Faith Kipyegon extends hamstring layoff, misses 2026 track events

Faith Kipyegon will spend longer than expected on the sidelines as she recovers from a hamstring injury sustained at the end of May. The Kenyan distance star says her immediate priority is healing and rebuilding before considering a return to competition.

The setback rules the triple Olympic champion out of the ongoing Diamond League and next month’s World Athletics Ultimate Championships. Kipyegon had been expected to remain part of the major track programme after opening her season with strong results.

She won the Monaco 10km road race in February in 29:47, then began her Diamond League campaign with a 5000m victory in Shanghai in May. Her winning time was 14:24.14.

Her results changed in the following races. At the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, she placed third in the women’s mile in 4:17.80 after fading during the final lap, while American Nikki Hiltz won the race. Kipyegon later finished fourth in the women’s 3000m at the Monaco Diamond League, recording 8:24.21.

The four-time world champion disclosed the injury problems after those performances. She has now chosen recovery over an early return, saying the hamstring needs more time than she had expected and that getting stronger is the best route back to peak form.

Kipyegon is also a double world-record holder, and the absence interrupts a highly successful period that has included three Olympic titles. Her next step is rehabilitation, with no return date given as she focuses on fully recovering from the injury.