Roger Bannister, first to run mile in under 4 minutes, dies
By Associated Press
Mar 4, 2018 5:49 AM CST
FILE - In tis file photo dated Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2014, former British athlete Roger Bannister poses for a picture during the launch of the Westminster Mile run, to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Bannister's record of being the first man to run a sub-four minute mile in May 1954, at Paddington Recreation...   (Associated Press)

LONDON (AP) — Roger Bannister, the first runner to break the 4-minute barrier in the mile, has died. He was 88.

Bannister's family said in a statement that he died peacefully on Saturday in Oxford.

On a windy late afternoon in Oxford on May 6, 1954, Bannister ran four laps on a cinder track in 3 minutes, 59.4 seconds to crack the mythical 4-minute mile — a feat many had thought humanly impossible.

A few months later in 1954, Bannister beat Australian rival John Landy in the "Miracle Mile" or "Mile of the Century" at the Empire Games in Vancouver, British Columbia as both men ran under 4 minutes.

Bannister then gave up running to pursue a long and distinguished medical career.

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