World record progression for the mile run
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Accurate times for the mile run (1.609 km) weren't recorded until after 1850, when the first precisely measured running tracks were built. Foot racing had become popular in England by the 17th century, when footmen would race and their masters would wager on the result. By the 19th century "pedestrianism", as it was called, had become very popular.
The best times recorded in the 19th century were by professionals. Even after professional foot racing died out, it wasn't until 1915 that the professional record of 4:12-3/4 set by Walter George in 1886 was beaten by an amateur.
Progression of the mile record accelerated in the 1940s, as Swedes Arne Anderson and Gunder Hägg lowered the record to just over four minutes (4:01.4) before racing was curtailed due to World War II. After the war, it was John Landy of Australia and Britain's Roger Bannister who took up the challenge of being the first to break the fabled four minute mile barrier. Bannister did it first, and Landy did it 45 days later. Fifty years later the record is 3:43.13.
Mile record progression - professional
| 4:23 | Thomas Horspool | 1858 | Manchester |
| 4:22 1/4 | Siah Albison | 27 OCT 1860 | Manchester |
| 4:20 1/2 | Edward Mills | 23 APR 1863 | . |
| 4:20 | Edward Mills | 25 JUN 1864 | Manchester |
| 4:17 1/4 | William Lang | 19 AUG 1865 | Manchester |
| 4:17 1/4 | William Richards | 19 AUG 1865 | Manchester |
| 4:12 3/4 | Walter George | 23 AUG 1886 | London |
World record progression for the mile run - amateur
| 4:55 | J. Heaviside (IRL) | 1 April 1861 | Dublin |
| 4:49 | J. Heaviside (IRL) | 27 May 1861 | Dublin |
| 4:46 | N.S. Greene (IRL) | May 1861 | Dublin |
| 4:33 | George Farran (IRL) | 23 May 1862 | Dublin |
| 4:29 3/5 | Walter Chinnery (GBR) | 10 March 1868 | Cambridge |
| 4:28 4/5 | William Gibbs (GBR) | 3 April 1868 | London |
| 4:28 3/5 | Charles Gunton (GBR) | 31 March 1873 | London |
| 4:26 0/5 | Walter Slade (GBR) | 30 May 1874 | London |
| 4:24 1/2 | Walter Slade (GBR) | 19 June 1875 | London |
| 4:23 1/5 | Walter George (GBR) | 16 August 1880 | London |
| 4:19 2/5 | Walter George (GBR) | 3 June 1882 | London |
| 4:18 2/5 | Walter George (GBR) | 21 June 1884 | Birmingham |
| 4:17 4/5 | Tom Conneff (USA) | 26 August 1893 | Cambridge, Mass. |
| 4:17 0/5 | Fred Bacon (GBR) | 6-July 1895 | London |
| 4:15 3/5 | Thomas Conneff (USA) | 28 August 1895 | New York |
| 4:15 2/5 | John Paul Jones (USA) | 27 May 1911 | Cambridge, Mass. |
| 4:14 2/5 | John Paul Jones (USA) | 31 May 1913 | Cambridge, Mass. |
| 4:12 3/5 | Norman Taber (USA) | 16 July 1915 | Cambridge, Mass. |
| 4:10 2/5 | Paavo Nurmi (FIN) | 23 August, 1923 | Stockholm |
| 4:09 1/5 | Jules Ladoumègue (FRA) | 4 October, 1931 | Paris |
| 4:07.6 | Jack Lovelock (NZL) | 15 July, 1933 | Princeton, N.J. |
| 4:06.8 | Glenn Cunningham (USA) | 16 June, 1934 | Princeton, N.J |
| 4:06.4 | Sydney Wooderson (GBR) | 28 August, 1937 | Motspur Park |
| 4:06.2 | Gunder Hägg (SWE) | 1 July, 1942 | Göteborg |
| 4:06.2 | Arne Andersson (SWE) | 10 July, 1942 | Stockholm |
| 4:04.6 | Gunder Hägg (SWE) | 4 September, 1942 | Stockholm |
| 4:02.6 | Arne Andersson (SWE) | 1 July, 1943 | Göteborg |
| 4:01.6 | Arne Andersson (SWE) | 18 July, 1944 | Malmö |
| 4:01.4 | Gunder Hägg (SWE) | 17 July, 1945 | Malmö |
| 3:59.4 | Roger Bannister (GBR) | 6 May, 1954 | Oxford |
| 3:58.0 | John Landy (AUS) | 21 June, 1954 | Turku |
| 3:57.2 | Derek Ibbotson (GBR) | 19 July, 1957 | London |
| 3:54.5 | Herb Elliott (AUS) | 6 August, 1958 | Dublin |
| 3:54.4 | Peter Snell (NZL) | 27 January, 1962 | Wanganui |
| 3:54.1 | Peter Snell (NZL) | 17 November, 1964 | Auckland |
| 3:53.6 | Michel Jazy (FRA) | 9 June, 1965 | Rennes |
| 3:51.3 | Jim Ryun (USA) | 17 July, 1966 | Berkeley, Cal. |
| 3:51.1 | Jim Ryun (USA) | 23 June, 1967 | Bakersfield, Cal. |
| 3:51.0 | Filbert Bayi (TAN) | 17 May, 1975 | Kingston |
| 3:49.4 | John Walker (NZL) | 12 August, 1975 | Göteborg |
| 3:48.95 | Sebastian Coe (GBR) | 17 July, 1979 | Oslo |
| 3:48.8 | Steve Ovett (GBR) | 1 July, 1980 | Oslo |
| 3:48.53 | Sebastian Coe (GBR) | 19 August, 1981 | Zürich |
| 3:48.40 | Steve Ovett (GBR) | 26 August, 1981 | Koblenz |
| 3:47.33 | Sebastian Coe (GBR) | 28 August, 1981 | Bruxelles |
| 3:46.32 | Steve Cram (GBR) | 27 July, 1985 | Oslo |
| 3:44.39 | Noureddine Morceli (ALG) | 5 September, 1993 | Rieti |
| 3:43.13 | Hicham El Guerrouj (MOR) | 7 July, 1999 | Rome |