Australian 1500m Star on the Fearless Lesson Faith Kipyegon Taught Her After Breaking4 Attempt

Jessica Hull has opened up about the major lesson she took from Faith Kipyegon’s Breaking4 attempt, where the Kenyan was bidding to become the first woman to run a mile in under four minutes.

Competing in Paris in June 2025, Faith Kipyegon did not succeed, as she finished in 4:06.42. However, her time remains the fastest mile ever run by a woman.

In an interview with Citius Mag, Jessica Hull revealed what she learnt from Faith Kipyegon’s bold move, and she continues to carry the lesson with her to date.

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Jessica Hull explained that Faith Kipyegon has built a supportive atmosphere that allows athletes to take risks without fear of failure.

Reflecting on Faith Kipyegon’s example, especially after observing her recent sub-four-minute effort, Jessica Hull noted that it shows it was acceptable to try and not always succeed.

The world 1500m bronze medallist added that Faith Kipyegon’s approach to her own career had inspired others to push themselves alongside her, reassuring them that even if they could not keep up entirely, they would still perform strongly.

“She has created this network and this environment where it's okay to fail in a way like especially having watched the sub-four attempt this year, it's like it's okay to take a swing and miss,” Jessica Hull revealed.

“I think, having just watched the way that she has led her career, that it's like she's kind of encouraged us just to come with me, and if you can't hang on the whole way, you're still probably going to run pretty well.”

Jessica Hull added that her mindset had been centred on courage and the willingness to take risks, emphasising the importance of trying without fear of failure, with lessons from the 1500m world record holder.

She explained that her strategy for the World Championship final was to stay with the leading pack, even though doing so in such a high-stakes race could cost her a medal.

Jessica Hull reflected that she had reached a stage in her career where she was ready to accept the possibility of failure in pursuit of something greater, wanting to build on her silver from Paris.

She mentioned that watching Faith Kipyegon’s fearless racing, especially her determination even when returning from childbirth and challenging top competitors, has inspired her to adopt a similar attitude, encouraging her to give her all regardless of the outcome.

“Or very much like just be fearless and just try, and you never know what is possible. And I think very much of my race plan for the final at Worlds was like I'm just really going to try and hang. Like I've done it before,” Jessica Hull explained.

“It's like I want to medal and I want to try and elevate from that silver in Paris. So, you kind of have to be content with it completely backfiring.

“And I think having someone like Faith in the field who has just always been like thrown it down no matter where she was at when she was coming back from a baby, and she stuck it to Sifan in 2019 until she couldn't. It's very much just like that's the mentality that I had to sort of have this year was okay, I'm just going to try, and she's encouraged me to do that. So, here we go.”

Jessica Hull’s reflections on Faith Kipyegon’s Breaking4 attempt highlight the four-time world champion’s willingness to chase the seemingly impossible.

Faith Kipyegon has reshaped how her competitors view success and failure, and for Hull, the Kenyan distance runner has shown her that greatness is found not only in records and medals, but in daring to try, even when the outcome is uncertain.