Josh Kerr of Britain breaks 27-year-old world record in the mile
Kerr announced his bid to break the world record months in advance, and pulled off the plan in London on Saturday. (Image credit: Harry Murphy)
Kerr announced his bid to break the world record months in advance, and pulled off the plan in London on Saturday.
(Image credit: Harry Murphy)
Josh Kerr of Team Great Britain celebrates after winning the 1 Mile Men's Final and setting a new World Record during the Novuna London Athletics Meet, part of the 2026 Wanda Diamond League, at London Stadium on July 18, 2026 in London, England. Harry Murphy/Getty Images hide caption
British runner Josh Kerr broke the world record for mile time on Saturday in London, at 3 minutes and 42.66 seconds . Kerr beat the record last set by Moroccan runner Hicham El Guerrouj in Rome in 1999, at 3 minutes and 43.13 seconds, by nearly half a second.
Kerr publicly announced his bid to break the mile world record in late March , in a track season without either Olympic games or world championships.
"It's very overwhelming with the amount of hype," he told BBC Sport after breaking the record. "It's silly to call your shot that early, obviously a lot of things can go wrong. But I'm surrounded by amazing people, and I was able to just stay consistent, put the work in."
The 28-year-old from Edinburgh holds an Olympic silver medal in the men's 1500m from the 2024 Paris Games, and is the 2023 world champion in the same distance.
Kerr and his sponsor Brooks Running called the mile world record attempt "Project 222," referring to the number of seconds he needed to be at or under to break the world record.