Great Britain’s Josh Kerr delivered on his March promise, breaking Hicham El Guerrouj’s longstanding men’s mile world record with a time of 3:42.66 at the London Stadium on Saturday.
The 28-year-old Scot eclipsed the Moroccan legend’s 1999 mark by nearly half a second, crossing the line before a sell-out crowd of 60,000.
Kerr, who entered as the sixth-fastest miler in history, surged past the wavelights guiding his pace after his two pacemakers dropped by the 1,000m mark.
American Yared Nuguse, a pre-race threat and fourth on the all-time list, finished well behind as Kerr ran the 1,500m split faster than his own British record.
He became the seventh British athlete to claim the mile record, the first since Steve Cram in 1985, and raised his arms in triumph as the stadium roared.
