May 6, 1954

From The Guardian

"Sixty years ago on Tuesday Roger Bannister collapsed into a swarm of men wearing stiff macs and bowler hats, his body feeling "like an exploding flashbulb" as he fell. Then came the words that revived him quicker than any pharmaceutical pick-me-up. "Result of event eight: one mile. First, RG Bannister of Exeter and Merton colleges, in a time which, subject to ratification, is a new track record, British record, European record, Commonwealth record and world record – Three minutes and …"

The rest of the sentence was drowned by cheers. Bannister, a 25-year-old medical student, had become the first to break through the four-minute barrier....."

The iconic photo of Bannister making history

Sixty years later and running a sub 4 minute mile is still a milestone (pun intended) for any elite middle distance runner. Despite the long list of those who have gone under the mythical barrier since Sir Bannister.

I'll use this as an excuse to shamelessly plug my term paper, written for Dr. Lucas's Olympic History class, and our podcast on the topic.