This story’s a classic, one I love. I hope
you’ll enjoy it as much as I do.
Angered by his fourth place ranking in the
1952 Helsinki Olympics, Roger Bannister, amateur runner and junior doctor,
decided he would be the first to run an officially recorded four minute
mile. With relatively little training he, on May 6th, 1954, changed history with a 3:59.4 minute mile at Oxford’s Iffley
Road Track. Within 46 days of his accomplishing his feat, John Landy of Australia
followed suite.
Nowadays, over a thousand people have run
“the four minute mile”, including high school students and a man over 40.
Your beliefs determine your level of
success. As Theodore Roosevelt, once President of the United States, said, “believe you can and you're halfway there”. There are the
critics who say when Bannister accomplished his feat others were also aiming
for it so it wasn’t as special. To me, that’s like saying the moon landings
weren’t unique because the Russians had a space program the same time the
Americans did. Sure people were ready for that jump, but he was still first.
Bannister, a part-time amateur runner,
making the jump is even more incredible.
Just because there are executives earning a
million bucks out there (a feat realized over a century ago) doesn’t mean
everyone has a million-buck mindset. For many, it’s still a distant dream. And,
because they believe it, that’s the way it will stay.
For others, like Roger Bannister, who see
the next step and realize it’s possible,
then do what they can to get it, the next step becomes reality. Perhaps it’s
only coincidence it took 46 days for John Landy to beat Bannister’s record. But
others had been trying to beat the four minute barrier for quite some time. It
was only after Bannister did it that others started trickling in.
Had Bannister not run a four minute mile, sure someone would’ve. But it would’ve taken longer. And, as a high
school kid wouldn’t aim to earn a million dollars a year if no one else had
done it, neither would he be aiming to break an unbroken running world record.
Not yet. It wouldn’t make sense − if you don’t believe it’s going to happen,
working towards it’s a waste of time. We’re drawn to the pineapple sitting on
the shelf − when there’s no reward, there’s no reason to pursue it. Bannister
was first and as such he changed mindsets and everyone who’s ever run a four
minute mile has him to thank for allowing them to believe it could happen.
Runner and doctor, Roger Bannister to me
represents so much more − an icon of those who wish to innovate and create
change to this day.
Alex H.
If you're interested in seeing Bannister break his record, here's a short documentary clip:
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