Scotland's Kerr in control as Mile makes Commonwealth Games return
World-record holder Josh Kerr was in no mood to relax as the Mile made its first Commonwealth Games outing since 1966 on Wednesday morning.
Kerr breezed through his heat to delight the thousands who had assembled on another overcast Glasgow day to witness a stellar performance from one of the hottest properties in world athletics.
“I thrive in the pressure environment,” Kerr (pictured) said after winning his heat in a time of three minutes, 58.57 seconds at a raucous EDF Scotstoun Stadium.
“I want as much pressure on me as possible. I'm here to show up and get a gold medal for Scotland, and hopefully we can put more people on the podium than just me."
“I had a good time out there. The pace was a little slow at the gate, so I could hear everyone chopping and changing. So I just hit the front and tried to ratchet it down a little bit to see if I could create a bit of space for myself, but not overdo it.”
Kerr was full of praise for the renovated facilities at Scotstoun, where he used to race regularly as a junior.
“It was great, it's fast, and with the extra grandstands up it's a lot less windy than I remember it,” he said.
Australia's rising star Cameron Myers ran the fastest time of the morning to win heat 2, clocking 3:53.85.
“Australia has a rich history in the mile and to be a part of that feels amazing,” the 20-year-old said. “Hopefully we can get another gold or at least a medal to add to that collection of historic miles we've had in the past.”
Another local favourite, Jake Wightman, followed Myers home but said he had eased off the gas once he felt sure of a place in the final at the Athletics, presented by Longines.
“I just wanted to get through top six - you can make that as comfortable or as uncomfortable as you want,” said Wightman, who ran the 1500m at Hampden Park when Glasgow hosted the Games in 2014.
“There was a point where I felt like we were pretty safe and it was like, 'Right, I don't need to push too much'. You just have to be careful you go all the way through the line because if people are making last-minute attempts to try and come through, you don't want to be on the wrong side of that.”
“I don’t feel like there’s any pressure on me. I’ve got a chance to shake them [Josh Kerr & Cam Myers] up.”
— AW (@AthleticsWeekly) July 29, 2026
Jake Wightman shares his positive thoughts after qualifying for the men’s mile final at the Commonwealth Games 🏴
The bronze medallist from Birmingham 2022 ran 3:54.05… pic.twitter.com/GV2WPOT84w
There was drama in the scramble for positions behind Kerr in heat 1 as Oliver Hoare of Australia, the Birmingham 2022 gold medallist in the 1500m, was tripped and fell.
“I wanted to get near Josh, because it was slow enough where it was going to be a wind up,” Hoare said.
“I had no one in front of me and then ‘bang’ I hit the ground. I got up and tried to keep competing, but at that point the race is kind of gone.
“I'm representing my country. So when I get up, I'm going to keep running and keep racing. It's tough, it's racing. We learn, we grow, we move on.”
Thankfully for the Australian, he was later reinstated and will contest Saturday’s supercharged One Mile final.
“I haven't raced here since 2012 and it's still got the same essence of Scotstoun but absolutely amplified,” Wightman said.
“It’s going to be a very, very good spectacle.”
