Scottish Olympic bronze medalist Josh Kerr and Australia Olympian finalist Ollie Hoare will lead the charge for the signature WHOOP Men’s Wanamaker Mile in the 114th Millrose Games.
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The highly anticipated signature event of the Millrose Games will take place on January 29th at The Armory New Balance Track & Field Center.
“The WHOOP Wanamaker Mile is one of the most renowned races in all of track & field, and this year’s version promises to be one of the great races ever,” said Millrose Games Meet Director Ray Flynn.
Kerr became the second-fastest 1500m runner out of Great Britain ever with his medal-winning run in Tokyo. While competing at the University of New Mexico, Kerr was the 2018 NCAA champion in the mile.
“The Wanamaker Mile has always been a staple in my indoor season, there is no race like it,” said Kerr. “I’m rested and ready to get ‘stuck in’ after a successful Olympics.”
Hoare placed second in the 2020 Wanamaker Mile and reached the Olympic final in Tokyo this past summer. Hoare was the 2018 NCAA 1500m champion while at the University of Wisconsin, taking down Kerr in the process.
“The Wanamaker Mile is one of the most prestigious indoor mile races in the world,” said Hoare. “To be able to go and compete again for the third time in this event is a privilege. [Coach Dathan Ritzenhein] and I are happy with where I am right now and I’m confident that I can take on whatever comes at me. Don’t be surprised if you see some very fast mile times come out of New York.”
Five-time Olympian Nick Willis of New Zealand will join the mix. The 38-year-old Willis, who in the 1500m won the silver medal in 2008 Beijing Olympics and bronze in 2016 Rio Olympics, will be trying for a record 20th consecutive year for a sub-4 minute mile. On New Year’s Day at The Armory New Balance Track & Field Center he narrowly missed the record with a 4:00.22. Willis has finished as runner-up at the Wanamaker Mile three times (2009, 2015, 2016) and was third twice (2008, 2014).
There are talented Americans in the field, led by Clayton Murphy, the 2016 Olympic bronze medalist in the 800m. Murphy also won the 2021 Olympic Trials and reached the 800m final in Tokyo. He is no stranger to the mile distance, having placed third in the 2019 Wanamaker Mile.
Also set to compete is the 18-year-old phenom Hobbs Kessler out of Ann Arbor, MI. Kessler first broke the indoor high school mile record before erasing the outdoor 1500m record of the great Alan Webb. Having recently turned professional, Kessler will look to keep ascending towards the top of the global heap.
Craig Engels, the 2019 US 1500m champion and World Championship finalist, will also feature. He will be joined by a pair of Olympic semifinalists, Andrew Coscoran from Ireland, and Charles Philibert-Thiboutot from Canada. Rounding out the field will be Mario Garcia Romo, who placed third in the NCAA 3000m last March, along with 2016 NCAA mile champion Henry Wynne and the experienced veteran Colby Alexander.
The Millrose Games is the most storied event in indoor track and field. Stay tuned over the coming weeks as more athletes are announced for the 114th Millrose Games. The Millrose Games is anticipated to be the most thrilling edition of the meet to date, with dozens of Olympians competing on The Armory’s “Fastest Track in the World.”
Athletes confirmed for the 114th Millrose Games include:
- Defending champion Elle Purrier St. Pierre and 2019 champion Konstanze Klosterhalfen will highlight the WHOOP Women’s Wanamaker Mile. This signature race includes all three athletes who represented the United States in the Tokyo Olympic 1500m.
- The top two shot put athletes and Tokyo Olympic gold and silver medalists, Ryan Crouser and Joe Kovacs, are entered in the Thorne Men’s Shot Put.
- World record holder in the 60m Christian Coleman, the fastest man in the world in 2021 Trayvon Bromell, winner of the 200m 2019 World Championships and 200m Tokyo Olympic bronze medalist Noah Lyles and Jamaica’s 2016 Olympic gold medal winner in the 110m hurdles Omar McLeod will challenge for the Millrose Games Men’s 60m title.
- Olympic gold medalist and American outdoor record holder Athing Mu, American indoor record holder and Olympian Ajee’ Wilson and Jamaica middle-distance sensation and Olympian Natoya Goule-Toppin who will be competing in the highly anticipated Jack and Lewis Rudin Women’s 800m.
- Cole Hocker, Edward Cheserek, and Conner Mantz headline a Who’s Who of NCAA champions and Olympian distance runners in the Men’s 3000m.
- World record holder Keni Harrison leads a Women’s 60m Hurdles field that features six Olympians.
- Olympic gold medalist Katie Nageotte will face off against defending champion Sandi Morris in the Women’s Pole Vault.
Millrose Games alumni earned 29 medals at the Tokyo Olympics, including 13 gold medals. With the highest-level competition at the youth, high school, collegiate, club, and professional levels, there is truly something for everyone at the Millrose Games.
Tickets can be purchased by going to https://www.millrosegames.org/get-tickets
