Kerr mile record and Sawe marathon breakthrough nominated for World Athletics award

Josh Kerr's world-record mile and Sabastian Sawe's historic London Marathon victory have been nominated for moment of the year at the World Athletics Awards, BBC Sport reported. Botswana's men's 4x400m relay title completes the three-entry shortlist, bringing together two individual record-breaking performances and a relay success achieved in front of home supporters.

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Kerr, the 29-year-old British runner, completed the mile in three minutes 42.66 seconds at the London Diamond League meeting in July. His performance at London Stadium lowered the mark that Morocco's Hicham El Guerrouj had held for 27 years by almost half a second. The BBC described strong backing from the home crowd as Kerr made his record attempt.

Sawe's nomination recognises his breakthrough in April, when the 31-year-old Kenyan became the first athlete to complete a competitive marathon in less than two hours. He won in London in one hour 59 minutes 30 seconds. That was more than a minute quicker than the previous world record of 2:00:35, set by the late Kelvin Kiptum in 2023.

The scale of the London race extended beyond the winner's performance. Ethiopia's Yomif Kejelcha also finished inside two hours as he took second place, while third-placed Jacob Kiplimo ran faster than Kiptum's previous world record. All three podium finishers therefore surpassed the mark that had stood before the race, with Sawe's winning run the performance nominated for the award.

Botswana's nomination comes from the men's 4x400m relay at the world relays, where the team won the title in front of an enthusiastic home crowd. It is the team performance on a shortlist otherwise made up of Kerr's mile and Sawe's marathon. The three contenders cover markedly different events, from a four-runner relay to individual races on the track and the road.

The awards ceremony is scheduled for 29 November in Monaco, according to the BBC report. Moment of the year will be one of several honours presented, alongside the men's and women's athlete of the year awards, rising star and coach awards. The nominations recognise the performances; the moment-of-the-year winner has yet to be announced.