The men’s mile promised to be the race of the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games.
It duly delivered.
Josh Kerr went into the final in as heavy favourite to win gold. Breaking a 27-year-old world record just a fortnight ago will do that.
Kerr’s gold medal-winning run at packed Scotstoun Stadium may not have been at the breakneck speed that saw him become world mile record holder last month but it was no less thrilling.
A slow start to the race saw the pack, which also included Kerr’s compatriot and former world champion, Jake Wightman, take almost two minutes to complete the first two laps.
And as the men moved into the second half of this final, there was more than a little pushing and shoving as the pre-race favourites jostled for position.
It was, at this point, a waiting game as each man hoped someone else would make a move.
Kenya’s Timothy Cheruiyot was the first to show his hand, going to the front and injecting some pace with 600m to go. Wightman and Kerr both followed.
The pack remained tightly bunched as they heard the bell.
With 300m to go, though, the man of the moment, Kerr, put his foot down.
He eased to the front and, momentarily, Wightman followed, with the home crowd daring to dream of a Scottish 1-2.
Around the top bend, Kerr showed just why he’s this sport’s newest superstar.
With his foot now fully on the gas, he moved well clear of the field and motored down the home straight to cross the line in 3 minutes 54.12 seconds to become Commonwealth champion for the first time.
In the fight for the minor medals, Wightman faded to sixth place, with Australian Cameron Myers finishing in silver medal position, over a second behind Kerr, and Cheruiyot taking bronze.
Kerr thumped his chest as he crossed the line and took in the admiration of a crowd who realised they were watching someone who can now consider himself a true great of athletics not only in Scotland, but globally.
“It means everything,” said Kerr of his victory.
“This was the championship of my season with World Indoors and going after the record in London - this was on the calendar before any of that.
“I didn’t put together the performance I wanted in 2022 (at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games). I think a British crowd deserved more from me and I owed them that.
“When you’re running that slow, your job is not to waste energy and I did that there. I knew an opportunity would open up. Jake (Wightman) was on the outside and he’s such a great closer. But I had enough energy to put a gap on him in the last 200.
“(Breaking the world record in) London was a big stress, pushing my body to the extreme limit.
“Doing a championship race is a nice cleanse of the palate - using your brain instead of your body. It’s how I love to race.”
In the men’s 5000m, Andy Butchart put up a valiant fight in his second final of this Commonwealth Games having also contested the 10,000m earlier in the week but, in the end, the pace proved far too fast for the 34-year-old. The Stirling man lost touch with the leading group with around three laps to go and ultimately finished in 18th place in 13 minutes 55.31 seconds, 32 seconds behind winner Mathew Kipsang from Kenya.
Butchart refused, however, to see this week as a failure despite being unable to contend for a medal.
“It was just about the crowd for me tonight, said Butchart.
“The fans have been unbelievable and it’s been amazing to compete this week.
“My legs were a bit tight in the calves from the 10,000m. I felt it from pretty early on and I was nursing it a bit. That’s frustrating as there’s no reason why I shouldn’t be up there with those guys.
“The likelihood is that I’ll move onto the roads now and put the spikes away. I think I showed over the last week that I’ve maybe not got it in the 34-year-old legs. My next race will probably be the Great North Run in September. I’ll keep running for as long as I can - I’m not going anywhere just yet but if this was the last race of my track career then I’ve done pretty well. I’ve done a lot more than 10-year-old Andy could have hoped for.”
In the men’s T54 1500m final, Sean Frame narrowly missed out on a medal, finishing fourth in a season’s best of 3 minutes 20.49 seconds, Nick Percy was seventh in the discus final with 58.28m, Nicole Yeargin was fifth in the women’s 400m final in 51.27 seconds and the Scottish mixed 4x100m relay squad was fifth.
