Olympic and World 1,500m champion Kenya’s Faith Chepng’etich is set to make a comeback to the track at the Prefontaine Classic leg of the 2019 Diamond League on June 30.
Chepng’etich makes a return after 21-month maternity break, having competed last in the Diamond League on September 1, 2017, where she won in 3:57.04 to win the Series and cap a great season.
Chepng’etich, 25, had on August 7 of the same year claimed her maiden World 1,500m in London, exactly a year after she had also clinched her maiden Olympics title in Rio.
Her Rio performance was one for the ages, covering the last two laps in a stunning 1:57.2 to win in 4:08:92. The Kenyan record-holder set her best time at the 2016 Prefontaine Classic – 3:56.41, which is still the fastest ever recorded on US soil.
Chepng’etich, the 2014 Commonwealth 1,500m champion, is up against the 2018 Diamond League winner Laura Muir and Shelby Houlihan, who is currently the word number one over the distance. Their only previous meeting was at the 2017 Pre Classic, a race won by Chepng’etich.
Also is the mix are the IAAF Continental Cup and Africa 1,500m champion Winny Chebet from Kenya, Ethiopia’s Gudaf Tsegay and Moroccan Rababe Arafi.