World Athletics Indoor Championships 2024: Josh Kerr and Molly Caudery win gold medals for Great Britain

Josh Kerr and Molly Caudery won gold medals on a sensational night for Great Britain at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow.

Roared on as deafening crowd noise filled the arena, Kerr won the 3,000m in seven minutes 42.98 seconds to become the first Scot to land world indoor gold in 31 years.

Less than 40 minutes later, Caudery was crowned pole vault world champion at only her second global championships, beating New Zealand's Eliza McCartney on countback after both cleared 4.80m.

In the women's 400m final, the Netherlands' Femke Bol set a sensational world record of 49.17 seconds to take gold, as British team captain Laviai Nielsen ran a personal best 50.89 but narrowly missed out on the podium in fourth.

Laura Muir also missed out on a medal with a fifth-place finish in the women's 3,000m, won by American Elle St Pierre.

Kerr delivers gold on homecoming

Kerr, the outdoor 1500m world champion, has made clear his intention to leave the Paris Olympics later this year with a gold medal hanging around his neck.

On this occasion, he judged his 3,000m finish to perfection as he overhauled Ethiopia's defending champion Selemon Barega.

The 26-year-old never looked like relinquishing the lead once he hit the front with 100m remaining, the crowd rising to their feet as Kerr powered to a memorable victory.

Little more than six months has passed since Kerr stunned reigning Olympic champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen to take his outdoor global gold in Budapest.

Winner of Olympic bronze in Tokyo, Kerr has backed up his talk at the start of 2024 by breaking British legend Mo Farah's world indoor two-mile record that had stood for nine years - and now he has another world title to reinforce his confidence.

Having finished 12th at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham two years ago, Kerr said prior to these championships he wanted to at last do himself justice in front of a home crowd.

He achieved that here, emulating compatriots Tom McKean and Yvonne Murray's 1993 successes over 800m and 3,000m respectively in Toronto, while further asserting himself as the man to beat in Paris.

Caudery makes breakthrough on global stage

One of GB's breakout stars last year in Budapest, Caudery shone then on her global championships debut by producing a personal best to place fifth.

The 2022 Commonwealth Games silver medallist has maintained an upward trajectory by making a superb start to 2024, in which she has set three world leads and personal bests - most recently clearing 4.86m in February.

With her triumph in Glasgow - achieved despite the pressure of an expectant home support - the 23-year-old has asserted herself as a serious medal contender for Paris.

Caudery reiterated following her victory that she is living a dream, and it was clear from the start that the joy of competing on this stage overpowered any nerves she may have been feeling beforehand as she sailed over her opening heights.

As the competition developed, Caudery's strong start proved pivotal as McCartney joined her in clearing 4.80m - the increasing tension in the arena turning to elation as the New Zealander was unable to take her final attempt at gold.

At the end of a competition overshadowed by a nasty injury suffered by France's Margot Chevrier, it was Caudery who topped a podium that also featured Olympic and world outdoor champion Katie Moon in bronze following a 4.75m clearance.

Muir and Nielsen miss out as Bol stars

Like Kerr, Muir chose to race over 3,000m in Glasgow as she focuses on building endurance in the build-up to Paris.

A global title is about the only thing missing from Muir's 14 major championship medals but the Olympic 1500m silver medallist was unable to have an impact at the front of her race.

The Scot became detached from the lead group while Gudaf Tsegay pushed the pace at the front, but Muir dug deep to finish fifth in 8:29.76, while team-mate Hannah Nuttall was 12th in 8:48.24.

St Pierre stunned world indoor 1500m and outdoor 10,000m champion Tsegay in a sprint finish, clocking a championship record 8:20.87 almost a year after giving birth to her son.

Britain's Nielsen, a four-time world outdoor relay medallist, went close to achieving her first individual global medal in the 400m but could not close the gap to the medal positions as the unstoppable Bol stole the show.

Bol, predominantly a 400m hurdler, now boasts seven of the 13 fastest women's indoor 400m times in history and received $50,000 (£39,500) for her record-breaking run.

Elsewhere, favourite American Grant Holloway successfully defended his world indoor men's 60m hurdles title in a championship record 7.29 seconds.

Britain's David King was unable to qualify for the final after finishing fifth in his semi-final in a time of 7.65, while team-mate Tade Ojora did not progress from his heat.

In the women's 60m final, St Lucia's Julien Alfred ran 6.98 seconds to prevail over Ewa Swoboda (7.00), equalling the world lead time set by the Pole in the semi-finals.

In the morning session, Britain's Amy Hunt missed out on a semi-final place but finished fifth in her heat in 7.29 secs as she continued her comeback from a long-term injury.

There was an upset in the men's 400m as Norway's Olympic and world 400m hurdles champion Karsten Warholm (45.34) was forced to settle for silver behind Belgian Alexander Doom, who won in 45.25.

On Sunday, Jemma Reekie will race in the women's 800m final having qualified with the fastest time, while fellow Britons Georgia Bell, Revee Walcott-Nolan and Adam Fogg will compete in the 1500m finals.

Sweden's Armand Duplantis, who currently holds every major title and the world record, will headline the men's pole vault final.

• Britain's Jemma Reekie qualifies fastest for Sunday's 800m final