USA's Clayton Murphy, Algeria's Taoufik Makhloufi, Kenya's David Lekuta Rudisha and France's Pierre-Ambroise Bosse compete in the Men's 800m Final during the athletics event at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at the Olympic Stadium in Rio de Janeiro on August 15, 2016.[AFP]
And Wanyonyi was in cloud nine as he rushed to the stands to celebrate with the Kenyan legend after the race.
"I feel great, and I thank God for winning this race, it wasn't easy. I was the only Kenyan in the race, and it was difficult to defend it alone," he said.
"Of course, I had a lot of pressure because I had no one to assist me. But I'm glad I stuck to my tactic of leading from gun to tape. I talked to David Rudisha before the race and he told if I use my tactics well and put it in my mind, I will make it." "He told me to take the lead, control the pace, and believe in myself. So, I followed it and raced like he did in London 2012."
Even though Wanyonyi was not surprised with the win after following his pre-Olympic training in Kapsabet and Eldoret, he admitted that his competitors really gave him a run for his money.
"Before coming to Paris, I had agreed with my coach that I need to run very fast at the Olympics. If I want to win it, I must run my own race and run 1.41. So, I was training to run 1.41 because I was expecting very stiff competition and I knew most of them (athletes) run very fast in the last 100m," said Wanyonyi.
"It was an epic finish and I expected Sedjati to be there, but Arop was faster. Luckily enough, I had reserved some energy for the final stretch because I knew he would beat me if I slowed down."