Long-distance runner Faith Kipyegon may not have broken her sub-four-minute mile goal, but she still made history this week, shaving off more than a second from her previous world record with a time of 4 minutes and 6.42 seconds -- the fastest mile ever run by a woman.
Kipyegon finished with an official time of 4:06.42 on Thursday at the moonshot event, dubbed Breaking4.
"I was coming here to try to be the fastest woman -- it's only a matter of time, and I think it will come our way," the Kenyan-born runner said afterward. "I will not lose hope. I will still go for it. I hope I will get it one day."
The 31-year-old attempted the milestone feat Thursday night at Stade Sébastien Charléty, a multipurpose stadium in Paris and the site of her 1,500-meter and since-broken 5,000-meter world records.
Her team was led by Patrick Sang, her coach of six years, and she had 13 pacers on track.
Kipyegon looked confident and relaxed, wearing specialty engineered custom Nike gear -- her partner of 16 years -- including a pair of featherweight Victory Elite FK spikes; an innovative, first-of-its-kind speed suit; and a sports bra made of a revolutionary 3D-printed performance material.
"I'm tired. But I feel good, I've tried," she said after her run. "I'm so grateful, and I have proven to the world that anything is possible."
The four-time World champion and three-time Olympic gold medalist previously set the world record of 4:07.6 in Monaco in July 2023.
Because this was technically an exhibition and Kipyegon's pacers included men, her new time isn't eligible for the record and won't be recorded in the history books just yet.
The all-class group of pacers included U.S. track star Grant Fisher, the Olympic 5,000-meter and 10,000-meter bronze medalist.
Roger Bannister ran the first sub 4-minute mile in 1954, which has since been broken by nearly 2,000 male athletes, but no woman has ever accomplished the feat.
"I believe that what a man can do, a woman can do. I can be the first woman to break the four minute barrier," Kipyegon said in a promo trailer played ahead of Thursday's special event.
