Olympic 1500m silver medallist Josh Kerr ‘ready to compete’ in Diamond League

Olympic 1,500 metres silver medallist Josh Kerr said he was “ready to go” at the Diamond League meeting in Zurich after taking a month off from competition after Paris.

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

The Scot revealed he had made a concerted effort to take “a month off after winning the Olympic medal” but was still aiming for a return at the penultimate Diamond League event 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 little bit more selective in what I do. I took a month off after the Olympics just to make sure I’m ready for the Olympics.”

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

“I was able to go back to Scotland, get 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 been doing pretty much the same winter for five or six years now.”

The Olympic 1,500 metres final was billed as a showdown between arch-rivals Ingebrigtsen – the reigning champion from Tokyo 2020 – and Kerr, who beat him to the world title in 2023.

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

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

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

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

The two rivals were asked what the other’s best quality was.

Kerr first said: “His dress sense is probably his best quality. It would be the number one quality.”

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

“I think it’s important for us. I think Josh has been doing that since Tokyo. Being able to do your best race when it really matters is important.”

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

The trio, alongside another yet-to-be-announced ‘main runner’, will compete over the 1,500m and 800m distances against a group 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) awarded to the winners of each event.

Asked if this would change his enthusiasm for competing in Diamond League events, Kerr added: “Personally, it won’t change anything about what I do.

“I think there is room in the sport for both. Duels and also time trials.

“This will be my second Diamond League of the year and I am sure I will be able to compete in two next year.”