"When I see Rihanna performing with her pregnancy, it motivated me a lot" - Distance runner Faith Kipyegon explains why she looks up to the singer

Faith Kipyegon has praised Rihanna and stated that the renowned singer, who is currently pregnant with her second child, motivates her with her performances.

Rihanna is a Barbadian singer and actress. In February 2023 at the Super Bowl LVII halftime show, Rihanna revealed that she and A$AP Rocky are expecting their second child. Rihanna and A$AP Rocky had welcomed their first child, a son, on May 19, 2022.

Faith Kipyegon is a Kenyan middle-distance runner. The 29-year-old athlete has two world records to her name. Faith Kipyegon created a world record in the 1500m in the Diamond League series in Florence, Italy, on June 2, 2023 with a time of 3:49:11. Days after this, she again created a world record in the 5000m on June 9, 2023 in the Diamond League series at Paris, France, with a time of 14:05:20.

In an interview with CITIUS Podcast, she expressed her admiration for Rihanna and stated that she looks up to the singer.

"I admire Rihanna a lot," Faith expressed. "When I see Rihanna performing especially with her pregnancy, it motivated me a lot. Maternity will not let our decision or our desire take us out of what we want to do in our lives. So seeing Rihanna on that stage performing, It really motivated me a lot," said Kipyegon.

Kipyegon is herself a mother. She has a five-year-old daughter, Alyn, with her husband, Timothy Kitum. She expressed in the interview that she wanted to keep training with her coach, Patrick Sang, even after her pregnancy.

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Faith Kipyegon's future plans

Meeting de Paris - Diamond League

Even after creating two world records, the 29-year-old wants to achieve more and show other women that everything is possible. Further in the interview, Kipyegon mentioned how challenging it was to train after the pregnancy as she weighed 63 kg, when she weighed 43 kg before the pregnancy.

However, she said that it was all about the mind, dedication, and accepting the changes in her body. The Kenyan athlete wanted to train again and become an elite athlete like before. The two-time Olympic gold medalist commits herself to achieving more.

"This journey is all about the legacy I want to leave behind to motivate the young generation,"she said. "It's not all about getting the world record and we are done. I still need more to motivate the young generation to know that 'Faith was there and she did this. She was the Olympic champion and world champion. Now she's a record holder.' I still need to show girls the way and all women," said Kipyegon.

Faith Kipyegon further hinted at committing herself to work hard to create a new record of 3:47:00 by believing that everything is possible.