Kipyegon to skip All Africa Games for Worlds

Olympic and World 1500m champion Faith Chepng’etich Kipyegon will miss this year’s All African Games as she prepares for her comeback from maternity leave later this month.

Kipyegon also missed the 2015 edition in Congo Brazzaville, after favouring the World Championship in Beijing where she won silver.

It will be the case this year again with her sights firmly fixed on Doha 2019 where she is targeting back to back gold medals over the mile having won at London 2017.

“My came back is set for Sunday 30th June in Eugen, USA, and with the trials for the all African games set for 20th -22nd June in Nairobi, I don’t think I will be ready,” Kipyegon said.

The 2014 Commonwealth Champion took maternity leave a few months after a superb international athletics track scene, where she won the Olympic in 2016 and the world Championship in 2017. She is now a mother to a one-year-old Alyn Chepkorir.

She will take on two-time Diamond Trophy winner Laura Muir of Great Britain, Shelby Houlihan of the US, and current world leader Gudaf Tsegay of Ethiopia, who clocked 3:59.57 in Nanjing on 21 May.

“I resumed training in January and Prefontaine Classic is where I want to have a feel, I am not sure what to accept, but am firmly focused in making it to Doha.

“I might also take part in other races which I am yet to decide but first let me see how it turns out in the first race,” she said.