Aug 2 (Reuters) – Scotland’s Josh Kerr raced to victory in the men’s mile at the Commonwealth Games in front of home fans in Glasgow, clocking three minutes 54.12 seconds on Saturday.
Kerr finished comfortably ahead of Australia’s Cameron Myers (3:55.26) and Kenya’s Timothy Cheruiyot (3:55.41), with the world record holder smiling and gesturing to the crowd as he crossed the finish line.
“I had some fantastic runners outside me, so that box was always going to open up once everything started to move a little bit,” Kerr said.
“It was just about staying patient, not panicking, and knowing there was going to be space there over the last 200 metres. I just had to take my time and work my way through the box a little bit. That’s racing.”
The home crowd roared Kerr to victory at the Scotstoun Stadium where he has been racing since he was a child.
Kerr’s medal came just two weeks after he shattered the 27-year-old world mile record with a time of 3:42.66 at the London Diamond League meeting, breaking Hicham El Guerrouj’s long-standing mark by 0.47 seconds.
“To have a bit of time to enjoy it in the last 100m is a memorable experience for me,” the 28-year-old said.
“To do that in front of a home crowd is everything I want to do. It’s been a great two weeks, and I’m glad I’m able to perform on the big days.”
The mile was added to this edition of the Commonwealth Games after an absence of 60 years, with the event last being included in the programme in 1966.
(Reporting by Aadi Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Kate Mayberry)
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