Janeth Jepkosgei scored a thrilling 800m victory in Osaka on Tuesday night after leading from start to finish.

It was the first time a Kenyan woman has ever won middle distance gold at the World Championships or Olympics and the triumph capped off a terrific evening for the country after they had earlier taken a clean sweep of medals in the men's 3000m steeplechase.

Jepkosgei's performance was arguably the most memorable of the night as she produced a stunning display of front running to leave the rest of the field in her wake.

Having blitzed her opponents right from the gun, the 24-year-old arrived at the bell in 56.16 seconds and never faltered as she blazed a fast trail down the back straight.

The Commonwealth champion charged home in one minute 56.04 seconds - the fastest in the world this year - while runner-up Hasna Benhassi was able to take silver after Maria Mutola dramatically stepped off the track with 80m remaining.

Spain's Mayte Martínez also capitalised on Mutola's misfortune by claiming the bronze with a personal best time of 1:57.62.

Jepkosgei was relieved her strategy to take a commanding lead paid off but insists there is still room for improvement.

She said: "I decided to go in front and not to wait for the others. I had to do my best, and that's what I did. I think it's a challenge for me now, because now I know I'm competitive.

"It's the first gold medal for Kenya and the first world championship gold for me, and it's also my personal best, so I'm happy.

"I did not expect another personal best after the semi-final. The world record is still far away, I m not thinking about it. I saw afterwards that it was a world leading time. It's good, but I have to do something more, before the end of the season."