Josh Kerr returns to the track on Saturday for the much-anticipated Commonwealth Mile at Scotstoun, with Steve Cram warning that the Scot will need to be in world-record shape to take the title.
Kerr obliterated Hicham El Guerrouj's long-standing world record in July. Cram, the Olympic silver medallist and 1980s track powerhouse, said the US-based athlete may not have it all his own way at Glasgow 2026 and faces a real fight for gold.
Cram warns Kerr needs world-record form
"I think if it looked like he was a hot favourite and going to win, that would be lovely," said Cram, "but he's going to have to really really be in his world record shape if he wants to win this. It won't be a world record but I think it will be quick. I hope a lot of the people watching it will remember it for the rest of their lives."
For the former world champion, the race promises to be a scintillating encounter, with the likes of Scotland's Jake Wightman and Australia's Cameron Myers providing stiff opposition for Kerr.
"This race is probably going to be the highlight of the Games, because it's a mile, Josh has just broken the world record, and he's up against an incredible field."
Why the mile means so much to Cram
"For me," said Cram, "The Mile is probably the thing that's most resonated with why I got involved in athletics, because I grew up as a young athlete learning and being taught about Roger Bannister and the four minute mile. It was something my coaches all referred back to, so we alternated between the mile and the 1500m and it was that race that catapulted me into international athletics. I got the chance to run at the Emsley Carr Mile in London, broke the world record for a 17 year old, and got invited to go straight to a Commonwealth Games.
"I remember I had to cancel a holiday with my parents. So it's the race and the distance that has been so important to me my whole career."
Commonwealth Mile returns to Glasgow
The Commonwealth Mile - which returns for the Games in Glasgow - was reintroduced thanks to World Athletics' President, Sebastian Coe. Agreed for Victoria before the event's cancellation, it has been included in the Scottish iteration by World Athletics and Commonwealth Sport.
The historic event harks back to the "Miracle Mile" from the 1954 Commonwealth Games in Vancouver, long regarded as one of the defining moments in the sport. The race, which came just months after Bannister became the first man in history to run a sub-four-minute mile, captured the imagination of thousands.
It has resonated as one of the most iconic moments in Commonwealth sport, ever since.
