Faith Kipyegon wins sports personality award for June

Kenya short-distance runner Faith Kipyegon has been named Sports Personality of the Month for June 2023.

The double Olympic champion beat a number of contestants for the award, and the recognition comes after she broke two world records in Italy and France in June.

Kipyegon was the outstanding sports personality in the country that month after shattering two world records in the space of one week. 

Kipyegon’s June highlight

The 29-year-old set the women’s 1500 metres world record by clocking 3:49.11 at the third Diamond League meeting of the season in Florence, Italy, on June 2. Kipyegon bettered the 3:50.07 record that was set by Genzebe Dibaba of Ethiopia in 2015. In that race, Britain’s Laura Muir and Jessica Hull of Australia became second and third, respectively.

After Florence’s achievement, she managed to register another record in the next Diamond League circuit in Paris on June 9 by clocking 14:05.20. She shattered the 5,000m of 14:06.62 set by Ethiopian Letesenbet Gidey in 2020.

The two-time Olympic 1500m gold medalist and the 2017 and 2022 world titles winner becomes the second athlete after Angela Okutoyi to win the sports personality award three times.

Contestants

Commonwealth Games champion Beatrice Chebet, Carl Tundo, McRae Kimathi, Emma Wangila Nekesa, and Moses Shummah were the other contestants for the monthly award.

Chebet made headlines when she won the 3,000m title at the Oslo Diamond League in eight minutes and 25.01 seconds, which was a new personal best and world-leading time.

Tundo and Kimathi were participants in the WRC2 and WRC3 on the WRC Safari Rally, while Kakamega Homeboyz’s Moses Shumah scored for Harambee Stars in the Four Nations Tournament in Mauritius. The goal, which came on Shummah’s debut, helped Kenya beat Pakistan, and this was the only victory for the national tournament during the week-long event.

Nekesa was shortlisted for the award for being the only African wrestler and Kenyan to have qualified for the World Beach Games in Indonesia. She was ranked eighth globally during the Singapore Beach Series.

“I’m so happy to be among the few athletes to win this award more than twice. It’s always good to see corporate entities acknowledge the good work of athletes.

“The win in Florence boosted my confidence levels, and I feel I have to continue pushing for better track limits,” Kipyegon said after winning the award.

Since breaking the records, Kipyegon has been awarded a number of awards. Initially, President William Ruto pledged to award Kipyegon Ksh5 million for her first record and an additional Ksh6 million, equivalent to a house’s worth, for her second record.

Then, the president affirmed that his government aims to nurture a culture of excellence and provide ongoing support to Kenya’s talented athletes, ensuring they stay motivated and continue to bring honour to the nation.

Ruto’s package

The head of state also said a special package will be established by the Ministry of Sports in order to honour the athletes who excel. Among the rewards the government promised was the issuance of diplomatic passports for excelling sportsmen and women.

SJAK president James Waindi explained the importance of awarding the athletes.

“With the monthly award, we are seeing a growing number of upcoming and talented sports personalities, among them Angela Okutoyi, who won the Wimbledon Open Junior category and won this award a record three times.

“Rewarding sportsmen and women is an important step towards whipping up the enthusiasm of sports personalities across all disciplines,” he said.