R.I.P. George Kerr

[KDFINE]

A few days ago I was saddened to read on the Home Page the passing of Jamaica's George Kerr. I thought something would have been posted by now by someone more knowledgable than I. Along with his international achievements, he was a fixture of the indoor scene of the early 1960s. He was one special 600 yard performer running a world best of 1:09.3 in 1961. If memory serves me right he later ran a 1:09.2. He even ran the distance in 1:10.1 on a 12 lap track. I'm amazed when I see contemporary runners win the occasional 600 in 1:11.

[Deerfoot]

I know of Kerr from my readings about Peter Snell. I know he won bronze behind Snell at the 1960 Olympics and was a feature of the international 800m scene for a few years, but that's about it. I'm guessing he was somewhere in his 70s?

[catson52]

I know of Kerr from my readings about Peter Snell. I know he won bronze behind Snell at the 1960 Olympics and was a feature of the international 800m scene for a few years, but that's about it. I'm guessing he was somewhere in his 70s?

According to RLQ, he was born 10/16/1937. Kingston, Jamaica. Kerr was a fine runner, smooth running style. Snell barely edged him in the 1962 Commonwealth Games 880y. In the 64 Oly 800, Kiprugut tried to go around Kerr in the final 30m or so, got an (inadvertent?) elbow in the torso, and came back to edge Kerr for the bronze medal. I believe this was the first Oly medal for Kenya , which makes Wilson Kiprugut quite a trail blazer.