Olympic 1,500m silver medalist Josh Kerr ‘ready to compete’ in Diamond League

Olympic 1,500 meters silver medalist Josh Kerr says he is “ready to compete” in the Zurich Diamond League competition after taking a month off after Paris.

Kerr’s rivalry with Norwegian Jakob Ingebrigtsen resumes in Switzerland, where American Cole Hocker – who clinched the Olympic title – is also competing alongside Games bronze medalist Yared Nuguse.

The Scot revealed he made a concerted effort to take “a month off after (winning) the Olympics medal” but was still aiming for a return in the penultimate competition of the Diamond League of the season.

The 26-year-old said: “I know what my body is capable of, I know what I can do, so I’m a bit more selective in what I do. I took a month off after the Olympics just to make sure I’m ready to compete in this one.

“It’s hard. Being on the road is hard, living out of a suitcase for months is hard, so it was nice for me to come home.

“I was able to go back to Scotland, go back to my club and give them the experience they deserved.

“But the training is very consistent, very similar for me every year to be honest. I’ve had pretty much the same winter for five, six years now.

The Olympic 1,500 meters final was billed as a two-legged showdown between arch-rival Ingebrigtsen – the reigning Tokyo 2020 Games champion – and Kerr, who beat him to the 2023 world title.

But while the two seemed locked in their own conflict, it was Hocker who stole the show, securing a surprise victory at the Stade de France.

Britain’s Elliot Giles, who set a new road mile world record in Düsseldorf on Sunday, has been confirmed as the second pacemaker for Thursday evening’s race, the next chapter in the Kerr-Ingebrigtsen epic, after what for much was an inconclusive ending in France.

Ingebrigtsen revealed on Wednesday afternoon that he had suffered an infection after last month’s Diamond League meeting in Silesia, but vowed: “I’m obviously here to do my best.

“I want to race, I want to see what we can do tomorrow. If it’s going to be a world record, maybe not, but I think it will be a good race and a good competition.

Both rivals were asked the question of what the other man’s best quality was.

Kerr went first, saying, “His dress sense is probably his best quality. That would be number one.

Ingebrigtsen took a slightly more serious approach and said of Kerr: “Probably his performance, doing 100 percent when it counts.

“I think it’s important for us. I think Josh has been doing this since Tokyo. Being able to run your best race when it really counts is important.

Kerr, Hocker and Nuguse have all signed up for Michael Johnson’s new Grand Slam Track series, a head-to-head competition which begins next April.

The trio, alongside another yet-to-be-announced ‘starting runner’, will compete in the 1500m and 800m distances against a field of in-form ‘challengers’.

A total prize pool of US$12.6 million (£9.6 million) is on offer for the first year, with US$100,000 (£76,000) offered to the winners of each event.

When asked if it would change his excitement about competing in Diamond League events, Kerr added: “Personally, it won’t change anything about what I do.

“I think there is room in sport for both. The face-to-face and then also the time trial.

“This will be my second Diamond League of the year and I’m sure I can do two next year.”