"This Year Will Define My Career" — Josh Kerr on Coming Back From His First Major Injury, the 1500m's New Era, and Chasing History
THE RUNNING EFFECT PODCAST
Dominic Schlueter
4.9 • 821 Ratings
🗓️ 26 February 2026
⏱️ 48 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The grade-two calf tear he suffered during the World Championship 1500m race in Tokyo in 2025 could have resulted inJosh Kerr stepping off the track and licking his wounds.
Instead, he finished the race, committed to rehab, and returned to the stage at the Millrose Games. Kerr lined up in the 2-mile not just as the world indoor best holder (8:00.67), but as the man everyone was chasing. In a tactical, electric“kicker’s battle,” he clocked 8:07.68 and finished second to American Cole Hocker, a reminder that even record holders must keep evolving.
Josh’s career highlights include winning the gold medal in the 1500m at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest; securing another gold medal in the 3000m at the 2024 World Indoor Championships in Glasgow; holding the world best time for the indoor 2-mile event, with a time of 8:00.67 set in February 2024 at the Millrose Games; and holding British national records for the outdoor 1500m (3:27.79) and the outdoor mile (3:45.34).
But Milrose 2026 was a statement. If 8:07.68 in February is the starting point, the rest of the year could be something special. Because the best careers aren’t built on perfect scripts. They’re built on responses to adversity.
And Josh Kerr has never shied away from the response.
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Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Ladies and gentlemen, he's back on the podcast. |
| 0:02.4 | The man of the hour, Mr. Josh Kerr, one of the most storied and prolific 1,500 meter runners in history, |
| 0:08.3 | returns to the podcast for his second conversation. |
| 0:10.8 | And if you're not familiar with Josh, he is a world champion, 1,500 meter gold medalist. |
| 0:14.9 | He's an Olympic medalist in the 1500 meter as well, an NCAA champion. |
| 0:18.5 | And in this conversation, he tells me something, |
| 0:21.2 | I've never heard a defending champion say out loud that standing on the start line last year at |
| 0:25.6 | Worlds, he didn't want to be there. And today, Josh gets into what happened between the semi and the |
| 0:30.2 | final when his cast started falling apart, the hotel room after, and the devastation. Why |
| 0:35.0 | he says this year will define his entire career and why genuinely |
| 0:38.4 | believes nobody in the world can beat him when he's healthy. Not Yacabingabitzen, not Yard Noghuse, |
| 0:44.1 | not Cole Hocker, nobody. This is the running effect. This is the podcast where we chronicle |
| 0:49.4 | and document the greatest athletes in the sport we all love so dearly. And if you enjoy it, |
| 0:54.7 | give us a follow so you don't miss the best conversations with your favorite athletes, your favorite personalities, |
| 0:59.8 | your favorite people in the sport of running. Give us a five-star review. It takes next to no time |
| 1:03.6 | and share this podcast with a friend. This one is packed to the brim with wisdom. I always love |
| 1:08.6 | my conversations with Josh. I find myself becoming a bigger fan |
| 1:11.7 | after each and every single conversation. And you guys are in for a treat. He opens the door |
| 1:16.7 | on so many things in this conversation. So I will no longer stand in the way between you and |
| 1:21.7 | world champion, Mr. Josh Kerr. |
| 1:34.6 | Josh Kerr, take me through the five to ten seconds, world championships before you tear your calf. |
| 1:35.2 | What's going through your head? |
... |
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