Sir Roger Bannister's ‘impossible’ feat
More or Less
BBC
4.6 • 3.7K Ratings
🗓️ 5 May 2014
⏱️ 10 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Sir Roger Bannister became the first man to run a mile in under four minutes 60 ago. It's one of the most famous records of the 20th Century, one that the passage of time has shrouded in legend. Was the four-minute mile really considered an 'impossible' physical barrier? Are motivational speakers like Anthony Robbins right to claim that the year after it was broken, the power of positive thinking helped dozens of runners to break the four-minute barrier. More or Less speaks with Sir Roger Bannister to separate myth from reality and find out exactly what propelled him to his famous feat. This programme was first broadcast on the BBC World Service.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Thank you for downloading from the BBC. |
| 0:04.0 | The details of our complete range of podcasts and our terms of use go to BBCWorldService.com |
| 0:10.0 | Slash Podcasts. |
| 0:13.0 | Hello and welcome to more or less on the BBC World Service, |
| 0:17.0 | the show that takes the numb out of numbers and the tat out of statistics. |
| 0:21.0 | I'm Tim Harford. |
| 0:23.0 | The statistical annals of the world are full of record-breaking sporting achievements |
| 0:28.0 | and next Tuesday, May the 6th, is the 60th anniversary of what may be the most famous of them all. |
| 0:39.0 | The most sought-after target in athletics, the four-minute mile, |
| 0:42.0 | was achieved yesterday evening on the Oxford University track at Iffley Road. |
| 0:46.0 | On the 6th of May, 1954, a young student doctor named Roger Bannister |
| 0:51.0 | caught the train from London to Oxford and visited friends for a lunch of ham salad. |
| 0:57.0 | His aim was to run a mile faster than it had ever been run before. |
| 1:02.0 | Much faster. |
| 1:03.0 | If Bannister broke the four-minute mark, he'd be over nine yards ahead of the previous record pace. |
| 1:10.0 | Up till yesterday, the world record for the miles stood at four minutes 1.4 seconds. |
| 1:14.0 | Bannister's been lined up for the start in this race between the three A's in Oxford University. |
| 1:19.0 | He knew that he had two colleagues with him who'd help him beat that time. |
| 1:24.0 | 250 yards to go and Bannister takes over. Watch his giant stride, |
| 1:28.0 | take him to the front as he races the last lung-bursting furlong to the finishing post. |
| 1:32.0 | This was it, the final effort against the seconds that have kept him and many others from the four-minute mile. |
| 1:39.0 | Despite intense competition, the record of four minutes 1.4 seconds hadn't moved for nine years, |
... |
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