The Sub-Four Minute Mile!

I had been trying to run under four minutes for the mile since 1973 when, as an 18-year-old Scottish Junior Champion, I won the Scottish Senior 1500m Championship. It was a target I really wanted and this win made me believe I could do it.

In July 1977 I got my first senior GB cap against France in Nice at 5000m. I was concentrating on the 5000m to try to make the Scotland team for the Commonwealth Games in Edmonton, Canada the following year. As the end of the 1977 track season approached, I made up my mind to have a last go at the mile at Edinburgh Highland Games.

The British Caledonian Airways Mile was the feature race on the track. In a packed Meadowbank Stadium, John Robson and I, representing Scotland, lined up alongside the New Zealander, John Walker, the Olympic 1500m Champion and hot favourite. The wind was blowing strongly down the back straight and there had been a shower of rain making the track wet and slippy.

We struggled round with no pacemakers, reaching the bell in 3 minutes 4 seconds. Once out of the wind, we had a mad sprint for the finish. John Walker won from John Robson, his first sub-four mile. I finished third and just one fifth of a second over the four minutes. I was pleased at being third, but missing the magic of breaking the four minute mile by so little was awful! My chance for the year, perhaps forever, seemed to be gone.

The following week, Stan Long (Brendan Foster’s coach) phoned to invite me to Gateshead to run in an end of season meeting. John Walker had agreed to take part. A Scots Olympian, Frank Clement, was also going, so we could share the cost of a car (they say the Scots are mean – what about the Geordies!). We drove down from Glasgow in the morning, arriving in time for lunch. I had a chat with John Walker and a few of the North Eastern athletes before resting in the afternoon.

It was a cool evening with some late September sunlight but again a strong breeze. Pre-race nerves took over. Going through my usual warm up ritual I wondered why I had agreed to race. I didn’t feel great and my legs knew that it was the end of a long, hard season.

Out on the track the air was cold on the skin. We jogged about trying to keep warm as we were introduced to a full Gateshead Stadium. I got a warm welcome from the North East crowd. They always gave the Scots a lot of support.

We were called to the mark. The gun went. I got a good, clear start reaching the bend in fourth place. With no pacemaker, the first lap was just over 60 seconds. I was pleased with the time and felt better than I had during the warm up. I tried to relax, drop my arms in the wind on the back straight, keep with the pace and out of trouble. The timekeeper shouted out the time for the second lap, "Two one, two two", so a sub-four was still on. I moved into third place but John Walker passed me on the back straight into the breeze. I had to concentrate as the pace was starting to really hurt me. I reached the bell in "Three two, three three" and we started to bunch up at the front. I fought to hold my place and not get boxed in.

The next two hundred yards were into the wind and the pace was slowing. Some barging was going on as we jockeyed for position and waited for the break to be made. Keep calm, keep the arms down, and don’t tense up! At two hundred to go, the break was made with both Frank and John Walker going for the big finish. I got a clear break on the inside and took my chance to chase the two in front. Frank was running wide round the bend and, as he hit the finishing straight he opened up a slight gap. I was just hanging on behind them trying to hold my form. I knew I must have a chance to break four minutes if I could just keep in touch, but I was struggling to keep going with tired legs and lungs bursting for oxygen. The training sessions at Ravenscraig Stadium in Battery Park and along Greenock Esplanade were all about this, not tying up and using my arms to drive me sprinting to the finish line. Walker passed Clement to win. I crossed the line, arms pumping hard. I was third. These were the days when electronic clocks round the track were rare. John and Frank thought I had broken the barrier. The announcer read out the result: I was third in 3 minutes 58.8 seconds. I felt so good after so long trying to break the Four Minute barrier. Placing third behind two runners who finished first and fifth at the Olympic Games the previous year, was a sweet way to break four minutes for the first time!

I was the 223rd person to break the magic barrier, the 49th Briton and the 10th Scot. Not bad for a boy from Greenock! What a way to end the season and set me up to make the team for the Commonwealth Games in Edmonton the next year.

Frank and I stopped in a pub for a pint on the way back north. I never knew English beer could taste so good!

FOOTNOTE!
I did make the team for the Commonwealth Games and was a finalist in the 5000m. I also had the privilege to meet Roger Bannister, at Crystal Palace in May 1979, where I took part in a mile race for sub-four minute milers to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of his breaking the four minute mile. That was another special night!