 × 1500-metre relay at the first IAAF World Relays in Nassau, Bahamas.
She did not stop there, and in 2015, she became the World Championship silver medallist. She finished second in a time of 4:08.96, behind only then-fresh world record holder Genzebe Dibaba, who clocked 4:08.09.
The 29-year-old achieved her first Diamond League 1500 m Trophy, winning three races in Shanghai, Eugene, and Brussels in 2017. The Kenyan outwitted Sifan Hassan, her closest rival, at the Brussels Final in September to win 3:57.04 against Hassan’s 3:57.22.
In the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympics in August, Kipyegon, in August 2022, overtook Hassan in the 200 metres of the 1,500 metres race to win her second consecutive Olympic gold medal in the event in a time of 3:53.11. This saw her break the Games record, which had stood for over three decades.
In May 2022, she made history at the Eugene Diamond League in the USA as she won the 1500 m gold medal with a time of 3:52.96. This made her the first female athlete to win four global titles over the distance.