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Jakob Ingebrigtsen's rival Josh Kerr has opened his outdoor season with great momentum. The former world champion has been in great form since the beginning of the Olympic season.
Josh Kerr breezed through the indoor season and created a new world record in the indoor two-mile race by clocking an impressive 8:00.67 at the Millrose Games earlier this year. The Scot took away almost three seconds from the previous record set by the legendary long-distance athlete Mo Farah.
After the indoor season, Josh Kerr announced that he would be participating in the Prefontaine Classic in May to kickstart his outdoor season. This fueled heavy anticipation among fans as Jakob Ingebrigtsen was also set to make his season debut at the event after a hiatus due to an injury. However, last week, Kerr announced that he would be competing in the Oregon Relays in the 800m event.
His decision to compete in 800m came as a surprise as Josh Kerr primarily competes in the 1500m discipline in the outdoor season. Kerr led the pack and dominated the race all throughout, thereby winning the gold medal. He clocked 1.45.9 to take home the title.
Kerr took to Instagram and posted about his victory, thanking Oregon Relays for having him at the race.
"1.45.9 - nice to cut up hard training with something quick. Thanks for having me @oregonrelays," read the caption.
Josh Kerr and Jakob Ingebrigtsen's rivalry
Josh Kerr and Jakob Ingebrigtsen's rivalry has been one of the most emerging rivalries in track and field in recent times. The two athletes have been staunch rivals on the track and have gone to and fro multiple times in the media.
The rivalry became a topic of discussion among fans after Ingebrigtsen commented on Kerr's two-mile indoor world record at the Millrose Games.
"It is very positive for me that my competitors are getting better. Then I don’t have to run alone. It is not certain that he runs any better now than last year at the same time; he did not run two miles then. I would have beaten him in that race, blindfolded. But it’s good that people run better than they have done before," he said. (as quoted by Norway's TV2)
During the pre-race press conference of the World Indoor Athletics Championships, when Kerr was asked to reply to the Norwegian's comments, he denied any answers. The two staunch rivals will now go head to head at the Prefontaine Classic in May in their signature 1500m event.
