Josh Kerr did not get much sleep the night after his Commonwealth Games mile victory, but the Scot said there was no time for that because Glasgow was “bouncing”. He made the comment with a slight croak in his voice, 11 hours after winning gold, and it reflected the way he has carried himself throughout the week.
Embedded with Team Scotland, back home among his own people, Kerr has clearly revelled in the experience. His social media has captured much of it: reels of the 28-year-old running around the streets of the city, in its parks and on its tracks, pictures of him loosening off under a Kingston Bridge flyover in a hotel car park, and images of him engaging with the crowd.
Those were his people, the ones who came to see the mile record holder on Saturday night. Among them were Kerr’s grandparents and nephews, his first ever coach, and his training partners from when he was 11 or 12. There were also hundreds of awestruck children, some already budding athletes and others who may now want to become one, just as Kerr did when the Games came to Glasgow in 2014 and he dreamed of emulating the athletes he watched race at Hampden.
That memory was in his mind as the Edinburgh athlete slowly made his way back down the home straight from the podium after his emotional medal ceremony. It is why every fan who asked for a selfie understood why, why he signed his name over and over again, and why he gave them his time and attention. Kerr was soaking up his moment of glory, but he was also giving something back.
“I’m just trying to create a moment for them,” he told Scotland.
“There is absolutely nothing stopping any of them going out and doing what that I’ve just done. I believe if you grow up in Scotland, you can be one of the best runners in history of these distances. I’m not doing anything outrageously special.”
Why is Kerr being compared with Scottish sporting icons?
Plenty would dispute Kerr’s modest assessment. After all, covering four laps and change in three minutes 42.66 seconds to set a new world record, after telling people exactly when and how he was going to do it, was both outrageous and special.
He was nowhere near as quick at a blustery Scotstoun, but although he took just over 11 seconds longer to complete the 1609m, the Scot still put on a show on a track where he used to race, and regularly lose, as a child. Having been candid about his ambitions for the summer — breaking a 27-year-old standard and winning Games gold — Kerr admitted there was relief in following word with deed. Yet the expectation has also brought enjoyment.
“This whole experience has been really fun for me, too, actually,” he said. “I use to come to Glasgow quite a lot to hang out with friends I made through athletics and, it’s funny, we’re staying pretty close to where we’d meet up and walk around town.
“The city is buzzing with Games and it’s just nice to be a part of that and really feed off the feed off the city.”
What did the anthem mean to Kerr?
It all culminated for Kerr with listening to Flower of Scotland being played while he stood on the podium, his bottom lip twitching. Several times he had to stop singing to compose himself and, when the music ended, he had to wipe tears from his eyes.
Scotland matters to him in a way familiar to many people who have lived outside the country. Albuquerque in New Mexico is now his base — something his accent and phraseology sometimes betray — but Edinburgh will always be home.
“It’s it’s everything to me,” Kerr said of his nationality. “It’s the way I present myself and the way I was built. I grew up in Edinburgh until I was 17 and I’m very proud to be Scottish. I’m back four times a year right now, which I feel pretty good about.”
Asked about being considered a sporting standard bearer for his country, and a successor to the likes of Sir Chris Hoy and Sir Andy Murray, Kerr paused before acknowledging the comparison.
“Um, yeah, that, that sounds, yeah, I mean, it’s an honour to be, to be spoken in the same sentence as those two legends,”
said the loquacious Kerr, who for once struggled for words as the idea took hold.
“Sir Chris Hoy went to my school, actually, and spoke a few times during assemblies and that just closed the gap between me and him for when I was sitting there as a pupil. It made it seem possible.
“Hopefully I can do that, too, but those two guys are absolute legends of the game and I’ve got a lot of work to do to keep up with them.”
Keeping up, as Kerr has shown this summer, is not something he tends to struggle with.
Key Facts
- Josh Kerr won Commonwealth Games mile gold in Glasgow.
- He set a new world record in three minutes 42.66 seconds earlier this summer.
- He took just over 11 seconds longer to complete the 1609m at Scotstoun.
- Kerr is 28 and is based in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
- He said Sir Chris Hoy went to his school and spoke in assemblies.
