Education Commons^™

The Four Minute Mile----And The Entire Sport World Is Changed, Paul Olsen

Celebration of Learning

Roger Bannister died recently, and he should be remembered as the man who changed sport----as well as an understanding of human possibility---forever. In 1954 this medical student at Oxford University navigated a world full of both hope and fear, of perceived physical limitation, historical "proof," physical exhaustion, naysayers from all angles including the press, coaches, and fellow athletes. Throughout that journey, Bannister grasped at what he called "rhythms arising from nerve impulses and contracting muscles which interact . . . with a feeling of beauty . . . which might otherwise remain locked away inside ourselves."