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The Perfect Mile: Three Athletes, One Goal, and Less Than Four Minutes to Achieve It Paperback – April 6, 2005
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There was a time when running the mile in four minutes was believed to be beyond the limits of human foot speed, and in all of sport it was the elusive holy grail. In 1952, after suffering defeat at the Helsinki Olympics, three world-class runners each set out to break this barrier.
Roger Bannister was a young English medical student who epitomized the ideal of the amateur — still driven not just by winning but by the nobility of the pursuit. John Landy was the privileged son of a genteel Australian family, who as a boy preferred butterfly collecting to running but who trained relentlessly in an almost spiritual attempt to shape his body to this singular task. Then there was Wes Santee, the swaggering American, a Kansas farm boy and natural athlete who believed he was just plain better than everybody else.
Spanning three continents and defying the odds, their collective quest captivated the world and stole headlines from the Korean War, the atomic race, and such legendary figures as Edmund Hillary, Willie Mays, Native Dancer, and Ben Hogan. In the tradition of Seabiscuit and Chariots of Fire, Neal Bascomb delivers a breathtaking story of unlikely heroes and leaves us with a lasting portrait of the twilight years of the golden age of sport.
- Print length352 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- Publication dateApril 6, 2005
- Dimensions5.5 x 0.75 x 8.25 inches
- ISBN-100618562095
- ISBN-13978-0618562091
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Editorial Reviews
From The New Yorker
Copyright © 2005 The New Yorker
Review
The Perfect Mile returns the reader to a time when a sporting ideal was not an oxymoron . . . Enthralling.
The New York Times Book Review
A rare literary win... Bascomb has penned a sports tribute book that transcends the genre.
The Oregonian
A splendid book... Well-written, suspenseful.
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
A vivid human-interest story... Engrossing, excruciating, and exhilarating.
Boston Herald
A fine, gripping book.
The Chicago Sun-Times
A marvelous book.
Kansas City Star
A thriller.... This being an Olympic year, The Perfect Mile comes just in time to remind us what being an athlete can, and should, be about.
Newsday
The Perfect Mile captures the awe-inspiring quality of ordinary men who achieve what had been thought impossible.
TimeOut New York
Captivating.... Much joy and inspiration to be found here.
Entertainment Weekly
Compelling human drama. [Bascomb's] crisp, detailed narrative helps readers step into the milers' spikes. A resplendent story of an epic event in sports history.
Christian Science Monitor
Bascomb delivers, with stylish and swift prose well matched to the subject... This is an agile and informative read, and we should compare Hillebrand's "Seabiscuit" to it, not the other way around.
MSNBC.com
In masterly fashion, Bascomb re-creates the battle of the milers, embellishing his account with fascinating forays into runner's lore... It's a mark of Bascomb's skill that, although the outcome of the race is well known, he keeps us in suspense, rendering in graphic detail the runners' agony down the final stretch.
The New Yorker —
About the Author
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
The Perfect Mile
Three Athletes, One Goal, and Less Than Four Minutes to Achieve ItBy Neal BascombMariner Books
Copyright © 2005 Neal BascombAll right reserved.
ISBN: 9780618562091
Prologue
How did he know he would not die?" a Frenchman asked of the first runner to
break the four-minute mile. Half a century ago the ambition to achieve that
goal equaled scaling Everest or sailing alone around the world. Most people
considered running four laps of the track in four minutes to be beyond the
limits of human speed. It was foolhardy and possibly dangerous to attempt.
Some thought that rather than a lifetime of glory, honor, and fortune, a hearse
would be waiting for the first person to accomplish the feat.
The four-minute mile: this was the barrier, both physical and
psychological, that begged to be broken. The number had a certain
mathematical elegance. As one writer explained, the figure "seemed so
perfectly round—four laps, four quarter miles, four-point-oh-oh minutes —that
it seemed God himself had established it as man"s limit." Under four
minutes—the place had the mysterious and heroic resonance of reaching
sport"s Valhalla. For decades the best middle-distance runners had tried and
failed. They had come to within two seconds, but that was as close as they
were able to get. Attempt after spirited attempt had proved futile. Each effort
was like a stone added to a wall that looked increasingly impossible to
breach.
But the four-minute mile had a fascination beyond its
mathematical roundness and assumed impossibility. Running the mile was
an art form in itself. The distance—unlike the 100-yard sprint or the
marathon —required a balance of speed and stamina. The person to break
that barrier would have to be fast, diligently trained, and supremely aware of
his body so that he would cross the finish line just at the point of complete
exhaustion. Further, the four-minute mile had to be won alone. There could
be no teammates to blame, no coach during halftime to inspire a comeback.
One might hide behind the excuses of cold weather, an unkind wind, a slow
track, or jostling competition, but ultimately these obstacles had to be defied.
Winning a footrace, particularly one waged against the clock, was ultimately
a battle with oneself, over oneself.
In August 1952 the battle commenced. Three young men in their
early twenties set out to be the first to break the barrier. Born to run fast,
Wes Santee, the "Dizzy Dean of the Cinders," was a natural athlete and the
son of a Kansas ranch hand. He amazed crowds with his running feats,
basked in the publicity, and was the first to announce his intention of running
the mile in four minutes. "He just flat believed he was better than anybody
else," said one sportswriter. Few knew that running was his escape from a
brutal childhood.
Then there was John Landy, the Australian who trained harder
than anyone else and had the weight of a nation"s expectations on his
shoulders. The mile for Landy was more aesthetic achievement than footrace.
He said, "I"d rather lose a 3:58 mile than win one in 4:10." Landy ran night
and day, across fields, through woods, up sand dunes, along the beach in
knee-deep surf. Running revealed to him a discipline he never knew he had.
And finally there was Roger Bannister, the English medical
student who epitomized the ideal of the amateur athlete in a world being
overrun by professionals and the commercialization of sport. For Bannister
the four-minute mile was "a challenge of the human spirit," but one to be
realized with a calculated plan. It required scientific experiments, the wisdom
of a man who knew great suffering, and a magnificent finishing kick.
All three runners endured thousands of hours of training to shape
their bodies and minds. They ran more miles in a year than many of us walk
in a lifetime. They spent a large part of their youth struggling for breath. They
trained week after week to the point of collapse, all to shave off a second,
maybe two, during a mile race—the time it takes to snap one"s fingers and
register the sound. There were sleepless nights and training sessions in rain,
sleet, snow, and scorching heat. There were times when they wanted to go
out for a beer or a date yet knew they couldn"t. They understood that life was
somehow different for them, that idle happiness eluded them. If they weren"t
training or racing or gathering the will required for these efforts, they were
trying not to think about training and racing at all.
In 1953 and 1954, as Santee, Landy, and Bannister attacked the
four-minute barrier, getting closer with every passing month, their stories
were splashed across the front pages of newspapers around the world,
alongside headlines about the Korean War, Queen Elizabeth"s coronation,
and Edmund Hillary"s climb toward the world"s rooftop. Their performances
outdrew baseball pennant races, cricket test matches, horse derbies, rugby
matches, football games, and golf majors. Ben Hogan, Rocky Marciano,
Willie Mays, Bill Tilden, and Native Dancer were often in the shadows of the
three runners, whose achievements attracted media attention to track and
field that has never been equaled since. For weeks in advance of every race
the headlines heralded an impending break in the barrier: "Landy Likely to
Achieve Impossible!"; "Bannister Gets Chance of 4-Minute Mile!"; "Santee
Admits Getting Closer to Phantom Mile." Articles dissected track conditions
and the latest weather forecasts. Millions around the world followed every
attempt. When each runner failed—and there were many failures—he was
criticized for coming up short, for not having what it took. Each such episode
only motivated the others to try harder.
They fought on, reluctant heroes whose ambition was fueled by a
desire to achieve the goal and to be the best. They had fame, undeniably, but
of the three men only Santee enjoyed the publicity, and that proved to be
more of a burden than an advantage. As for riches, financial reward was
hardly a factor—they were all amateurs. They had to scrape around for
pocket change, relying on their hosts at races for decent room and board.
The prize for winning a meet was usually a watch or a small trophy. At that
time, the dawn of television, amateur sport was beginning to lose its
innocence to the new spirit of "win at any cost," but these three strove only
for the sake of the attempt. The reward was in the effort.
After four soul-crushing laps around the track, one of the three
finally breasted the tape in 3:59.4, but the race did not end there. The barrier
was broken, and a media maelstrom descended on the victor, yet the
ultimate question remained: who would be the best when they toed the
starting line together?
The answer came in the perfect mile, a race fought not against the
clock but against one another. It was won with a terrific burst around the final
bend in front of an audience spanning the globe.
If sport, as a chronicler of this battle once said, is a "tapestry of alternating
triumph and tragedy," then the first thread of this story begins with tragedy. It
occurred in a race 120 yards short of a mile at the 1,500- meter Olympic final
in Helsinki, Finland, almost two years to the day before the greatest of
triumphs.
Copyright © 2004 by Neal Bascomb. Reprinted by permission of Houghton
Mifflin Company.
Continues...
Excerpted from The Perfect Mileby Neal Bascomb Copyright © 2005 by Neal Bascomb. Excerpted by permission.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Product details
- Publisher : Mariner Books
- Publication date : April 6, 2005
- Edition : Reprint
- Language : English
- Print length : 352 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0618562095
- ISBN-13 : 978-0618562091
- Item Weight : 11.9 ounces
- Dimensions : 5.5 x 0.75 x 8.25 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #67,574 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #10 in Track & Field Sports
- #54 in Sports History (Books)
- #78 in Running & Jogging (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
About the author

Neal Bascomb is the author of ten award-winning, national, and international bestselling books, including most recently FASTER, a tale of the greatest upset in motorsports history. He is also a critically acclaimed young adult writer. His book NAZI HUNTERS (Scholastic) won the YALSA Non-fiction Award for young adults, as well as a number of other national and state-level awards. Also from Scholastic, SABOTAGE and THE GRAND ESCAPE were breakout hits. A former international journalist and book editor, he has also written for the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and the Los Angeles Times. He lives in Philadelphia with his family.
Bascomb is also the creator of the popular newsletter WorkCraft/Life (www.workcraftlife.com). Illuminating stories of people and the work they do. One feature profile, once a week, that will inspire, inform, infuriate, or just make you say wow. Sign up for free.
Customer reviews
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Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonCustomers say
Customers find this book to be a must-read for runners, praising its well-researched and engaging content. Moreover, the narrative is full of suspense and drama, and customers appreciate the detailed character development of the remarkable sports people involved. Additionally, the book effectively conveys lessons and inspiration beyond the sport itself, and one customer notes its meticulous detail and structure.
AI Generated from the text of customer reviews
Customers find the book highly readable, describing it as a well-researched, exciting, and must-read for runners, with one customer noting it reads like a story.
"...(the book itself is a great achievement as well)." Read more
"...talking with a frined who is and mentioned that he was reading this great book about the quest to break the 4 minute mile...." Read more
"Very engaging g read. Brilliant story of how the 4 min mile barrier was broken. Inspiring and motivating. Must read" Read more
"A great, fun read full of suspense and drama...." Read more
Customers find the book inspirational, with one customer noting how it conveys lessons and inspiration beyond the sport, while others appreciate its great insights and anecdotes about true athleticism.
"...I found it to be a very inspirational story about 3 heroic individuals and their pursuit to break the 4 minute mile barrier...." Read more
"...Bascomb does an extraordinary job providing history and narrative to the quest to break the barrier of the four minute mile...." Read more
"...who runs will love The Perfect Mile, but it's more a cultural history than a sports biography...." Read more
"...But there is also historical significance in learning more about this event along with what was going on in the world at the time it took place...." Read more
Customers enjoy the narrative of the book, describing it as an exciting true story full of suspense and drama.
"...The story of the race is well told and after reading it, I recommend watching the video of the race (which is available on the internet)...." Read more
"...Bascomb does an extraordinary job providing history and narrative to the quest to break the barrier of the four minute mile...." Read more
"...I gave The Perfect Mile four stars because it got my interest from the beginning and held it by showing what each competitor had to go through in..." Read more
"...with words of people and events so that they come alive and are so relatable...." Read more
Customers praise the book's pacing and writing style, with one customer noting its meticulous detail and structure, while another mentions how it reads like fiction.
"...introduced me to true heroes and role models of our day, and the writing is superb...." Read more
"...Great drama. Fine, fine writing, meticulous in its detail and structure, built upon a nomenclature and a time that I hold fast to, having been..." Read more
"...But worry not: Bascomb is a brilliant writer and the tale he spins in these pages makes me want to become a track and field fan...." Read more
"...The book does a good job of giving you the stories of each runner and the obstacles they faced...." Read more
Customers appreciate the character development in the book, describing the athletes as remarkable sports people and very likable characters.
"...This book also introduced me to true heroes and role models of our day, and the writing is superb...." Read more
"...An amazing book about amazing athletes of a bygone era. Makes me want to get back into running again." Read more
"This book tells the stories of three exceptional amateur athletes (Australian, American, and British) trying to be the first to break the seemingly..." Read more
"...Bascomb does a fine job of presenting each runner's character and experiences as their running careers progress and intertwine...." Read more
Customers appreciate the book's portrayal of athletes' resilience, with one review highlighting their incredible grit and how they overcame adversity, while another notes the intense degree of commitment required.
"...The competition brings out the best in each them. Each man shows incredible grit and determination to trying to break the 4 minute barrier...." Read more
"...This book brought these men, their stories, lives,achievements against all odds, and the era, back to life so vividly that I recalled and relived..." Read more
"...It is a great account of human will and perseverance in breaking barriers. Highly recommended!" Read more
"...both the stats and facts, as well as the feelings and emotions that each athlete experienced...." Read more
Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on September 28, 2013I highly recommend "The Perfect Mile" by Neal Bascomb. I found it to be a very inspirational story about 3 heroic individuals and their pursuit to break the 4 minute mile barrier. It is a very well written story about the pursuit of human excellence through running.
The book starts by giving us the background of our 3 runners: Wes Santee from the United States, John Landy from Australia and Roger Bannister from England. We also get to meet some interesting characters at this time: 2 very interesting ones are Emil Zatopek and Percy Cerutti.
As the narrative unfolds, you will find yourself rooting for each individual to be the one to break the record. Each one works hard towards his goal while keeping that goal in the context of his overall life. Here is a passage from the book about Bannister's approach:
"Bannister wanted to capture the four-minute mile to show how one could achieve athletic greatness without the sacrifice of everything else in life."
While they each have coaches, they also need to determine what worked best for them individually. John Landy learned a lot from Percy Cerutti but then reached a point where there was no longer anything to be gained (and plenty to be lost) by continuing to follow his advice. Here is a quote from Landy: "I'm taking no more advice from anyone. I simply want to put together the best of what I've seen."
As they work through their respective challenges and setbacks, we see them each continue to push to achieve their goal - while being aware that all 3 of them were trying to achieve the same thing on 3 separate continents. The competition brings out the best in each them. Each man shows incredible grit and determination to trying to break the 4 minute barrier.
Roger Bannister received some key coaching advice toward the end of the pursuit and it proved to be key. His coach (Franz Stempfl) served as the last piece of the puzzle. Here is a great quote from the book:
"Stampfl offered suggestions and guidance. He tried never to push too hard. From the start, he knew that Bannister needed three things if he was to run the four-minute mile: pacemakers to carry him through the first three laps; more strength in his legs; and complete belief in himself."
On May 6th, Bannister broke the barrier (3:59.4). He later wrote that ""No words could be invented for such supreme happiness." On June 21st, just 46 days later, John Landy shattered Bannister's record with a time of 3:58. Our third hero, Wes Santee came very close several times but, in my view, was defeated by the only real villain in the book - the AAU.
The book then showcases the head-to-head race between Bannister and Landy. The story of the race is well told and after reading it, I recommend watching the video of the race (which is available on the internet).
I would like to close this book review with brief quotes from each of the runners:
Landy: "Running gave me discipline and self-expression.... It has all the disappointments, frustrations, lack of success and unexpected success, which all reproduce themselves in the bigger play of life."
Santee: "Hard work pays off...You have to be just as disciplined to run a business as you do to train for an athletic event."
Bannister: "Sport is about adapting to the unexpected and being able to modify plans at the last minute. Sport, like all life, is about taking your chances."
For anyone who enjoys reading about the heroic pursuit of human excellence, I highly recommend this book (the book itself is a great achievement as well).
- Reviewed in the United States on January 13, 2025Having read Once a Runner and Again to Carthage by John L. Parker Jr, this caught my eye. (Also as an elderly slow longish-distance runner who still remembers the head space of the long distance jog.)
You don't have to be an elite athlete to appreciate the level of training, desire dedication and competition these three runners brought to the running stage at a time when running was still a truly amateur endeavor. Bascomb does an extraordinary job providing history and narrative to the quest to break the barrier of the four minute mile. A tribute to the author's journalistic expertise and skill as a storyteller.
- Reviewed in the United States on June 11, 2013I've recently begun the acclaimed Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand. While the opening scene hints at the hardships coming up for Louis Zamperini, the hero of the story, the first part is about his running career as a young man and the quest for the four minute mile. What serendipity when I came across The Perfect Mile by Neal Bascomb as a Kindle promotion. I'm no athlete; sports on TV are boring and sports reporters act like a big game has the global significance of the Second Coming. However, Bascomb introduces us to three runners from three different countries and backgrounds. The thing they had in common, besides physical ability and determination is that they were amateur athletes at a time when the rapid adoption of television was bringing massive sponsorship dollars into all sports and rendering "gentlemen scholars" obsolete. One runner was going to medical school - doing a residency and course work - while training. Another was running multiple events for his college while a full time student, and the third was also in college, but in Australia where track events had very little institutional support. The 1950s, when The Perfect Mile takes place, bridges the gap between the purer amateurism in the 1930s of Zamperini and today's world where "amateur" is really a technicality (although at the college level the issues raised regarding how organizers profit and the students are like serfs are unchanged).
I gave The Perfect Mile four stars because it got my interest from the beginning and held it by showing what each competitor had to go through in order to run his fastest mile, without the kind of detail that gets boring. Bascomb had access to the principals, and it gives each of their story a solidity that doesn't come from collecting newspaper clippings alone.
Anyone who runs will love The Perfect Mile, but it's more a cultural history than a sports biography. And of course, if you read Unbroken and want to know more about breaking the four minute barrier for the mile, you will also enjoy The Perfect Mile.
Top reviews from other countries
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Luca GallitognottaReviewed in Italy on December 18, 2016
5.0 out of 5 stars Consigliato
Una storia epica, assolutamente da leggere, per chi è appassionato di sport e ama più le vicende da pioniere rispetto a quelle dei nostri giorni
- Marcelo Soares de SouzaReviewed in Germany on January 25, 2023
5.0 out of 5 stars An amazing story and book
The story is very well written. You can feel yourself at that time cheering and suffering with the main characters. Also a good motivation for the ones who are going through sports, mainly running. I fully recommend it.
- Tyler KeayReviewed in Canada on September 9, 2024
5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome
Loved this book. A must for any runner. The story and result is not new. The details and sacrifices were incredible. This book had great pacing and more to it than Bannister's legendary 4 min mile.
- Christopher SmithReviewed in the United Kingdom on March 7, 2024
5.0 out of 5 stars Informative and interesting
I read many running and sport regaled books and this is an interesting and fabulous read.
-
Cesar BorgesReviewed in Brazil on January 6, 2020
5.0 out of 5 stars Sensacional
Um dos livros essenciais para quem ama esportes, relato incrível dessa busca pela quebra da barreira dos 4 minutos na milha