– Kipyegon has won two Olympic gold medals and two world championship gold medals at 1500 meters. The only world record on her career resume is being part of the 4x1500m relay that won the 2014 World Relays title in 16:33.58.

– Kipyegon opened up her year with a 3:58.57 victory at the Doha Diamond League.

What’s the plan for Florence:

– She will be paced by Sage Hurta, who owns a personal best of 4:01.79 for 1500m and 1:57.85 for 800m, and Brooke Feldmeier, who has run 1:59.08 for 800m. Hurta confirmed to CITIUS MAG the race will be paced for the world record.

Our take:

Kipyegon is already the greatest women’s 1500m runner of all time. It’s not much of a question of whether she will break the world record but when. The timing of this race is fairly interesting since Monaco has usually been the place where people chase world records but if she’s feeling super fit this early, why not go for it? She is also slated to run in Monaco later this year so we’ll see just how far under 3:50 she can get this year. – Chris Chavez

We already know Kipyegon can consistently run between 3:50 and 3:54 solo (with the help of pacers). The difference maker is going to have a legitimate challenger who can help her keep the pedal down during the third lap, which is why it’s a bummer to not see Gudaf Tsegay or Sifan Hassan on the start list. If I were the Golden Gala organizers I’d be trying to offer Laura Muir a serious chunk of change to be in front of Kipyegon on that third lap and stick on 62s as long as possible. – David Melly

Kipyegon is calling her shot early and I’m here for it. Why wait until later in the season to go for a record when you are fit, healthy and ready? Checking the 1500m record off the list for Faith means she will be able to race with a huge weight off her back come championship season. If her contract is structured right, she can hopefully pull a Mondo and keep cashing a $100,000 world record bonus multiple times this summer. – Dana Giordano