Athletics-'I'm not going to lose': Kerr welcomes Ingebrigtsen clash in Budapest

Athletics - Diamond League - Brussels - King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels, Belgium - September 4, 2026 Norway's Jakob Ingebrigtsen, Australia's Cameron Myers and Kenya's Phanuel Kipkosgei Koech in action during the men's 1500m final REUTERS/Piroschka Van De Wouw

Sept 9 (Reuters) - Josh Kerr says World Athletics' ⁠new Ultimate Championships have given him one final target after a stellar season, while the chance to face long-time rival Jakob ⁠Ingebrigtsen again only adds to the appeal.

Their first head-to-head meeting in two years is likely to provide plenty of intrigue in ‌Budapest. Their rivalry has helped define the men's 1,500 metres in recent years, producing thrilling races and plenty of off-track sparring.

Tokyo Olympics gold medallist Ingebrigtsen criticised Kerr's decision to skip last month's European Championships, saying athletes who bypass major competitions are "ruining" the sport. Kerr brushed off questions about the remarks when speaking to reporters.

"I'm gonna get myself in trouble, that's ​what your goal is here," Kerr joked on a video call with reporters.

With neither man ⁠inclined to back down, their latest meeting promises another ⁠fascinating chapter in one of the sport's most compelling rivalries.

"I'm very happy that he's back running and racing. It's great for our distance. He's ⁠one ‌of the best 1,500 metre runners, 5k runners of all time, and I'm excited to go out and race him," Kerr said.

"I'm not going to lose, but I'm excited to go out there and race."

Kerr arrives in Budapest enjoying perhaps the finest season of his career. ⁠The Scot shattered the 27-year-old mile world record in July in London, and then ​captured Commonwealth Games gold in the mile.

While many ‌athletes spent August and September chasing Diamond League prizes and appearance fees, Kerr opted for a more selective approach, skipping races in ⁠Zurich and Brussels to ​focus on peaking for the Ultimate Championships.

While the decision attracted criticism from some quarters, including Ingebrigtsen, Kerr remained unapologetic.

"This is still an individual sport," he said. "Every athlete's different in the way that they approach the season. The way that I approach it is circling two to four big dates and working my way around those, and ⁠also to get in and out of a year without massive (injury) problems."

At ​28, Kerr said he is thinking beyond a single season, looking ahead to the 2027 World Championships and 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

"This next three years is going to be some of the biggest in my career, and I'm not short-sighted with that. I'm not going to get greedy," he said. "I'm a human ⁠being at the end of the day. I'm not a robot."

World Athletics' new Ultimate Championships, which run Friday through Sunday, feature a prize pot of $10 million, the largest in track and field history, with each winner pocketing $150,000.

However, Kerr insisted his main goal was to strengthen his claim as the era's dominant 1,500-metre runner.

"At the end of the day, it's glory," he said. "I'm here to prove that I'm continually going to be the best 1,500-metre runner ​of our generation at least."

While Kerr insists he is motivated more by titles than prize money, he ⁠welcomed World Athletics' efforts to increase athletes' earning potential through the Ultimate Championships.

He has been outspoken about the fact that the $50,000 bonus for breaking a world ​record has remained unchanged for nearly three decades.

"You go back and you watch (Hicham) El Guerrouj's ‌world record in 1998, and it's the same world record bonus," Kerr ​said. "That's a bit ridiculous."

Kerr famously completed "Project 222" by clocking three minutes 42.66 seconds to topple El Guerrouj's world record by 0.47 seconds.

The Ultimate Championships men's 1,500m final is Sunday. Ingebrigtsen is also racing the men's 5,000m on Friday.

(Reporting by Lori EwingEditing by Christian Radnedge)

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田径 - 钻石联赛 - 布鲁塞尔 - 比利时布鲁塞尔博杜安国王体育场 - 2026 年 9 月 4 日，挪威选手 Jakob Ingebrigtsen、澳大利亚选手 Cameron Myers 和肯尼亚选手 Phanuel Kipkosgei Koech 在男子 1500m 决赛中参赛 REUTERS/Piroschka Van De Wouw

9 月 9 日（路透社）——乔什·克尔表示，世界田径协会新推出的极限锦标赛为他提供了一个在辉煌赛季后的最终目标，而再次与老对手雅各布·英格布里格森交锋的机会更增添了比赛的吸引力。

时隔两年，两人首次正面交锋，这场在布达佩斯举行的比赛势必会引发诸多关注。近年来，他们的竞争一直是男子1500米比赛的标志性事件，不仅奉献了精彩的比赛，也引发了许多场外的争论。

东京奥运会金牌得主英格布里格森批评了克尔上个月缺席欧洲锦标赛的决定，称运动员逃避重大赛事是在“毁掉”这项运动。克尔在接受记者采访时回避了有关这些言论的问题。

“我这是要给自己惹麻烦，这就是你们的目的吗？”科尔在与记者的视频通话中开玩笑说。

两人都不打算退让，他们的最新一次交锋预示着这项运动中最引人入胜的竞争之一将迎来又一个精彩篇章。

“我很高兴他能重返赛场。这对我们这个距离来说太好了。他是史上最优秀的1500米和5公里跑运动员之一，我很期待和他比赛，”克尔说道。

“我不会输，但我很兴奋能出去比赛。”

克尔抵达布达佩斯时，正处于他职业生涯中最辉煌的一个赛季。这位苏格兰选手在7月份的伦敦打破了保持了27年的1英里世界纪录，随后又在英联邦运动会上夺得了1英里金牌。

当许多运动员在八月和九月忙于追逐钻石联赛的奖金和出场费时，科尔选择了更有选择性的方式，放弃了在苏黎世和布鲁塞尔的比赛，专注于为终极锦标赛达到最佳状态。

尽管这一决定招致了一些方面的批评，包括英格布里格森，但克尔仍然没有道歉。

“这仍然是一项个人运动，”他说。“每个运动员对待赛季的方式都不同。我的方法是选定两到四个重要日期，围绕这些日期安排我的训练，同时也要确保整个赛季没有严重的伤病问题。”

28岁的科尔表示，他考虑的不仅仅是一个赛季，而是2027年世界锦标赛和2028年洛杉矶奥运会。

“接下来的三年将是我职业生涯中最重要的三年，我对此目光长远，不会贪婪，”他说。“归根结底，我是一个人，不是机器人。”

世界田径协会新推出的终极锦标赛将于周五至周日举行，奖金池高达 1000 万美元，是田径史上最高的奖金，每位冠军将获得 15 万美元奖金。

然而，克尔坚称他的主要目标是巩固自己作为那个时代 1500 米跑领跑者的地位。

“归根结底，这关乎荣耀，”他说。“我来到这里就是要证明，我至少会一直是我们这一代最优秀的1500米跑者。”

尽管克尔坚称他更看重的是头衔而不是奖金，但他对世界田径联合会通过极限飞盘锦标赛提高运动员收入潜力的努力表示欢迎。

他曾直言不讳地指出，打破世界纪录的 5 万美元奖金近三十年来一直没有改变。

“你去看看希沙姆·埃尔·格鲁伊在1998年创造的世界纪录，你会发现世界纪录奖金也是一样的，”克尔说。“这有点荒谬。”

克尔以 3 分 42.66 秒的成绩完成了著名的“222 项目”，打破了埃尔·格鲁伊保持的世界纪录，比原纪录快了 0.47 秒。

终极锦标赛男子1500米决赛将于周日举行。英格布里格森还将参加周五的男子5000米比赛。

（Lori Ewing报道，Christian Radnedge编辑）

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