Josh Kerr (runner)

Josh Kerr (born 8 October 1997)[3][4] is a Scottish middle-distance runner who competes primarily in the 1500 metres. He is the 2023 world champion, and the 2020 Tokyo Olympic bronze medallist in the event.

Josh Kerr
Kerr at the 2019 Millrose Games
Personal information
Born (1997-10-08) 8 October 1997
Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom[1]
EducationUniversity of New Mexico[2]
Sport
CountryGreat Britain & N.I.
Scotland
SportTrack and field
Event(s)1500 metres, Mile
College teamNew Mexico Lobos
ClubBrooks Beasts TC
Edinburgh AC
Coached byDanny Mackey (2018–)
Joe Franklin (2015–2018)
Mark Pollard (2015)
David Campbell (–2015)
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)
Medal record
Men's athletics
Representing  Great Britain
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place2020 Tokyo1500 m
World Championships
Gold medal – first place2023 Budapest1500 m
European Junior Championships
Gold medal – first place2015 Eskilstuna1500 m

He won the gold medal at the 2015 European Junior Championships, and represented Great Britain at the 2017 World Championships but did not reach the semifinals.

Josh’s older brother, Jake Kerr, played international rugby for Scotland.

Career

During the postponed 2020 Tokyo Olympics in 2021, Kerr claimed the bronze medal in his specialist event after posting a personal best time of 3m 29.05s, narrowly missing out on silver.

On 27 February 2022, he set an unofficial European mile indoor record (the third fastest mark of all time in the world at the time), and 1500 m and mile British and Scottish indoor records to claim victory at the Boston University Last Chance Meet. With his time of 3:48.87 and 1500 m split of 3:32.86 en route, he broke Eamonn Coghlan's European mile record dating back to 1983, and two Peter Elliott's UK bests, which were set in 1990.[5]

On 23 August 2023, Kerr defeated Norwegian favourite Jakob Ingebrigtsen in the final of the 1500 metres at the 2023 World Athletics Championships. It was the second successive World Championship where Ingebrigtsen was upset in the final of the 1500 metres by an athlete from Edinburgh Athletic Club, following teammate and compatriot Jake Wightman's victory in Eugene in 2022.[6]

International competitions
Representing  Great Britain &  Scotland
YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventResultTeam
2015 European Junior Championships Eskilstuna, Sweden 1st 1500 m 3:49.62  Great Britain
2016 World U20 Championships Bydgoszcz, Poland 10th 1500 m 3:51.23  Great Britain
European Cross Country Championships Chia, Italy 14th Junior race 17:38  Great Britain
2017 World Championships London, United Kingdom 34th (h) 1500 m 3:47.30  Great Britain & N.I. (GBR)
2019 World Championships Doha, Qatar 6th 1500 m 3:32.52  Great Britain & N.I. (GBR)
2021 Olympic Games Tokyo, Japan 3rd 1500 m 3:29.05  Great Britain (GBR)
2022 World Championships Eugene, OR, United States 5th 1500 m 3:30.60  Great Britain & N.I. (GBR)
Commonwealth Games Birmingham, United Kingdom 12th 1500 m 3:35.72  Scotland (SCO)
2023 World Championships Budapest, Hungary 1st 1500 m 3:29.38  Great Britain & N.I. (GBR)

Personal bests

Information taken from World Athletics profile.

References
  1. Gretschel, Johanna (20 March 2017). "NCAA Mile Champion Josh Kerr Is Living The American Dream". FloTrack. Retrieved 14 August 2017.
  2. New Mexico Lobos bio
  3. "Josh Kerr – Profile". Power of 10 / thepowerof10.info. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
  4. "Josh KERR – Athlete profile". World Athletics. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
  5. Woods, Mark (28 February 2022). "Josh Kerr smashes two records in one". Edinburgh Evening News. Retrieved 5 March 2022.
  6. "Britain's Kerr stuns Ingebrigtsen to take world gold". BBC Sport. 23 August 2023. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  7. Henderson, Jason (12 February 2023). "Millrose magic for Scottish middle-distance runners". AW. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
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