Birthday: 02/25/38 Mile PR: 3:54.5 - 1958 (former world record)
Metric Mile (1500m) PR: 3:35.6 - 1960 (former world record)
High School: Aquinas College - Perth
Hometown: Perth, AUS
College: Melbourne University / Cambridge University
Current Residence: Byron Bay, AUS
Herb Elliott of Australia had a relatively short, but incredibly historic racing career (1957-61) and many in the sport consider him the greatest Mile athlete ever as the legend was only beaten once at 1500 meters (as a Junior athlete) and went undefeated in the Mile (36 victories with 17 sub-4 minute performances).
His international breakout year was 1958 when Elliott won gold medals in the 880 and Mile at the Commonwealth Games in Cardiff, and then, a few weeks later on August 6 in Dublin, he shattered the Mile world record by 2.7 seconds, clocking 3:54.5, and later on August 28 in Göteborg, the AAU Mile champion also set the 1500 meter WR with his 3:36.0. For his spectacular year, Elliott was selected as the Male Athlete-of-the-Year by the Associated Press.
At the 1960 Rome Olympics, Elliott capped his stellar career as he dominated the 1500 meters to win gold by a record 2.8 seconds and also set a rare world record at the Olympics, running 3:35.6.
Post-track career, Elliott worked as the CEO of Puma North America and also served as Director of Athlete & Corporate Relations for the Australian Olympic Committee.
FUN FACT: His coach was the eccentric, mystical Percy Cerutty who put his athletes on a special diet of grains & fruit and created a stoic training camp at Portsea, Australia for his charges to “embrace the pain”.
FUN FACT II: On February 15, 1958 in Perth, Australia, Elliott recorded the first sub-4 minute Mile on grass, running 3:59.6 and narrowly edging countryman & rival Merv Lincoln (who had the same time)!
FUN FACT III: In the Queen Elizabeth II's Birthday Honors List of 1964, he was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE).
It was simply the most significant race ever run in Ireland, despite the intrusion of a black and white mongrel dog midway through the race, and it lived up to its billing to the letter.
By Peter Byrne for The Irish Times
In an extract from his forthcoming book Winning for Ireland, Peter...
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The legend clocked a 3:59.03 Mile, with teammates Merv Lincoln securing silver and Albie Thomas overtaking Gordon Pirie to give Australia a 1-2-3 medal sweep
By Mike Colman, The Courier-Mail
Herb Elliott will always be best remembered for his world record-breaking run to win the 1500m at the...
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“In the winter and spring of 1957, I must have run 2,500 miles in training and lifted thousands of pounds in weights.”
By Runner's Tribe
Personal Records
“There was no reason for me to continue running. There was no money in it, I had a family, I wasn’t a wealthy fellow so I needed to go out and get a job.”
By Billy Rule, PerthNow
FROM this weekend, the best runners in the world will be faced with a question.
For four years they’ve been...
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The 1960 Olympic champion and Mile world record holder has spiritual depth to match his athletic ability.
By Daniel Lane, Sydney Morning Herald
Herb Elliott, who dominated the 1500 meters at the 1960 Rome Olympics, theorises that if life is a race, it is best to focus on personal perfection...
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As the 60th anniversary of the first sub-4 minute Mile approaches, tell us who you believe to be the leading Miler of all-time
From Athletics Weekly
Roger Bannister’s 3:59.4 Mile of almost 60 years ago is one of the most revered performances in athletics history.
Being the first man to run...
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Forty years after Roger Bannister broke four minutes, the brotherhood of Mile record holders gathered to honor their grand obsession
By Gary Smith, Sports Illustrated
Never join someone who eclipses you. Align yourself with one who increases your luster. The man who puts you in the shade...
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Australia's superb Miler may still be the best in the world, but he has lost his fierce dedication. Now he faces the challenge of Oregon's Dyrol Burleson, who is still hungry
By Tex Maule, Sports Illustrated
Two years ago a grim, young, hawk-nosed Australian named Herb Elliott was the talk...
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Led by a fanatic and driven by private furies, Australia's fantastic Miler finds solace and satisfaction in pushing himself beyond endurance: "All I want to do is win."
By Don Connery, Sports Illustrated
On a primeval, wind-swept beach at Portsea, a curling tongue of scruffy Cape Cod land 60...
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