January 31, 2023 9.49 am This story is over 17 months old

Grimsby athlete beats Mo Farah’s British 3,000m record

The fastest 3,000m time in history by a British runner

A Grimsby-born athlete broke a record set by Mo Farah when he clocked the fastest 3,000m time in history by a British runner.

Sam Atkins, 29, recently ran seven minutes and 31.97 seconds at the John Thomas Terrier Classic event in Boston, Massachusetts, on Friday, January 27.

His record time saw him finish the race in second place behind America’s Yared Nuguse, who won with a time of 7:28.24.

In January 2023, Grimsby-born Sam Atkins recorded the fastest 3,000m time in history by a British runner. | Screenshot: LetsRun.com

Sam told LetsRun.com: “I was expecting to go pretty fast, mid 7:30s or something. I knew it was going to be a fast pace with Nuguse running…the race plan was, sit on Nuguse and see what I can do.”

He added: “It went well. I wish I’d gone a little bit earlier with them, but I can’t complain, it’s a British record, a little second and a half out the European one which would have been even sweeter but it’s a good first race of the season.”

On breaking Mo Farah’s record, he said “it felt good, especially it being my first one” and that he planned to celebrate by having a cold Corona beer.

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