In a much-anticipated head-to-head, multiple Olympic, world and European champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen (NOR) will line up against world champion and Olympic silver medallist Josh Kerr (GBR) over 1500m at the London Athletics Meet on Saturday 19 July.
Ingebrigtsen is a phenomenal performer. Olympic 1500m champion in 2021, he finished fourth in Paris 2024 but went on to win an incredible 5000m gold four days later. Twice defeated by Scotsmen in the World Championships 1500m – Jake Wightman in 2022 and Kerr in 2023 – twice he returned with a vengeance to win the 5000m. The 24-year-old is a 13-times European senior track champion (indoors and out) and most recently won double gold at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in China over 1500m and 3000m. He is also the world record holder in the indoor 1500m (3:29.63), indoor mile (3:45.14), 2000m (4:43.13) and 3000m (7:17.55) and owns the quickest time ever recorded over two miles (7:54.10). His 3:26.73 1500m European record is the fourth-fastest of all time.
Kerr’s 1500m victory at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest – which added to his Olympic bronze in 2021 – marked the start of an impressive 12 months for the Edinburgh AC athlete that included world indoor 3000m gold in front of a home crowd in Glasgow, Olympic silver and a British record in Paris (3:27.79), a world best time over two miles indoors (8:00.67), and a British record in the mile (3:45.34).
Currently two of the world’s highest-profile middle-distance athletes and proven championship performers, the duo will clash for the first time on British soil at the London Stadium.
Ingebrigtsen, a multiple Diamond League champion who last raced in the UK over 1500m at the 2021 Gateshead fixture said: “I love to race, and the London Diamond League is a perfect fit for my schedule. I’ve recovered well from the indoors and training is going well. I’ve never been afraid to show up and it felt good to come away from the World and European Indoor Championships with four gold medals. My focus is now on the summer and returning to Tokyo – where I won my Olympic title in 2021 – to win global gold. Competing in London is a crucial part of my build, and I know the atmosphere will be incredible.”
Kerr said: “I’ve never shied away from the fact that I’m trying to be the best 1500m runner of our era, and that means winning more titles and running faster times than everyone else. None of it comes easy and we’re all working hard to achieve our goals. For me, that includes racing a bit more this summer, but my goal for the year is simple; I want to defend my world title in Tokyo and everything I do between now and then, including lining up at the London Athletics Meet, is focused on achieving that goal.”
The London Athletics Meet – the world’s biggest one-day athletics event – is the eleventh meeting of the 2025 Wanda Diamond League. The series, which will pay out a record total of 9.24 million US dollars in prize money, comprises 15 of the most prestigious events in global track and field across four different continents, starting with Xiamen on 26 April and concluding with a single final across two days in Zurich (27-28 August).
Cherry Alexander OBE, Strategic Lead for Events at UK Athletics said; “The London Athletics Meet has a proven record of delivering a track and field spectacle for fans that features world-class performances from the very best athletes across the globe going head to head and this year’s event will be no different!
“It is incredible that we have sold over 50,000 tickets already and are well on track for another sellout London Diamond League event, proving that the British public cannot get enough of live athletics in this country. With the UK Athletics Championships heading back to Alexander Stadium in Birmingham, it is going to be an epic summer for athletics fans in the UK!”
Buy your tickets now: britishathletics.org.uk/london-athletics-meet-2025
