Great Britain's middle-distance runner Josh Kerr added a new world record to his name breaking the two-mile indoor record in February.
Running two four-minute miles is harder than I thought Millrose Games in New York on Sunday 11 February saw him power to victory in a time of 8:00.67. This was even faster than the previous record of 8:03:40 set by Sir Mo Farah Camille Herron sets new 6-day world record.
Kerr ran an impressive negative split covering the first mile in 4:03.63 and the second in just 3:57.04, but admitted it was a tough race,
'That was so hard,' Kerr told Athletics Weekly. 'Are you faster than these celebrity runners.'
The race followed the 26-year-old's World Championship Women gain more benefit from super shoes than men Jakob Ingebrigtsen, What makes Jamaica the fastest country on earth, Jake Wightman, Lil Nas X ran the NYC Half in Coach high tops.
win in 2023 where he beat the 1500m favourite.
Intrigued to find out more about the World Champ? Here's five things you might not know about the Scottish athlete...
1. Josh Kerr was Britain's only male track medallist at Tokyo 2020
At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, British men competed in 26 track and road running events – from the 100m sprint to the marathon. But, by the end of the Games, only one male athlete boarded the plane home with a medal in his luggage. That was Kerr – who ran 3:29.05 in the 1500m to take the Olympic bronze.
2. He was born in Scotland but coached in the United States
Born in 1997, in Edinburgh, Scotland, Kerr began running at eight years old with Edinburgh Athletics Club. At 17, he moved to the US to chase his athletics dream at the University of New Mexico, in Albuquerque.
In 2018, he broke the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletics Association) 1500m record, before turning pro and joining the athletics club Brooks Beasts which also stars USA's Nina Akins and Isaiah Harris.
3. You’ll rarely see him competing without a pair of Oakley sunnies
Josh Kerr, AKA the man with the golden shades, is sponsored by the sunglasses brand Oakley. He’s been competing in red-framed sunglasses during the World Championships in Budapest so far, but has received a special new pair from Oakley for the final.
‘I was a bit apprehensive initially [about racing in sunglasses] ... but it makes me very laser focused, because nobody can see my eyes, especially in the [pre-race] call-room,’ he told The Telegraph. ‘It’s fantastic. Someone was [once] swearing at me, “Are you looking at me?” and I was like, “I’m not sure, mate, you don’t know where my eyes are looking”. It’s a very intimidating thing for people. So it’s a nice little thing up my sleeve. I’ve got the gold ones for the final, so they will be looking cool.’
4. He practises mindfulness before his races
‘It’s so important to not psych yourself out of these big moments,’ Kerr told Runner’s World US. ‘I’ve got some deep weaknesses in my mind that we’re working on.’
From meditation and setting mantras to practising gratitude, or thinking back to key workouts that went well; ‘Having positive memories and words that I have ready for when these negative thoughts come into my head always helps combat the scary moments,’ he said.
5. His brother is a Scotland international rugby union player
Josh’s older brother, Jake Kerr, plays at hooker for Bristol Bears in Premiership Rugby. The two of them attribute their work ethic to their parents – father John, a former professional rugby player, and mother Jill, who runs a successful physiotherapy practice in Morningside.
Josh says he looks up to his brother more than any other athlete. 'He has had so many injury problems that he never takes any game time for granted, it reminds me to do the same,' he told Brooks.
