Christopher Solomon

4 days ago | nationalgeographic.com | Christopher Solomon

7.65 seconds. That’s the amount of time that Kenyan Faith Kipyegon needs to shave from her world record time in order to become the first woman to run the mile in under 4 minutes.  Kipyegon, a three-time gold medalist, has spent months training for an exhibition on Thursday in Paris where she’ll take a crack at the mythic sub-four barrier. An attempt, she says, to “cement her legacy.”   The event, dubbed Breaking4, is being staged by Nike, Kipyegon's sponsor.

1 month ago | blogs.timesofisrael.com | Christopher Solomon

For decades, Israeli policymakers have claimed that the Palestinians “never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity.” Now it is Israel that risks missing an opportunity. Syria, under President Ahmad al-Sharaa, has begun signaling a desire to move beyond hostility. Damascus has staked out a tough line against Iran, cracked down on Palestinian Islamic Jihad, distanced itself from anti-Israel escalation, and avoided any serious participation in the war that engulfed the region after October 7th.

1 month ago | christopher-solomon.medium.com | Christopher Solomon

On this day, May 19, in 1649, the Rump Parliament declared England a Commonwealth, marking the beginning of a brief and radical experiment as a republic. Although this radical republican experiment ultimately failed and the monarchy was restored just over a decade later, the event was still an important moment in British history.

2 months ago | nationalgeographic.com | Christopher Solomon |Cameron Strand

Eldoret, Kenya — “Watch her,” says the man with the stopwatch, nodding toward the far end of the sun-cracked track. It’s a Saturday morning in March at the dilapidated stadium in the city of Eldoret, high above the Great Rift Valley in western Kenya. I follow the man’s gaze to where the greatest middle-distance runner of all time rounds the last turn, training for the impossible.  It’s hard to gauge the speed of 31-year-old Faith Kipyegon. She is too smooth.

Mar 7, 2025 | seattletimes.com | Christopher Solomon

WINTHROP — The hockey rink is melting. Each day the‌ sun climbs higher above the ponderosas that shade the rink, their shadows marking the time across its surface. Another few days and the season will be over. Aaron makes a final sweep with the Zamboni and gives us a wave: the all-clear signal. Soon the gifted players hit the ice, the ones who’ve skated since they were children. They bank and glide like swallows over a cut field. I’m not good enough to be on the ice with them. They don’t mind, though.