LONDON, England — New Mexico Track & Field alumnus Josh Kerr cemented his place in history Saturday morning, breaking a 27-year-old men’s mile world record with a 3:42.66 clocking at the London Diamond League.
Kerr took nearly half a second off the previous world record of 3:43.13, established by Morocco’s Hicham El Guerrouj that had stood since 1999.
“Very overwhelming, obviously, with the amount of hype,” Kerr told the BBC following the race. “It’s silly to call your shot that early because there’s a lot of things that can go wrong.
“I felt like I had at least 3:42 in me. Nearly lost it there in the end, but I got over the line.”
After the final two pacemakers stepped off the track, Kerr controlled the race from the 1,000-meter mark through the finish. He pulled away from American Yared Nuguse over the final lap with a negative 400-meter split of 54.87, with Nuguse finishing second in 3:45.69.
“I was hoping it was going to be a little bit faster, but that’s all right,” Kerr said.
Crazy, crazy scenes 🤯
— Wanda Diamond League (@Diamond_League) July 18, 2026
History made by Josh Kerr! One Mile - 3:42.66 ⏱️#DiamondLeague 💎 #LondonDL 🇬🇧 pic.twitter.com/ettwECWUIu
Kerr’s performance was the culmination of “Project 222,” the name given to his pursuit of a 222-second mile -- with the majority of his training taking place at elevation in Albuquerque. He publicly announced his intention to challenge the world record in March and entered Saturday’s race with an outdoor personal best of 3:45.34.
“It’s time for that record to have a real go at it,” Kerr said Friday ahead of the race, “and I’m going to be that guy to do it.”
Kerr backed up that confidence in front of a capacity crowd at London Stadium, shaving nearly three seconds off his previous best and becoming the first British athlete to hold the men’s mile world record since Steve Cram in 1985.
“If I’m to leave my mark on this sport, as a British athlete with the legends I have behind me and following in their footsteps, I have to be able to do those performances,” Kerr said.
The Edinburgh, Scotland, native competed for New Mexico from 2015-18, winning three individual NCAA championships, eight Mountain West titles and setting the collegiate record in the 1,500 meters.
Kerr won consecutive NCAA indoor mile championships in 2017 and 2018. He also captured the 2017 NCAA outdoor title in the 1,500 meters, becoming the 11th athlete in NCAA history — and the first since 2008 — to complete the indoor mile and outdoor 1,500-meter championship sweep. He was the first man from New Mexico to make the cut as a semifinalist for The Bowerman, awarded to the top athlete in collegiate track & field.
His winning time of 3:35.01 at the 2018 Bryan Clay Invitational established New Mexico and collegiate records in the 1,500 meters. He concluded his collegiate career with a third-place finish in the event at the 2018 NCAA Outdoor Championships.
Since leaving New Mexico, Kerr has won the 2023 World Athletics Championships title in the 1,500 meters and earned two Olympic medals in the event, taking bronze at the Tokyo Olympics and silver at the Paris Olympics.
Kerr crossed the 1,500-meter point of Saturday’s race in a personal-best 3:27.65 before completing the final 109 meters to secure the world record.
“I think the 1,500-meter record is within my grasp,” Kerr said. “I don’t want to get greedy.”