43 Runners Clock Sub-Four-Minute Mile At Boston University Indoor Track Meet

Breaking the four-minute mile barrier was long believed to be impossible due to a combination of physiological and psychological factors prevalent at the time.

Before Sir Roger Bannister achieved the feat in 1954, there was a prevailing belief that the human body had reached its limit in terms of speed and endurance, and it simply couldn’t endure the physical exertion required to run a mile in under four minutes. 

Following Bannister’s historic achievement, we’ve seen the four-minute mile barrier broken countless times, with the current world record sitting at 3:43.13 set by Morocco’s Hicham El Guerrouj in 1999.

Although the four-minute barrier was surpassed 90 years ago, it is still a major milestone for middle-distance track runners to achieve.

Boston University held the BU David Hemery Valentine Invitational this past weekend, an annual indoor track meet. 

The indoor track at Boston University is renowned around the world for producing consistently fast times, having been host to countless personal bests, American records, and world records.

Boston University’s indoor track is so notoriously fast that many people believe it is not 200m but short. Following a certified track measurement, it was found that the track was not 200m; it was 1.4cm longer!

The men’s one-mile race at the BU David Hemery Valentine Invitational was no exception to Boston’s notoriously fast times.

A total of 43 runners clocked a sub-four-minute mile.

The leading mark was set by John Reniewicki of UA Baltimore Distance, clocking a blazing 3:51.72.

Following closely behind was Anass Essayi of the University of South Carolina, who was just edged out, running a 3:51.92.

Rounding out the podium was Nike runner Craig Engels, recording a 3:52.05.

You can find the full list of all 43 athletes who ran under four minutes in the mile below.

• John Reniewicki – UA Baltimore Distance – 3:51.72
• Anass Essayi – South Carolina – 3:51.91
• Craig Engels – Nike – 3:52.05
• Eric Holt – Empire Elite TC – 3:52.35
• Thomas Vanoppen – Belgium – 3:52.66
• Ben Allen – Empire Elite TC – 3:53.17
• Callum Elson – Hoka – 3:53.22
• Isaac Basten – Drake – 3:53.54
• Rob Napolitano – Diadora/NYAC – 3:54.12
• Charlie O’Donovan – Ireland – 3:54.16
• Nick Foster – Michigan – 3:54.48
• Abel Teffra – Georgetown – 3:54.62
• Ryoma Aoki – Honda – 3:54.84
• Johnny Gregorek – Asics – 3:55.53 (3:55.522)
• Jack Salisbury – Empire Elite TC – 3:55.53 (3:55.529)
• Foster Malleck – Boston University – 3:55.80
• Brett Meyer – Unattached – 3:56.06
• Evan Dorenkamp – Penn State – 3:56.23
• Parvej Khan – Florida – 3:56.64
• Austin Miller – Adidas Tinman Elite – 3:56.77
• Parker Schneider – Boston University – 3:57.01
• Tyler Wirth – Cincinnati – 3:57.20
• James Dunne – Adams State – 3:57.43
• Benjamin Godish – Northeastern – 3:57.43
• Nathan Mountain – Virginia – 3:58.16
• Ryan Adams – UA Mission Run Balt Distance – 3:58.21
• Vivien Henz – Unattached – 3:58.34
• Will Anthony – Virginia – 3:58.39
• Shane Bracken – Unattached – 3:58.56
• Cruz Gomez – Ole Miss – 3:58.69
• Garrett MacQuiddy – California – 3:58.75
• Benne Anderson – Syracuse – 3:58.78
• Wes Porter – Virginia – 3:58.85
• Nick Dahl – Empire Elite TC – 3:58.96
• Keisuke Morita – Subaru – 3:59.03
• Jack Crul – Bradley – 3:59.14
• Camden Gilmore – Georgetown – 3:59.19
• Kevin Robertson – Saint-Laurent Select – 3:59.21
• Robert Heppenstall – Atlanta Track Club Elite – 3:59.72
• Eric Zulkofske – UNAT-Rhode Island – 3:59.93 (3:59.928)
• Paul Specht – Wake Forest – 3:59.93 (3:59.930)
• Ezekiel Rop – Iowa State – 3:59.94
• Samuel Field – New Mexico – 3:59.99