A Dream Comes True

It was advertised as the Dream Mile, and though for the contestants it often seemed like the Nightmare Marathon the race lived up to its billing as Marty Liquori held off Jim Ryun on the last turn to win

By Pat Putnam, Sports Illustrated

For the first three-eighths of a Mile, it could have...

Trials of an Unlonely Miler

As the XIX Olympics began, America's best hope in the 1500 meters found himself so besieged that he had to leave the Olympic Village and train on quieter public highways to get ready for his stern ordeal

By Bob Ottum, Sports Illustrated

They were starting to come through the track barricades...

See You Later, Jim Ryun

Sub-54 second final lap yields Mile world record of 3:51.1 and national title for Kansas native in Bakersfield

By Pete Axthelm, Sports Illustrated

Seventeen-year-old Jerry Proctor upset six-time national champion Ralph Boston in the broad jump; Charlie Greene finished second in the 100-yard...

Sportsman of the Year: 1966

Mile star Jim Ryun, 19, the youngest person ever selected as SI's Sportsman

By Sports Illustrated

In its first issue, in August 1954, Sports Illustrated reported the duel of the original 4 minute Milers, Roger Bannister and John Landy, at the British Empire Games in Vancouver. Bannister won...

A Special Brand of Fame

In the week following his record race young Jim Ryun discovers the joys—and hazards—of owning the most treasured mark in all of sport

By Gwilym S. Brown, Sports Illustrated

Young Jim Ryun's hectic life as the world record holder in track's most glamorous event began even while he was spinning...

A Time to Remember: 3:51.3

Leaving the whole world far behind him, Jim Ryun, the 19-year-old durable wonder of Kansas, smashes track's most treasured record—the Mile mark that has eluded American runners for 29 years

By Anita Verschoth, Sports Illustrated

After a few warmup sprints last Sunday on a field next to...

The Second Fastest Ever

"I'd like to see the world record come back to the U.S., but you know everything has to be just right and that doesn't happen too often."

By Gwilym S. Brown, Sports Illustrated

Setting up world record attempts in the Mile run is like handling butterflies. The slightest miscalculation, one...

Fast Teenagers in Grown-Up Time

With tactical cunning and a brilliant burst of speed, 18-year-old Jim Ryun beat the great Peter Snell in a U.S. record 3:55.3 Mile

By Gwilym S. Brown, Sports Illustrated

In San Diego one day last week an 18-year-old boy and a former football linebacker sat down to map out the strategy the boy...

A Kansas Boy with a Man-Size Task

This week in Los Angeles, 135 athletes will be competing for 60 positions on the U.S. Olympic track & field team. Some of them—such as Dyrol Burleson, Bob Schul and Henry Carr—have already clinched a spot on the team, provided they are still in good shape, by virtue of their victories in the...