Paavo Johannes Nurmi was a Finnish middle-distance and long-distance runner. He was called the "Flying Finn" or the "Phantom Finn" because he dominated distance running in the 1920s. Nurmi set 22 official world records at distances between 1,500 metres and 20 kilometres, and won nine gold and three silver medals in his 12 events in the Summer Olympic Games. At his peak, Nurmi was undefeated for 121 races at distances from 800 m upwards. Throughout his 14-year career, he remained unbeaten in cross country events and the 10,000 metres.
A four-minute mile is the completion of a mile run (1.6 km) in four minutes or less. It translates to a speed of 15 miles per hour (24 km/h). It is a standard of professional middle distance runners in several cultures.
Eamonn Christopher Coghlan is an Irish former track and field athlete who specialised in middle distance track events and the 5,000 metres. He is a three-time Olympian, held the world indoor mile record and was world champion in the 5,000 m. Coghlan served as a senator from 2011 to 2016.
Bernard Kipchirchir Lagat is a Kenyan-American former middle and long-distance runner.
Marcus O'Sullivan is an Irish retired middle-distance runner. He competed for Ireland at four Summer Olympics. After Steve Scott and John Walker, he is the third all-time by total of sub-4 minute miles run over the course of his career, at 101.
The Millrose Games are an annual indoor athletics meet held each February in New York City. Among the world's most prestigious indoor track meets, the games started taking place at the Armory in Washington Heights in 2012, after having taken place in Madison Square Garden from 1914 to 2011.
The mile run is a middle-distance foot race.
Joseph William "Joie" Ray was an American track and field athlete and member of the United States National Track and Field Hall of Fame. He held world records for the 1-mile (1.6 km) and 2-mile (3.2 km) distances. He represented the United States in the three Olympic Games held the 1920s, winning a bronze medal for the 3000 m team race in 1924.
Raymond P. Flynn is a retired middle-distance runner who today works as a sports agent. Over the course of his racing career, Flynn ran a total of 89 sub-four minute miles, with his best time of 3:49.77 on 7 July 1982 in Oslo, Norway at the Bislett Games Dream Mile. He also held the Irish 1500 metres record for 41 years after running 3:33.5, in the same Oslo race.
The Fort Washington Avenue Armory, also known as the Fort Washington Armory, The Armory, and the 22nd Regiment Armory, is a historic 5,000-seat arena and armory building located at 216 Fort Washington Avenue, between West 168th and 169th Streets, in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. It is a brick Classical Revival building with Romanesque Revival elements, such as the entrance arch, and is currently home to the non-profit Armory Foundation, National Track and Field Hall of Fame, Nike Track and Field Center, and other organizations including the Police Athletic League of New York City.
Raymond Milton Conger was an American middle-distance runner. He held the world record for the 1,000 yards and the American record for the 1,500 metres. In the U.S. national championships, Conger was a three-time winner in both the 1,000 yd and the mile run. At the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam, he won his qualifying heat for the 1,500 m but did not finish in the final.
Yomif Kejelcha Atomsa is an Ethiopian distance runner. He holds the current world record in the short track mile, and the half marathon.
Jakob Ingebrigtsen is a Norwegian middle- and long-distance runner who is the current world record holder in the short track 1500 metres, the 2000 metres and the 3000 metres, and is also the current world best holder over the two mile distance. Ingebrigtsen is a two-time Olympic champion, having won gold medals in the 1500 m at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, setting what was then an Olympic and European record, and in the 5000 metres at the 2024 Paris Olympics. He is also a two-time World champion, winning gold medals in the 5000 m in 2022 and 2023 and a six-time European champion, winning gold medals in the 1500 m and 5000 m in 2018, 2022, and 2024. In addition to the 1500 m, Ingebrigtsen holds European records in the mile, 3000 m, and 5000 m.
The Bowerman Mile is a prestigious and historic mile race for elite middle distance runners held annually at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Oregon.
Elinor Purrier St. Pierre, better known as Elle Purrier St. Pierre, is an American track and field athlete who specializes in middle-distance and long-distance running. She won a gold medal in the 3000 meters at the 2024 World Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow. Purrier is a two-time Olympian for the United States, making the final in the 1500m at both the 2020 and 2024 Olympic Games.
Cole Hocker is an American middle- and long-distance runner who specializes in the 1500 meters. He won the gold medal in the event at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, setting an Olympic record and a North American area record of 3:27.65.
Yared Nuguse is an American professional middle-distance runner who specializes in the 1500 meters. He was the 2019 NCAA Division I champion in the event and bronze medalist from the 2024 Summer Olympics. Nuguse is the North American outdoor record holder over the one mile distance, and the North American indoor record holder for the 1500 meters, one mile and 3000 meters.
