Kerr, Harris, Lumb & Moon set for world indoors in Glasgow...
Four athletes with Washington ties will compete at the world championships, led by reigning world outdoor 1500 meter champion and nearby Edinburgh native Josh Kerr (Paul Merca photo) of Seattle's Brooks Beasts, who is entered in the men's 3000 meters.
Kerr, who originally stated that he wasn't going to run in the world indoor championships to focus on preparing for this summer's Olympics in Paris, is running in perhaps one of the most anticipated races of the entire meet, especially with the backing of friends and family making the short drive from Edinburgh to Glasgow to see Kerr.
Since turning pro after the 2018 season when he won the NCAA mile title for the University of New Mexico, Kerr has lived and trained in Seattle under Beasts coach Danny Mackey.
"I'm trying to focus on some of the things that I haven't done well in the past," Kerr said in the pre-meet press conference Thursday on his decision to move up to the 3000 instead of the 1500.
On the discussion between himself and Mackey to come from his training base of Seattle to race at the world indoors in front of friends and family, he said, "The training had to come more easily than it does indoors. It normally takes me a bit longer to build up for events like this (world indoors), and the short track isn't the most beneficial to my knees and hips. I had to make sure the body wasn't fighting the training."
"I didn't want to give up the opportunity to win another Olympic medal because I was forcing my hand to be here at a home championships was his point of view. I wanted to be here, so I had to be extremely regimented in my training, and I had to show that I was in a great position. No arguments (with Danny), but if he had said no, there might be an argument."
Kerr's Beasts teammate Isaiah Harris of the United States is entered in the men's 800, as he looks to improve upon his seventh place finish from the 2022 world indoor championships in Belgrade.
University of Washington alum and defending Canadian national champion Kieran Lumb, who continues to train in Seattle as part of a small pro group coached by Husky men's coach Andy Powell, is entered in the men's 1500.
The lone woman with Washington ties entered in the world indoor championships is former Pullman resident and Washington State University volunteer coach Katie Moon in the pole vault.
Moon, the defending world outdoor and Olympic champion in the event, looks to win her first world indoor title, after finishing fifth in 2018 in Birmingham, England, and second two years ago in Belgrade.
Moon is going into the world championships with a slight Achilles tendon issue, as noted in a post on X looking for a stationary bike to use in Glasgow.
Harris is the first to compete at the world indoors, as he runs at 4:22 am Pacific time (12:22 pm Glasgow time) on Friday. Lumb's first round of the 1500 happens at 12:10 pm Pacific (8:10 pm in Glasgow).
Harris' semifinal is scheduled for Saturday morning at 4:30 am Pacific (12:30 pm in Glasgow), while Moon's pole vault final starts at 11:05 am Pacific (7:05 pm in Glasgow).
Kerr's 3000m race is a straight final, happening Saturday afternoon at 12:40 pm Pacific (8:40 pm in Glasgow).
The World Indoor Championships will be streamed on Peacock ($) and shown on CNBC and NBC. Here's the graphic showing air times (all times listed are Eastern time).
In other news, World Athletics announced Wednesday that the 2027 world championships will return to Beijing. The Chinese capital hosted the world championships in 2015 (Paul Merca photo). This marks the second consecutive world championships hosted in Asia, as Tokyo will host the world championships in 2025.
The World Athletics Council has approved a proposal to restructure the summer track and field season from 2025 onwards. This will create a season-long narrative that builds to the natural crescendo of the World Athletics Championships each year, while at the same time allowing for a more consistent global calendar to be established. Each season from 2025 onwards will end with the World Athletics Championships, meaning there is a clear season climax during a defined window in mid-September.
The World Athletics Council has also approved the systematic use of all nine lanes (when available) for semifinals and finals in lane events (sprints and all races up to and including 800m) at the World Athletics Championships. This will be built into the race progression conditions from 2025. This new policy will see the first three from each semifinal advance to the final, where nine athletes/teams would compete.
NOTE: World Athletics contributed to this report.
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