Jakob Ingebrigtsen, who captured the European 5,000m championship in his first competition following an 11-month absence due to an achilles injury, expressed strong disapproval of Josh Kerr’s decision to not compete at the Birmingham European championships.
Kerr, a British distance runner, broke the world mile record in July at the London Diamond League with a time of 3:42.66 before winning the Commonwealth title two weeks later. However, he withdrew from the European championships, citing concerns about pushing too hard and risking injury. Ingebrigtsen told the BBC that he found Kerr’s absence disappointing and argued that elite athletes should prioritize competing in major championships rather than pursuing individual records.
Ingebrigtsen stated that missing significant competitions undermines the sport’s fundamental purpose, which he described as bringing together the world’s best athletes. He acknowledged that athletes have different priorities and plans but said he could not envision prioritizing a time over a championship title. Despite his criticism of Kerr’s absence, Ingebrigtsen praised the British runner’s mile record performance as “extremely good” and “very strong.”
The two runners have had previous exchanges. In 2023, Kerr accused Ingebrigtsen of displaying poor sportsmanship after the Norwegian claimed illness when Kerr won the world 1500m title. In 2024, following Kerr’s two-mile world record, Ingebrigtsen made a dismissive comment suggesting he would have defeated Kerr in that race.
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