World champion and long-distance superstar Hellen Obiri believes she can go even faster and break her Kenyan record in the 5000m. Obiri ran 14:18.37 in Rome on her way to the Diamond League title back in 2017, a Personal Best (PB) and Kenyan record that still stands today.
Yet the 30-year-old believes she is yet to reach her full potential, saying that even on that day in the Italian capital, she could have gone faster.
“I think I can go faster,” said Obiri in the Rome edition of the Wanda Diamond League Call Room which is set to air on Facebook and Youtube at 18.00 GMT (from 7pm Nigerian time) on Thursday (May 28th). The LIVE broadcast can be followed on our website (www.makingofchamps.com) and Facebook page (Making of Champions).
Obiri added: “If you want to break the World Record (WR) or run a faster time, you have to ask somebody to push you. You have to talk to your manager and coach about which track and which time is best, and get them to tell you about the location and the weather.”
Obiri says the climate in Rome was part of the reason she was able to run so fast in 2017, as well as some extra motivation from the presence of Kenyan rival Genzebe Dibaba.
“It was tough because Genzebe Dibaba was there…I thought: if Dibaba is trying to run a World Record then maybe I can run a personal best or something special for myself. 14:18 was such a fast time, but I thought if, from the word go, I had been ready to with two laps to go, I could even have run 14:12! But then I thought no, let me wait: my time will come.”
Also look out for upcoming interviews with top African stars like Marie Josee Ta Lou and Blessing Okagbare ahead of the Wanda Diamond League’s LIVE broadcast on Sunday, May 31 st showing highlights from past editions of the Rabat Diamond League.
