After capping off her 2026 season in emphatic fashion at the Brussels Diamond League Final, world 3,000m steeplechase champion Faith Cherotich has declared she is far from finished, boldly warning that she will return even stronger in the 2027 season.
The Kenyan water and barrier star produced another masterclass over the weekend in Brussels, defending her Diamond League Finals crown in style while smashing the meeting record.
Cherotich executed her race to perfection, patiently stalking the front pack before unleashing a devastating final-lap surge to outkick Olympic champion Winfred Yavi of Bahrain and storm home in a meeting-record 8:51.61.
In the process, she erased the eight-year-old meeting record of 8:55.10 set by world record holder Beatrice Chepkoech in 2018. The victory also sealed a memorable Kenyan 1-2 finish, with 2025 NCAA 3,000m steeplechase champion Doris Lemngole taking second in 8:52.86, while Yavi settled for third in 8:53.54.
Cherotich had claimed her maiden Diamond League Finals trophy in Zurich last year after clocking 8:57.24, producing a scintillating finishing kick to defeat Kazakhstan-born Norah Jeruto (9:10.87) and Tunisia’s Marwa Bouzayani (9:12.03). The 22-year-old was delighted to retain her title in Brussels.
“I am happy with my performance,” Cherotich said.
However, she admitted the race demanded both patience and courage. “I was well prepared for this. Although it was not easy. I told myself I must run well,” she added.
Cherotich revealed that defending her Diamond League Finals trophy had been her overriding mission heading into Brussels. “Winning the trophy was my main target, and I am happy I did.”
With the curtain now falling on the 2026 campaign for the steeplechasers, Cherotich has already shifted her focus to 2027, a season headlined by the World Athletics Championships in Beijing, China.
The World Ultimate Championships, scheduled for this weekend in Budapest, Hungary, will officially bring the 2026 athletics season to a close. However, the steeplechase is not part of the programme, meaning Brussels marked the final outing of the year for the water and barrier specialists.
“I ended the season in a good way. It was my prayer to end my season in good form. Now I am going back to prepare well for next season to come back stronger,” she said.
Cherotich arrived in Brussels riding a wave of outstanding form, having also orchestrated another Kenyan 1-2 finish at the penultimate Diamond League meeting in Zurich.
She powered to victory in 8:55.82, with Lemngole placing second in a personal best 8:55.94, while Uganda’s Peruth Chemutai completed the podium in 8:58.28.
That triumph was the perfect response after suffering a rare defeat to Yavi at the Lausanne Diamond League on August 21.
In Lausanne, Cherotich clocked 9:01.90 to finish second behind Yavi, who stormed to a meeting record 9:00.04, while Bouzayani placed third in 9:05.55.
The reigning world champion steadily gathered momentum throughout a remarkable 2026 campaign. She opened her season on May 16 in Shanghai with a heartbreaking runner-up finish, clocking 8:51.48—just one hundredth of a second behind Chemutai’s winning 8:51.47.
A week later in Xiamen, she settled for third in 8:52.53, finishing behind Chemutai (8:51.06) and Yavi (8:51.54). Her long-awaited Diamond League breakthrough finally arrived on July 4 at the Prefontaine Classic, where she outkicked Yavi and Bouzayani to secure her maiden victory on the circuit in 8:51.74.
Yavi finished second in 8:52.84, with Bouzayani third in 8:54.32. Cherotich also produced one of the defining performances of her season, capturing the Commonwealth Games title in commanding fashion on July 29.
She stormed to gold in a Games-record 9:01.76, beating the previous mark of 9:15.68 set by compatriot Jackline Chepkoech at the 2022 Birmingham Games by more than 13 seconds.
England’s Elise Thorner claimed silver in 9:05.45, while Chemutai completed the podium with bronze in 9:09.96.
