Josh Kerr Smashes Mile World Record With 3:42.66 at London Diamond League

LONDON — Britain's Josh Kerr broke the men's mile world record with a run of 3:42.66 at the London Diamond League on Saturday, according to World Athletics.

The 28-year-old from Edinburgh eclipsed the previous mark of 3:43.13 set by Morocco's Hicham El Guerrouj in 1999, a record that had stood for 27 years, World Athletics said. Kerr's time fell more than a second under the longstanding barrier in front of a home crowd at the Novuna London Athletics Meet.

The Guardian, BBC and Olympics.com all confirmed the result, with the BBC describing Kerr as having "smashed" the record. The run is the first sub-3:43 mile in history, according to the governing body.

In other events on the same bill, Nigeria's Kayinsola Ajayi, the NCAA 100m champion, claimed a statement win in the men's 100m, beating Jamaica's Oblique Seville, Olympics.com reported — a notable result for African sprinting. Britain's Keely Hodgkinson won the women's 800m, while Saint Lucia's Julien Alfred edged the United States' Gabby Thomas in the women's 200m.

Kerr, now the reigning world mile record holder, has vowed to chase further honours at the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games, according to Glasgow 2026 organisers.

## How Josh Kerr's Mile World Record Fell

Kerr's 3:42.66 bettered El Guerrouj's 3:43.13 from Rome in 1999, ending the longest-standing men's world record on the books. The performance came in his home country and headlines a strong British showing at the London stop of the 2026 Wanda Diamond League.

**Global angle:** The meet doubled as a platform for emerging African and Caribbean talent, with Nigerian Kayinsola Ajayi's 100m win over Olympic silver medallist Oblique Seville underscoring the continent's growing sprint depth ahead of Glasgow 2026.

**Sources** - https://worldathletics.org - https://www.bbc.com - https://www.olympics.com

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