Birthday: 01/07/33 Mile PR: 4:45.00 - 1955 (former world best)
Metric Mile (1500m) PR: 4:22.2 – 1955
Hometown: Streetly, Staffordshire, England
College: University of Birmingham
On May 29, 1954 during the Midland Championships in Birmingham, England, Diane Leather became the first woman to break the 5 minute Mile barrier with a time of 4:59.6 finishing well before any of her competitors. At the time she was a 21-year-old analytical chemist at the University of Birmingham. Because the IAAF did not keep records above 800 meters for women at that time, she was only acknowledged with a world’s best time; not a world record. She had competed in the 800 meters earlier that afternoon.
Over the next year, she dropped her Mile "best" to 4:45.0 – a time that stood for seven years.
Leather had only been training for two years when she went sub-5. During her career she had won five WAAA titles between 1954 & 1957 and she also won 4 consecutive national cross country titles (1953-56) as well as three International Cross Country Championships crowns, 1954-55 and 1957. In 1954 & 1958, Diane earned silver medals at the European Championships in the 800 meters.
She was an Olympian in Rome 1960, competing in the 800 meters as Mrs. Diane Charles.
Leather, who was trained as a micro-analyst at chemistry, later became a social worker in London and Cornwall. The legend & pioneer passed away on September 5, 2018.
FUN FACT: Diane was a field hockey player before she became a dedicated runner.
FUN FACT II: She was inducted into the England Athletics Hall of Fame in October 2013.
Evening in Monaco recognized Mile history, record setting legends and iconic events
From World Athletics
Roger Bannister and Diane Leather Charles, who respectively became the first man to run the Mile in under 4 minutes and the first woman to break the 5 minute barrier for the iconic...
Read More comments
Legend, 1960 Olympian & record setter a pioneer of women’s running
By Peter Thompson
The world of Athletics is deeply saddened by the news that Diane Leather Charles, the first woman to run a Mile in under 5 minutes and a true running pioneer, passed peacefully on Wednesday, September 5. As...
Read More comments
By Peter Thompson
This article has been published in its entirety with the author's permission. It was initially published in the 'BMC News', the Club magazine of the British Milers' Club, in Spring 2014.
Many of you reading this blog are aware of the the 60th anniversary of breaking the 4...
Read More comments
Leather’s run was not recognized as a world record, only a world’s best, because the IAAF did not keep records above 800m for women. And that is a story in itself.
By Sean Ingle, The Guardian
Sixty years ago this May, on a crushed cinder track in the Midlands, an athlete ran into history by...
Read More comments
The barrier breaker looks back on her historic sub-five Mile of 60 years ago
May 6, 1954, might be a date forever etched in history, but just 23 days after Roger Bannister’s barrier-breaking sub-four-minute Mile, a woman made a similar breakthrough.
However, whereas Bannister’s achievement is...
Read More commentsReturn the Mile to prominence on the American & worldwide sports and cultural landscape by elevating and celebrating the Mile to create a movement.
ELEVATE
Bring Back the Mile as the premier event in the sport, and increase interest in and media coverage of the Mile for both those who love the distance as well as the general public.
CELEBRATE
Bring Back the Mile to celebrate the storied distance and to recognize the people who made and make the Mile great and to promote Mile events and the next generation of U.S. Milers.
NATIONAL MOVEMENT
Bring Back the Mile to create a national movement for the Mile as America’s Distance, to inspire Americans to run the Mile as part of their fitness program and to replace the 1600 meters at High School State Track & Field Meets across the country.
Become a Mile Maniac member or a BBTM sponsor today! Join us, and go Mile!