Mile News


When a Miss Isn’t as Good as a Mile

May 25, 2013

By Jim Gerweck, Stamford Advocate

At last Tuesday's FCIAC outdoor track championships, two girls ran what might have been one of the greatest races in the history of the league -- and it basically didn't mean a damn thing.

To paraphrase Shakespeare, it was a race full of speed and glory, signifying nothing.

When Staples freshman Hannah Debalsi broke the meet record in the 1600 meter run in 4:54.59, and pulled Westhill junior Claire Howlett to a 4:57.55 right behind her, the fans in attendance somewhat understandably went wild, noting the heretofore unseen numeral "4" on the finish line scoreboard.

But in the overall scheme of things, it was a number, nothing more, one without a tremendous amount of significance since it's a distance that isn't raced anywhere outside of high schools in the U.S.

For most of running history, the four-lap track race was exactly one Imperial Mile long, 1,760 yards, 5,280 feet.

The problem is that most people still refer to the high school event as "The Mile," even though it's 9.344 meters longer than the current bastardized race that's come to pollute the record books.

Continue reading at: stamfordadvocate.com

Tags: ryan lamppa (110) , henry wynne (14) , hannah debalsi (1) , claire howlett (1)

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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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