Faith Cherotich /FILE

World 3,000m steeplechase champion Faith Cherotich is targeting a return to winning ways at Thursday’s Zurich Diamond League following a close second-place finish in Lausanne, behind Olympic champion Winfred Yavi of Bahrain.

The Zurich meeting marks the penultimate leg of the 2026 Diamond League circuit as athletes make their final bid for qualifying points before the Brussels Finals on September 4–5.

In Lausanne, Cherotich finished second in 9:01.90 after Yavi produced a strong final surge to win in a meet-record 9:00.04. Tunisia’s Marwa Bouzayani completed the podium in 9:05.55.

Despite the narrow loss, Cherotich expressed satisfaction with her performance and immediately turned her focus to Zurich, noting she was happy with her run and ready for the next challenge.

“I’m happy about my race today in Lausanne. Now my next stop is to compete in Zurich,” Cherotich said after the race.

The 22-year-old Kenyan star will renew her rivalry with Uganda’s former Olympic champion Peruth Chemutai.

She is joined by fellow Kenyan and 2025 NCAA steeplechase champion Doris Lemngole, who is also seeking redemption after placing fourth in Lausanne in 9:07.09.

The deep field further features Germany’s Felicitas Krause, England’s Elise Thorner and Ethiopia’s Alemnat Walle.

Cherotich currently sits second in the Diamond League steeplechase standings with 28 points, trailing leader Bouzayani (31 points), while Yavi ranks third with 22 points.

All three athletes have already secured their places for the Brussels Finals, where Cherotich aims to defend the title she won last year in 8:57.24 ahead of Kazakhstan’s Norah Jeruto and Bouzayani.

Cherotich arrives in Zurich in the midst of an impressive 2026 campaign.

Her season began on May 16 in Shanghai, where she finished a heartbreaking second in 8:51.48—just one hundredth of a second behind Chemutai.

A week later in Xiamen, she placed third in 8:52.53 behind Chemutai and Yavi.

She earned her first Diamond League victory of the season on July 4 at the Prefontaine Classic, clocking 8:51.74 to out-kick Yavi and Bouzayani.

She captured the Glasgow Commonwealth Games title on July 29 in a stunning Games-record time of 9:01.76, slicing more than 13 seconds off the previous mark to lead Thorner and Chemutai. across the line.