Fresh from successfully defending her 1500m title at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan, Kenya’s top athlete Faith Kipyegon will return to action to defend her title during the Athlos Meet slated for Thursday, September 26th, at the Icahn Stadium in New York, United States.
The 31-year-old, will be making a second appearance at the women-only Athlos event, organised by 23-time Grand Slam winner Serena Williams’ spouse, Alexis Ohanian, from 2024.
During her first race, Kipyegon clocked four minutes, 4.79 seconds to win the race ahead of Ethiopia’s Diribe Welteji and compatriot Susan Ejore-Sanders, who finished second and third respectively.
Kipyegon is the world record holder for the 1500 metres and the mile, and she is the former world record holder for the 5000 metres. Kipyegon is the only three-time Olympic champion in the 1500 metres, having won a gold medal each at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro, 2020 Tokyo, and the 2024 Paris Olympics.
She also won a gold medal in the 1500 metres at the 2017, 2022, 2023 and 2025 World Championships and in the 5000 metres at the 2023 World Championships.
At the 2024 Paris Olympics, Kipyegon became the first athlete ever to win three consecutive gold medals in the 1500m women's race, where she also set a new Olympic record. In addition to the 1500m, she had previously earned a silver medal in the women's 5000m, after successfully appealing a disqualification.
Mary Moraa, Susan Ejore to participate in Athlos
According to Athlos official website, a total of 36 female athletes will be competing in six events during the meet. They include Kenya’s 800m runner Mary Moraa, who won gold medal at the 2023 World Athletics Championships, a bronze medal in the event at the 2022 World Athletics Championships and gold at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
Moraa is the Kenyan record holder for the 400 metres. In the 1,500m, Kipyegon will race alongside Kenyan compatriot Ejore. She competed in the women's 1500m race at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, where she qualified for the semi-finals with a time of 4:01.99 in her heat. Ejore was part of a Kenyan trio that advanced to the semi-finals, which also included Kipyegon and Nelly Chepchichir.
However, Ejore fell short of securing a finals berth after finishing seventh in semifinal two, clocking 4:09.28. At the inaugural edition of the women’s-only event, Ejore clocked 4:06.25 for third place behind Kipyegon (4:04.79) and Ethiopia’s Diribe Welteji (4:05.58)
Other athletes set to race in New York include; Paris 2024 Olympic champions Gabby Thomas, Masai Russell and Marileidy Paulino as well as Marie Josee Talou-Smith, Brittany Brown, Lieke Klaver, Tsige Duguma, Halima Nakaayi and Gudaf Tsegay.
According to the Viral Tea website, the total prize money has been set at Ksh14.3 million (USD110,500) per race, with the winners set to take home Ksh7.7 million (USD60,000). Second-placed finishers will pocket Ksh3.2 million (USD25,000) while third-place finishers will get Ksh1.2 million (USD10,000).
Athletes who end in fourth, fifth and sixth position will not walk away empty-handed, as they will also take home Ksh1.03 million (USD 8,000), Ksh645,872 (USD5,000) and Ksh322,936 (USD2,500) respectively.
A brief history of Athlos meet
Athlos is a professional, female-only track and field meeting series that was first held at Icahn Stadium in New York City on September 26th, 2024.
The first meeting was originally announced in April 2024 and was initially referred to as the “776 Invitational”. It was inspired by the success of the Angel City FC club and a desire to showcase women's track and field more often than once every four years for the Summer Olympics.
The first meeting was intended to highlight women’s track and field and make the sport a spectator-friendly experience by simplifying the number of events down to six. It included the 100m, 100m hurdles, 200m, 400m, 800m, and 1500m. It featured a total of 36 athletes competing in these six events, including Gabby Thomas, Alexis Holmes, and Kipyegon.
Full List Of Athletes Competing in Athlos Meet
100m Hurdles
1. Danielle Williams (Jamaica)
2. Alaysha Johnson (United States)
3. Charisma Taylor (Bahamas)
4. Masai Russell (United States)
5. Jasmine Camacho-Quinn (Puerto Rico)
6. Tonea Marshall (United States)
100m
1. Zoe Hobbs (New Zealand)
2. Celera Barnes (United States)
3. Candace Hill (United States)
4. Marie Josée Ta Lou (Ivory Coast)
5. Brittany Brown (United States)
6. Daryl Neita (Great Britain)
200m
1. Torrie Lewis (Australia)
2. Jenna Prandini (United States)
3. Tamara Clark (United States)
4. Brittany Brown (United States)
5. Gabby Thomas (United States)
6. Anavia Battle (United States)
400m
1. Lieke Klaver (Netherlands)
2. Marileidy Paulino (Dominican Republic)
3. Salwa Naser (Bahrain)
4. Lynna Irby-Jackson (United States)
5. Shamier Little (United States)
6. Alexis Holmes (United States)
800m
1. Natoya Goule-Toppin (Jamaica)
2. Halimah Nakaayi (Uganda)
3. Nia Akins (United States)
4. Tsige Duguma (Ethiopia)
5. Mary Moraa (Kenya)
6. Addy Wiley (United States)
1500m
1. Faith Kipyegon (Kenya)
2. Katie Snowden (Great Britain)
3. Gudaf Tsegay (Ethiopia)
4. Diribe Welteji (Ethiopia)
5. Cory McGee (United States)
6. Susan Ejore (Kenya)
