Josh Kerr wins Ultimate Championship 1500m title and $150,000 in Budapest

Josh Kerr won the men’s 1500m at the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship in Budapest, becoming Britain’s first champion at the new event and collecting $150,000. According to BBC Sport’s report, the 28-year-old finished in three minutes 29.35 seconds on the final evening of the three-day competition, adding another championship victory to an already successful season.

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Kerr made his decisive move on the back straight, passing American Yared Nuguse to take the lead. Once in front, he held his advantage through to the finish to secure the title. The victory brought a winning conclusion to his campaign at an event that assembled leading athletes to compete for a new global honour.

His route into the field had required a special invitation. BBC Sport reported that Kerr, the 2023 world champion, had not qualified automatically for a competition whose places are allocated to reigning global champions, Diamond League winners and athletes selected through the world rankings. World Athletics instead granted him an exceptional invitation, giving him the opportunity to race for the championship’s substantial individual prize.

Jakob Ingebrigtsen also received an exceptional invitation, but the anticipated meeting between the two rivals did not happen. The Norwegian withdrew after winning the 5,000m on Friday, leaving Kerr’s latest title to come without that head-to-head contest.

Kerr arrived in Budapest with several major achievements already behind him this year. He began by reclaiming the world indoor 3,000m title, then broke the 27-year-old mile world record at the London Diamond League and won Commonwealth Games gold in Glasgow. Speaking to BBC Sport after his latest win, he emphasised his strength in major championships and described returning to preparation after the London performance seven weeks earlier.

The Budapest meeting offered a total prize fund of $10 million across its three nights, which the BBC described as the largest in athletics history. World Athletics president Lord Coe hopes the new competition will help shape the sport’s future. For Kerr, its first edition supplied both another international title and a lucrative finish to his season.