Saturday night at the 2026 World Indoor Championships delivered for the Novuna GB & NI’s first medal of the competition — and it was gold. Josh Kerr (Edinburgh, Danny Mackey) reclaimed his World Indoor title in the men’s 3000m.
The highly anticipated race saw Kerr settle into fifth from the gun, running comfortably with the pace. With two laps to go, he moved into a podium position behind Ethiopia’s Yihune and Wale, biding his time.
At the bell, Kerr surged decisively to the front, making himself the target for the chasers. A late challenge from France’s Schrub and the USA’s Hocker wasn’t enough to deny him. Kerr crossed the line in a season’s best 7:35.56 to take gold.
Reflecting on the win, he said: “Today was very special. I took it for granted a couple of years ago. Winning in front of a home crowd, I thought there was nothing that could top it. But the relief of getting another win and being back on top is very special for me right now. I have a lot of family here to support me and I owe it to them. I ran the last 400m with passion.”
Dina Asher‑Smith (Blackheath & Bromley, Michael J Ford) broke her own national record in the 60m semi‑final, clocking 7.03 to qualify smoothly for the final. Despite coming into the event in strong form, she was unable to replicate her semi‑final performance in the final, finishing seventh in 7.07. This was the first time in a 60m race with seven women under 7.10.
“I’m a bit disappointed, I changed a few things between the semis and the final and it was one of those one’s where I may have not executed it quite right or it wasn’t the right change for me, because I didn’t run as fast as I did in the semis but, at the end of the day that’s elite sport, you want to absolutely go for it and give it everything you can. My aim for the indoor season was to be happy and enjoy racing, and I’ve had a great day.”
After changing her block setup just two weeks ago, Amy Hunt (Marco Airale) struggled at the start of her semi‑final but fought back strongly to finish fourth in 7.10. She then faced an agonising wait to see whether her time would earn a non‑automatic qualifying spot but was edged out by just 0.02 seconds.
Speaking afterwards about her ninth-place finish, she said: “I hold myself to really high standards, and I didn’t meet them today; I have to hold myself accountable. My coach and I decided to change up my block settings two weeks ago to really push towards going sub‑seven. Ultimately, I just wasn’t comfortable enough in the new settings because my starts were so bad today. I live to fight another day.”
Hannah Nuttall (Charnwood, Helen Clitheroe) and Katie Snowden (Herne Hill) lined up for the Novuna GB & NI team in the women’s 3000m. Nuttall positioned herself in the front six for much of the race, while Snowden ran more conservatively at the back of the pack. After avoiding the dramatic fall from Hailu from Ethiopia early on in the race.
Both athletes kicked hard when the bell rang, working to stay with the pace as the podium contenders pulled away. They finished with a strong sprint to the line: Snowden in 9:03.79 for ninth place, and Nuttall in 9:04.20 for tenth. The only European nation to have two athletes finish in the top ten.
Georgina Forde‑Wells (Woodford Green AC, Lukasz Zawila) represented Britain in the triple jump at her first senior World competition, securing a qualifying mark on her third attempt. She finished 15th with 13.06m.
She reflected positively on the experience: “Today has been amazing — it’s such a fun experience to be amongst the best. My main aim was to come out here and enjoy it, and I certainly did that. It wasn’t the result I wanted, but a few of the jumps were definitely promising and I am excited for outdoors. I am so proud to bring British triple jumping back to the global stage.”
The final day of the championships takes place tomorrow, featuring Keely Hodgkinson in the 800m and Georgia Hunter Bell in the 1500m finals, as well as the 4x400m women’s relay and the return of Molly Caudrey in the pole vault.
