Mile News


Why Can’t Women Run the Mile?

July 24, 2014

The fans at the Michigan Track Classic would see records galore if the women get the chance to run the Mile in future years.

By Jeff Hollobaugh, Michtrack.org

In this era of Mile fever, with the folks at Bring Back the Mile being astonishingly successful at reinvigorating the popularity of the classic four-lapper, it's hard not to notice that one half of our population is left conspicuously out of the mix.

Last year after the success of the first Michigan Track Classic in Saline, I was one (I'm sure there were others), who said, "Now how about women next year?" The response was that the fans would get more enjoyment out of watching female 800 meter runners try to break 2-minutes. Big barriers sell.

Yes and no. We all love barrier breakers, but there probably isn't a track meet in the state, from the middle school level through the college ranks, that doesn't offer a women's 800. We've seen plenty. Breaking 2:00 is cool, of course, but the best women are going after that mark all the time.

Yet women in track & field aren't really in a "Bring Back the Mile" situation. They never had it in the first place. Collegiate women's track went big time in the early 1980s, at the same time that metric tracks became commonplace. The women went straight to the 1500. The NCAA has preserved the Mile as an indoor championship distance, but otherwise, women rarely get the chance to ever run the storied event.

Many top-class female 1500m runners go years without ever running a Mile outdoors when they are in peak shape. The stats back me up. Up to this point in the 2014 outdoor season (07/24), there have been 91 performances at 4:10 or better in the 1500 worldwide. There have only been eight times under 4:30 for the Mile, which is the equivalent mark. Roughly speaking, this means that for a top female middle distance runner, whenever they run a 4-lapper, there's less than a 10% chance that it's a Mile. The guys have it much better. More than 26% of their races are Miles. Fans love the Mile, but for some reason, meet directors don't think women deserve a chance.

That 4:30 mark represents a classic barrier for the women. Only eight times has it been broken this year outdoors (and eight times indoors)! Meanwhile, men have broken the 4:00 mark 70 times in 2014, plus another 48 indoors.

Continue reading at: http://michtrack.org

Tags: michigan track classic (3)

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Return the Mile to prominence on the American & worldwide sports and cultural landscape by elevating and celebrating the Mile to create a movement.

ELEVATE
Bring Back the Mile as the premier event in the sport, and increase interest in and media coverage of the Mile for both those who love the distance as well as the general public.

CELEBRATE
Bring Back the Mile to celebrate the storied distance and to recognize the people who made and make the Mile great and to promote Mile events and the next generation of U.S. Milers.

NATIONAL MOVEMENT
Bring Back the Mile to create a national movement for the Mile as America’s Distance,
to inspire Americans to run the Mile as part of their fitness program and to replace the 1600 meters at High School State Track & Field Meets across the country.

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