This is Stuart Weir’s piece on the silver medalist in the 1,500 meters, Josh Kerr. Most were focused on Kerr and Ingebrigtsen, as Cole Hocker stunned the world!
Kerr beats Ingebrigtsen, but…
The difference between tennis and track is that tennis players have just one opponent at a time. If you serve Federer, Nadal will not run to the court and hit a winner past you. Most predictions of the 1500m said it was between the Olympic champion, Jakob Ingebrigtsen, and the World Champion, Josh Kerr. Kerr won his “tennis” match, but the problem was that Cole Hocker (USA) beat both. The medalists in the 2024 Olympic 1500 final were separated by 0.15 seconds after 3 minutes 27 seconds running. While Kerr was beating his perceived main rival by nearly half a second. Hocker snuck through on the inside to win. And Kerr only held off Yared Naguse by just 1/100th of a second.
In 2021, Jakob won the Olympic 1500 in 3:28.32, with Timothy Cheruiyot second and Josh Kerr third. It was an incredible race, with five of the top six running a PR. Jakob looked unbeatable. Then, at the 2022 World Champs, Jake Wightman overlooked Jakob with 150 meters to go, held on and was the World Champion. Sadly, virtually nothing has gone right for Jake since then, with a series of injuries keeping him out of the 2023 Worlds and the 2024 Olympics. At the 2023 Budapest Worlds, it was déjà vu all over again with another Scottish athlete, Josh Kerr, this time overtaking Ingebrigtsen on the back straight and holding on for the victory.
The 2024 Olympic final followed a similar pattern. Ingebrigtsen led from early in the race, seemingly trying to run the finish out of his rivals. Kerr sat in third place and, on the final lap, on the back straight, used the time-honored British strategy of passing the Norwegian and going for the finish. Kerr did nothing wrong, but Hocker found a faster finish – 0.14 seconds faster.
Kerr’s time of 3:27.79 was a Scottish and British record, but on the night was 0.14 secs too slow for gold. His reaction was measured: “I can’t walk away from a championship disappointed. I said my goals, which was pretty obvious, but I’ve put out a performance today that I can be proud of. I ran the fastest and best tactical 1500m of my life, and when you start worrying about what other people do from the results, you’ll never be satisfied. It’s not the color of the medal I wanted, but it’s working toward the correct color, from bronze to silver. I just want to thank everyone on my team and the family members who supported me to get me in a position to leave it all out there, and that’s what I did today.
“I’m 26, this road is not over. I wanted it today, I told you what I wanted, and I didn’t get it, so there’s going to be that part of me that’s already looking ahead to the next one, but I’m really, really proud of the way I executed today and that’s going to have to be enough for now. It’s left me hungry and ready for more, and I’m just glad I could add another medal to the tally for Team GB.
“I knew we had to weather the storm early, keep calm, and make sure I was as emotionally locked in as I could be. At 600, I felt like I had quite a lot left but got pushed out slightly on the last bend. I had to work hard and get around Ingebrigtsen, but there was so much running left at that point, and it was so hard to keep track of everyone in the last 100m. The result is what it is, but I’m super proud of how I executed it.
“It would be amazing to get gold at LA, but I’m secure as a medallist at every championship bar one in the last four years. I’ve been consistent at this level and will get the medal I want by the end of my career. It didn’t happen today, but it was a big step in the right direction”.
A mature and sensible assessment.
