SerpApi.Org
As running records tumbled left and right in the era of the super shoe, one mark had remained stubbornly in place.
The mile has been the most iconic distance in sports since long before a British medical student named Roger Bannister completed it in less than four minutes in 1954. But as others improved on his time, the mile record eventually settled at a kind of equilibrium. Then, it stopped moving entirely—and for 27 years, it somehow didn’t budge.
Then came a Scotsman named Josh Kerr. He not only transformed his entire life to make an attempt on the record last weekend. He even called his shot.
And on Saturday in London, he ran a mile in an unprecedented 3 minutes and 42.66 seconds.
“When you’re going after a mile world record, and you go deep into your brain, that’s when you’re asked the hardest-hitting questions of: Are you capable? Have you done enough?” he said. “I know that I can answer those honestly: Yes.”
It’s hard to tell which part of Kerr’s campaign was more grueling: the nearly four minutes of lung-burning effort, or the months of monastic living that preceded it.
Back in March, Kerr had announced a plan dubbed Project 222, an audacious promise to slice 2.22 seconds off his personal best and topple the record, held since 1999 by Morocco’s Hicham El Guerrouj. Kerr wasn’t the most obvious candidate—he wasn’t even the fastest active miler in the world at the time. Norwegian Jakob Ingebrigtsen and American Yared Nuguse had both gone faster.
But Kerr set himself apart by making the mile his entire life. He lives in Albuquerque, N.M., about a mile above sea level, and he and his wife converted their bedroom into an altitude chamber to add about 3,000 more feet of elevation. Kerr spent as much time as possible in that one room hoping to boost his ability to carry oxygen to his muscles.
Kerr also worked with a chef and nutritionist who fed him plenty of carbohydrates and protein but also raw vegetables to boost overall health.
“So I have a salad at every meal, and that includes breakfast a lot as well, which kind of sucks, if I’m being honest,” Kerr said.
He even gave up the occasional pint.
“I’m Scottish at the end of the day,” he said, “so I do like a beer.”
Kerr posted videos of his training progress for months, part of his plan to promote the sport. He grew up in Edinburgh and competed at the University of New Mexico, where he set the NCAA record in the 1,500 meters. But he knew the significance of the mile, a distance more relatable to a broad audience than, say, the marathon—and yet, fiendishly difficult to run quickly. Even today, the number of runners who have posted a four-minute mile is smaller than the number of people who have scaled Mount Everest.
When the time came to actually run it, Kerr and his team made sure that everything conformed to competition specifications so his time would count as an actual record, not a stunt. He chose a meet on the professional Diamond League circuit, at London’s Olympic stadium.
Kerr’s sponsor, Brooks, worked with him to create an aerodynamic speed suit. It also manufactured shoes that were customized to account for Kerr’s asymmetrical push-off. They feature a superlight foam cushion, springy carbon-fiber plate and titanium spikes.
Once the race started, Kerr relied on two pacesetting runners, and a system called Wavelight. It uses a string of LED lights laid along the track to signal to an athlete the exact rhythm he needs to break a record. As the crowd roared, Kerr put his months of laser focus to the test.
Some 222 seconds later, he had made history. He soon downed his first beer since December and immediately began eyeing his next challenge. The 1,500-meter world record of 3:36.00 is also held by El Guerrouj and has stood for 28 years.
“I would love to have at least an attempt in the 1,500 world record this year,” he said. “I’m not promising anything…. But you never know.”
Write to Rachel Bachman at [email protected]
