The 2026 Novuna London Athletics Meet was already hotly anticipated but the stakes got even higher when world champion and Olympic medallist Josh Kerr confirmed his mile world record attempt would take place at the London Stadium.
Project 222 – named after the two hundred and twenty two seconds it would take to break the mark of 3:43.13 set by Hicham El Guerrouj in 1999 – started to build momentum following his announcement in March. “On July 18th I’m putting it all on the line,” he told his social media followers at the time. “I’m bringing the mile home.”
Kerr shared everything that went into the attempt on Instagram and YouTube. By the time of the pre-event press conference he told the captivated room: “I’m not a bettor myself, but it’s in my favour.”
Anticipation could have barely been greater. The sold-out 60,000 crowd had come to see a host of world-class athletes, but it was Edinburgh AC’s Kerr – who would be paced in the race by his training partner Brannon Kidder and Žan Rudolf – who had captured imaginations and dominated conversations.
Once the race got underway Kidder hit 400m on world record tempo in 54.75, Kerr a few strides back in 55.3. Kidder led through 800m, which Kerr reached in 1:51.1, before the pacemakers stepped aside and Kerr took over to pass 1200m in 2:46.39. The noise as he moved to the front was deafening. He then hit 1500m in 3:27.62 – faster than his own British record for the distance – and dug deep to hit the finish line in 3:42.66 as the crowd noise reached a crescendo.
In just 222 seconds Kerr had delivered one of the most incredible sporting moments in history.
Behind him, Yared Nuguse (USA) finished second in a season’s best of 3:45.69 with Britain’s Jake Heyward third in a personal best of 3:46.73. Germany’s Robert Farken set a new national record in fourth (3:46.82).
The atmosphere in the London Stadium, which had been eerie at the gun, became celebratory, emotional and totally magical: “It is very overwhelming,” the new world record holder told organisers post-event. “I nearly lost it there at the end, but I got over the line. Those performances take every part of you, every part of your team. There is an incredible amount of work behind the scenes. Today is a result of all that hard work.”
Continuing to ride his own wave of success, Kerr went on to win gold in the men’s mile at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow (August) and was crowned Ultimate world champion (1500m) in Budapest in September.
The Novuna London Athletics Meet returns to the London Stadium on Saturday 17 July 2027. Buy your tickets now: https://www.britishathletics.org.uk/events/novuna-london-athletics-meet-2027/