THE Scottish athlete Josh Kerr was out celebrating until 4am, indulging in his first drinks since Christmas, and got about 20 minutes of sleep before doing more interviews the day after claiming an Olympic silver in the men’s 1500 metres.
The 26-year-old finished behind Cole Hocker of the US in the race in Paris on Tuesday evening, beating his arch-rival Jakob Ingebrigtsen, who claimed gold in Tokyo three summers ago.
Kerr should expect a hero’s welcome on his return to Scotland, according to his first-ever coach, Eric Fisher.
The silver medallist told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Wednesday morning: “We raced at 8.50pm last night and then our press conference wasn’t until 11.30pm so we did media and drug testing until then and then I was able to go and spend time with family and some of my coaching staff and brands that I work with and things.
“I think we got back at about 4am, had about 20 minutes of sleep and then came to start my interviews. I feel great, I do, I feel great.
“I haven’t had a drink for a good little bit, probably since Christmas or so, but I was able to cheers with coaching staff and some of my teammates and things like that and to my family and everyone that’s a big part of this journey.”
Asked about his drink of choice, he said: “It was difficult to find but just a pint. It was good.
“There was a lot of champagne getting handed around but I’m just, I’m a pint guy.
“So it was nice just to be back and relaxed around family. It’s been a while, obviously been getting ready for this games it’s been very, very intense over the last couple of months and so it’s nice to just let the hair down a little bit and have nice connection back with the family.”
Kerr did not reveal exactly how many pints he had but described it as “a good handful” and enough to drum up a headache.
“Head was sore this morning I’m not going to lie,” he said.
Kerr said that to have four runners “still battling” it out with 100 metres to go was “mind blowing” and that he kept his composure to claim the silver but was left feeling “bittersweet” after the race.
“There’s lots of big positives to take away from yesterday’s performance,” he told the PA news agency.
“Big execution on a big stage for me yesterday; best 1500 performance I’ve ever put on in my life and just a little bit short of my biggest goal, and it’s that balance in sport that really brings you to that next step.
“I’m ready for that next step and to take it and to start another four-year cycle is going to be an exciting one and it’s massively motivating.”
On inspiring people to get into the sport, Kerr said: “It feels phenomenal.
“I think what we’re trying to do is put together races that can inspire the next generation and also entertain all the fans.
“We’re gone of the era of slow 1500m running and tactical 1500m running. It’s what can we do to entertain this 80,000-person crowd that we’re so blessed to have watching us today and millions at home as well.
“It’s a big responsibility, but I love what I do.”
