NAIROBI, Kenya, July 8, 2026 – World champion Lilian Odira has set her sights on winning a medal at this month’s Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.
Odira says a Commonwealth title would look so good in her medal cabinet, which is increasingly filling up with every competition she participates in.
“I mean this year I’m just focusing on getting a PB (personal best) and doing the ultimate. I’ll be going to the Commonwealth and hopefully to make it to the Diamond League final,” the 27-year-old said.
Odira is a woman on fire, boasting a red-hot streak ever since she won the world title in Tokyo last year, during which she clocked 1:54.62 in the women’s 800m.
This year, her ‘worst’ performance is a third-place finish at the Rabat Diamond League on May 31, where she clocked 1:57.27 in the women’s 800m.
It couldn’t get any better for the Kenya Prisons Service athlete who strolled to victory in her last race, at the Prefontaine Classic on Saturday.
Odira clocked 1:56.19 to win the one-lap race, in what was her maiden appearance at the prestigious Diamond League competition.
The 2024 Africa 800m silver medalist was over the moon with the result, expressing her delight at clocking a season best (SB).
“Coming to the USA and winning my first-ever Prefontaine Classic…it’s so amazing and I’m so happy. I was expecting a faster race because the pace was to be 55.5 so I knew it would be a faster race because it was a stacked field of faster times. I’m so grateful to run at season best and I’m happy,” Odira said.
She added: “I think that has always been my best part of the race, the last 100 meters. That is where I always do my thing.”
Having bide her time, coming steadily through the ladder of the world’s best in the women’s 800m, Odira is finally reaping the fruits of consistency, hard work and patience.
Success at the Club Games will be another feather in her cap; a deserved harvest for the seasons in which she has been perfecting her art and craft.
