Bannister 10x400m

Guided run

Listen in to the Bannister pre-run guide below to get set up to Go!

Roger Barrister and the 10 × 400 meters interval fast with 400 meters recovery jog

10 X 400 meters (1 mile/1.6 km race pace)

400 meters recovery jog

Repeat x 10

(total time approx. 50 minutes including warm up and cooling down)

If there isn’t a track available, you can do this by time, e.g. 10 X 70 seconds with 2 minutes recovery jog

This is a run inspired by and based on legend Roger Bannister.

Born in Harrow, England, the then 25-year-old Oxford University medical student was regarded as Britain’s best middle-distance runner, but had recently experienced crushing disappointment after finishing fourth in the 1500 metres at the 1952 Olympics in Helsinki – a race he had been widely expected to win.

The following months saw Bannister toying with the idea of giving up athletics, before he decided to set himself a new goal of becoming the First man to run a mile in under four minutes.

Inspired by his running hero Sydney Wooderson, who had made a remarkable comeback in 1945 by setting a new British record in the same event, Bannister set out to achieve the holy grail of athletics.

The scene for Bannister’s finest moment was an early race in the 1954 season at Oxford University’s ramshackle Iffley Road track, during the annual match between the Amateur Athletic Association (AAA) and the university.

Down to the last moment before the race, Bannister had misgivings about the weather, which had seen a strong wind gather at the track, but he was persuaded to go ahead with the attempt by his two pacemakers.
The first two laps saw Brasher set out at the front with a speed Bannister at the time feared was too slow. In fact, the tempo proved to be just right, with Brasher reaching the halfway mark in 1 minute 58 seconds.
Chataway then took up the mantle halfway through the third lap, with Bannister following intently behind.
As the crowd’s roar began to get louder, and sensing the moment of a lifetime, Bannister took his cue on the far straight of the last lap and lengthened his stride to speed past Chataway around the final bend.
Throwing in all his reserves, he broke the tape and collapsed to the ground.

In a style that ramped up the anticipation and excitement and would later become a trademark during the countless record attempts he presided over, McWhirter gave a long pause as he delivered the race result.