Kids these days…..
By Taylor Dutch
He may not be old enough to have a driver’s license, but Sam Ruthe can run a world-class mile. On March 19, Ruthe, who turns 16 on April 12, ran 3:58.35 in the four-lap race at ACA Mile Night in Auckland, New Zealand.
The runner from Tauranga, New Zealand, is now the youngest athlete to break the four-minute barrier in the event. Prior to Ruthe’s performance, Olympic champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen of Norway held that distinction as a 16-year-old after running 3:58.07 at the 2017 Prefontaine Classic.
Wednesday’s mile, which was held at Go Media Stadium, was well paced for a historic performance. In the opening laps, Ruthe was led by pacesetter Ethan Smolej, who brought the field through the first 800 metres in under two minutes. Once Smolej stepped off the track, Olympian Sam Tanner took over up front.
By the 1200-metre split, Tanner, Ruthe, and Benjamin Wall had pulled away from the rest of the field. When the runners reached the homestretch, Tanner swung wide to give Ruthe more room to run on the inside lanes. In the last seconds of the race, the seven-time national champion encouraged the teenager as he sprinted into the finish line.
Tanner won in 3:58.29, just ahead of Ruthe, who took more than three seconds off his previous personal best. Wall also improved his mile time, finishing third in 3:59.00.
“This was probably my favourite goal that I’ve reached. I’ve definitely enjoyed this one the most, with all the people here supporting me,” Ruthe told Reuters. “This has been the most set up for me, so I’m really happy to have gotten this one.”
The mile is the latest breakthrough for Ruthe this season. In February, he won the national title in the 3,000 metres (7:56.18), becoming the youngest senior national champion in any event, according to The New Zealand Herald. He carried the momentum into the 1500 metres at the Sir Graeme Douglas International meet in Auckland, where he ran a personal best of 3:41.25. On March 9, he tied with Tanner for gold in the 1500 metres (3:44.31) at the New Zealand Championships.
Since Roger Bannister of Great Britain became the first athlete to run a sub-four-minute mile in 1954, middle-distance runners around the world have chased the prestigious mark for decades. In 1964, Jim Ryun of Wichita, Kansas, became the first high school boy to run under four minutes. For the next 51 years, only four additional U.S. high schoolers achieved the feat. Since 2015, that list has more than tripled, likely because of better training resources and improved shoe technology. Today, Cameron Myers of Australia holds the world junior (U20) record for the indoor mile. The 18-year-old clocked 3:47.48 at the Millrose Games in February.
The story was adapted with permission from RW US A 15-Year-Old Just Became the Youngest Runner Ever to Break 4 Minutes in the Mile
