It was a warm summer night with a bright canopy of stars

over the Estadio Olimpico Jua Havelange in Rio de Janeiro.

The winds had calmed down, but the air still felt electric as the runners lined up for the final round of the 1500-meter event.

Many of these women had already won wild championships or even set wild records before, but nothing could prepare them for what would happen next.

After a fast lap around the stadium track,

one of the runners from Ethiopia began to speed up.

A Dutch runner accelerated too, and then a Scottish runner pushed the pace even faster.

Then, with just over 200 meters to go, a young runner from Kenya dashed ahead of them all.

She looked so light on her feet. it was as if she was floating.

The crowd gasped and gaited at her strides. She made it look so easy. She crossed the finish line,

with her head dipped up to the sky and a huge smile on her face.

Then she dropped to the ground and cried for joy.

That woman's name is Faith Kipiagon.

And every race since then, she has been redefining what it means to be a female athlete.

One bounding step at a time.

I'm Cynthia Kimola and this is Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls,

a fairy tale podcast about the real-life rebel women who inspire us.

On this episode, Faith Kipiagun, Olympic champion, world champion, and world record runner runner who always finds new ways to reach

for the goal.

Faith Chep Njjjjkirgon was born in 1994 and grew up in a small village in western Kenya's brief valley called

Ndababit. It was bright and hilly and faith loved the feeling of sprinting through the long grass

with her bare feet. She ran all the time. She had to. As the eight of nine children,

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