What''s Your Four Minute Mile?

For years, the 4-minute mile was considered not merely unreachable but according to physiologists of the time, dangerous to the health of any athlete who attempted to reach it.

For Roger Bannister, it was vindication. When he crossed the finish line with a time of 3 minutes, 59.4 seconds, he broke through a psychological barrier as well.

John Landy, considered one of the great milers of that era, never had gotten closer than within 1.5 seconds of the 4-minute barrier before. Within 46 days of Bannister's breakthrough, Landy surpassed the record with a 3:57.9 in Finland. Bannister and Landy raced later in the year in the "Mile of the Century" at Vancouver, a runoff to decide who was the faster miler. Bannister won in 3:58.8 to Landy's 3:59.6, the first time two men in one race had broken 4 minutes.

This story is known to most of us as one of the landmarks in sport, but did you know that by the end of 1957, 16 runners had logged sub-4-minute miles. That certainly surprised me. And what does it mean to us – it shows how much the four-minute barrier was psychological rather than physical.

So a good question for us all to consider whether in work or private life is ‘How many Four Minute Mile barriers have we set up for ourselves?’

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