Celebrating the 60th Anniversary of Diane Leather Breaking the 5 Minute Mile Barrier

By Peter Thompson

This article has been published in its entirety with the author's permission. It was initially published in the 'BMC News', the Club magazine of the British Milers' Club, in Spring 2014.

Many of you reading this blog are aware of the the 60th anniversary of breaking the 4...

Cram’s Dream Mile

“Certainly the easiest record was the Mile. I remember crossing the line and feeling ‘woah’ and later that night I said to a few people that if I did 3:46 feeling like that then 3:44 was possible."

By Jason Henderson, Athletics Weekly

Of all Steve Cram’s record-breaking achievements, his one...

The Four-Minute Man, Forever

Franz Stampfl, his coach, implored him to run in a meet between Oxford and the Amateur Athletic Association: “He said to me, ‘Although the conditions are not ideal, if you don’t take this opportunity, you might not forgive yourself for the rest of your life.’ He was right.”

By Jesse Will, The...

Roger Bannister: ‘The day I broke the 4 minute Mile’

In an extract from his new book, "Twin Tracks", Bannister recounts how he prepared for his unforgettable, legendary race: "I felt at that moment that it was my chance to do one thing supremely well."

Sixty years ago, on May 6, 1954, at Iffley Road track in Oxford, Roger Bannister became the...

Memorial Stadium’s Finest Mile

"Ryun was so dominant, everyone in the stadium was on their feet," remembers Larry Knuth, a longtime Los Angeles track & field coach who was there that night. "People were going nuts."

By Cathrine Merlo, The Bakersfield Californian

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – Those who were there still remember the...

That Pre Thing

He wasn’t always the fastest. Nor was he the most decorated. So four decades after his death, why is Steve Prefontaine still the most influential American runner ever?

By Michael Heald, Runner's World

The grandstand at Marshfield High School is nearly empty, but it seems like everyone in Coos...

Going Head to Head: Who is the Greatest Miler in History?

By Barbara Huebner, NYRR News

Some of the greatest Milers in the world have won the Fifth Avenue Mile presented by Nissan, which will be run for the 32nd time on Saturday. Sydney Maree, Steve Scott, Mary Slaney, John Walker, Peter Elliott and Bernard Lagat are among those who have broken the...

Don Bowden Opened Gateway for American Milers

By Mark Winitz

Longtime track & field writer Mark Winitz interviewed Don Bowden in 2004 for an article that appeared in American Track & Field magazine. On the 55th anniversary of Bowden’s first sub-4 minute Mile by an American, Bring Back the Mile asked Mark to contact Don for his thoughts...

Roger’s four minutes to immortality

“There was no logic in my mind that if you can run a Mile in 4 minutes, 1 and 2/5ths, you can’t run it in 3:59. I knew enough medicine and physiology to know it wasn’t a physical barrier, but I think it had become a psychological barrier."

By Stephen Wilson, Irish Examiner

OXFORD - Roger...

Jim Beatty: An All-American Miler

Fifty years ago on February 10, a short middle-distance specialist from North Carolina stepped up on the boarded indoor track at the Los Angeles Sports Arena and made running history. Three minutes and 58 seconds after the starting gun had sounded, Jim Beatty became the first human ever to go...