"Before Tokyo, no one knew my name, after Budapest, everyone did"- Josh Kerr sends out bold message as he gears up for Paris Olympics 

By Adityan Pillai

Modified Jul 26, 2024 01:05 GMT

Josh Kerr sent out a message to his competitors as he gears up for the upcoming Paris Olympics. The British athlete is set to compete in the 1500m at the quadrennial games in a quest for his first-ever Olympic gold medal.

Josh Kerr began 2024 with great dominance in the indoor and early outdoor seasons. He set the Indoor two-mile world record at the Millrose Games and marched on to win the gold medal in the 3000m event at the World Athletics Indoor Championships.

With such performances under his belt this season, he is considered to be one of the top prospects for the podium positions alongside arch-rival Jakob Ingebrigtsen. As the Paris Olympics are just a few days away, Kerr posted a message stating that the quadrennial Games in the French capital had always been the pinnacle moment for him.

Moreover, he shared a glimpse of his journey throughout different Olympic Games as he remained steadily focused on his vision to put forward an outstanding performance in Paris.

"Just because more people are watching, doesn’t change my vision. Before Tokyo, no one knew my name. After Budapest, everyone did. Paris has always been the pinnacle.#roadtoparis #olympics #teamgb #notimefortalk ," read the caption of his post.

Josh Kerr on competing in the Paris Olympics

World Athletics Indoor Championships Glasgow 2024 - Day Two - Source: Getty

Josh Kerr spoke to Olympics.com about his dream of participating in the coveted quadrennial Games ever since he was a 12 years old. The British athlete expressed his belief in winning the games.

“I’ve wanted to win these Olympic Games since I was 12 years old. I’ve known that for a very long time and I knew it was possible," he said.

Furthermore, Kerr spoke about competing in the French capital in a quest for his first Olympic Gold medal. He expressed his excitement to compete in such a high-energy environment for the first time since he had earlier competed in the Tokyo Olympics which had several restrictions on fans due to covid concerns.

"When Paris was announced, I was like, outside of it being in the UK, having it in Europe is very special, very close to home. So having a city that will create the buzz around it like Paris will, you know the energy of that city," he added.

As Kerr and Ingebrigtsen are pushing the limits of middle-distance running with their fierce competitiveness, the 1500m is one of the most anticipated races of the Paris Olympics.