Mile run world record progression
The world record in the mile run is the best mark set by a male or female runner in the middle-distance track and field event. The IAAF is the official body which oversees the records. Hicham El Guerrouj is the current men's record holder with his time of 3:43.13, while Sifan Hassan has the women's record of 4:12.33. Since 1976, the mile has been the only non-metric distance recognized by the IAAF for record purposes.
Accurate times for the mile run were not recorded until after 1850, when the first precisely measured running tracks were built. Foot racing had become popular in England by the 17th century, when footmen would race and their masters would wager on the result. By the 19th century "pedestrianism", as it was called, had become extremely popular and the best times recorded in the period were by professionals. Even after professional foot racing died out, it was not until 1915 that the professional record of 4:12 was surpassed by an amateur.
Progression of the mile record accelerated in the 1930s as newsreel coverage greatly popularized the sport, making stars out of milers such as Jules Ladoumègue, Jack Lovelock, and Glenn Cunningham. In the 1940s, Swedes Arne Andersson and Gunder Hägg lowered the record to just over four minutes while racing was curtailed during World War II in the combatant countries. After the war, John Landy of Australia and the United Kingdom's Roger Bannister vied to be the first to break the fabled four-minute mile barrier. Roger Bannister did it first on May 6, 1954, and John Landy followed 46 days later. By the end of the 20th century, the record had been lowered to the time of 3:43.13 run by Hicham El Guerrouj of Morocco in 1999.
On the women's side, the first sub-5:00 mile was achieved by the UK's Diane Leather 23 days after Bannister's first sub-4:00 mile. However, the International Association of Athletics Federations did not recognize women's records for the distance until 1967, when Anne Smith of the UK ran 4:37.0. The current women's world record, pending ratification, is 4:12.33 by Sifan Hassan, set on July 12, 2019.
Men
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at: 05/09/1993 tillpos: 73.17
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Pre-IAAF
Professionals
| Time | Athlete | Nationality | Date | Venue |
| 4:28 | Charles Westhall | 26 July 1855 | London | |
| 4:28 | Thomas Horspool | 28 September 1857 | Manchester | |
| 4:23 | Thomas Horspool | 12 July 1858 | Manchester | |
| 4:22 | Siah Albison | 27 October 1860 | Manchester | |
| 4:21 | William Lang | 11 July 1863 | Manchester | |
| 4:20 | Edward Mills | 23 April 1864 | Manchester | |
| 4:20 | Edward Mills | 25 June 1864 | Manchester | |
| 4:17 | William Lang | 19 August 1865 | Manchester | |
| 4:17 | William Richards | 19 August 1865 | Manchester | |
| 4:16 | William Cummings | 14 May 1881 | Preston | |
| 4:12 | Walter George | 23 August 1886 | London |
Amateurs
| Time | Athlete | Nationality | Date | Venue |
| 4:55 | J. Heaviside | 1 April 1861 | Dublin | |
| 4:49 | J. Heaviside | 27 May 1861 | Dublin | |
| 4:46 | Matthew Greene | 27 May 1861 | Dublin | |
| 4:33 | George Farran | 23 May 1862 | Dublin | |
| 4:29 | Walter Chinnery | 10 March 1868 | Cambridge | |
| 4:28 | Walter Gibbs | 3 April 1868 | London | |
| 4:28 | Charles Gunton | 31 March 1873 | London | |
| 4:26 | Walter Slade | 30 May 1874 | London | |
| 4:24 | Walter Slade | 1 June 1875 | London | |
| 4:23 | Walter George | 16 August 1880 | London | |
| 4:19 | Walter George | 3 June 1882 | London | |
| 4:18 | Walter George | 21 June 1884 | Birmingham | |
| 4:17 | Thomas Conneff | 26 August 1893 | Cambridge | |
| 4:17 | Fred Bacon | 6 July 1895 | London | |
| 4:15 | Thomas Conneff | 28 August 1895 | New York City | |
| 4:15 | John Paul Jones | 27 May 1911 | Cambridge |
As there was no recognized official sanctioning body until 1912, there are several versions of the mile progression before that year. One version starts with Richard Webster who ran 4:36.5 in 1865, surpassed by Chinnery in 1868.
Another variation of the amateur record progression pre-1862 is as follows:
| Time | Athlete | Nationality | Date | Venue |
| 4:52 | Cadet Marshall | 2 September 1852 | Addiscome | |
| 4:45 | Thomas Finch | 3 November 1858 | Oxford | |
| 4:45 | St. Vincent Hammick | 15 November 1858 | Oxford | |
| 4:40 | Gerald Surman | 24 November 1859 | Oxford | |
| 4:33 | George Farran | 23 May 1862 | Dublin |
IAAF era
The first world record in the mile for men was recognized by the International Amateur Athletics Federation, now known as the International Association of Athletics Federations, in 1913.To June 21, 2009, the IAAF has ratified 32 world records in the event.
| Time | Auto | Athlete | Nationality | Date | Venue |
| 4:14.4 | John Paul Jones | 31 May 1913 | Allston, Mass. | ||
| 4:12.6 | Norman Taber | 16 July 1915 | Allston, Mass. | ||
| 4:10.4 | Paavo Nurmi | 23 August 1923 | Stockholm | ||
| 4:09.2 | Jules Ladoumègue | 4 October 1931 | Paris | ||
| 4:07.6 | Jack Lovelock | 15 July 1933 | Princeton, N.J. | ||
| 4:06.8 | Glenn Cunningham | 16 June 1934 | Princeton, N.J. | ||
| 4:06.4 | Sydney Wooderson | 28 August 1937 | Motspur Park | ||
| 4:06.2 | Gunder Hägg | 1 July 1942 | Gothenburg | ||
| 4:06.2 | Arne Andersson | 10 July 1942 | Stockholm | ||
| 4:04.6 | Gunder Hägg | 4 September 1942 | Stockholm | ||
| 4:02.6 | Arne Andersson | 1 July 1943 | Gothenburg | ||
| 4:01.6 | Arne Andersson | 18 July 1944 | Malmö | ||
| 4:01.4 | Gunder Hägg | 17 July 1945 | Malmö | ||
| 3:59.4 | Roger Bannister | 6 May 1954 | Oxford | ||
| 3:58.0 | John Landy | 21 June 1954 | Turku | ||
| 3:57.2 | Derek Ibbotson | 19 July 1957 | London | ||
| 3:54.5 | Herb Elliott | 6 August 1958 | Dublin | ||
| 3:54.4 | Peter Snell | 27 January 1962 | Wanganui | ||
| 3:54.1 | 3:54.04 | Peter Snell | 17 November 1964 | Auckland | |
| 3:53.6 | Michel Jazy | 9 June 1965 | Rennes | ||
| 3:51.3 | Jim Ryun | 17 July 1966 | Berkeley, Cal. | ||
| 3:51.1 | Jim Ryun | 23 June 1967 | Bakersfield, Cal. | ||
| 3:51.0 | Filbert Bayi | 17 May 1975 | Kingston | ||
| 3:49.4 | John Walker | 12 August 1975 | Gothenburg | ||
| 3:49.0 | 3:48.95 | Sebastian Coe | 17 July 1979 | Oslo | |
| 3:48.8 | Steve Ovett | 1 July 1980 | Oslo | ||
| 3:48.53 | Sebastian Coe | 19 August 1981 | Zürich | ||
| 3:48.40 | Steve Ovett | 26 August 1981 | Koblenz | ||
| 3:47.33 | Sebastian Coe | 28 August 1981 | Brussels | ||
| 3:46.32 | Steve Cram | 27 July 1985 | Oslo | ||
| 3:44.39 | Noureddine Morceli | 5 September 1993 | Rieti | ||
| 3:43.13 | Hicham El Guerrouj | 7 July 1999 | Rome |
The "Time" column indicates the ratified mark; the "Auto" column indicates a fully automatic time that was also recorded in the event when hand-timed marks were used for official records, or which was the basis for the official mark, rounded to the 10th of a second, depending on the rules then in place.
Records for the mile were rounded up to the nearest tenth of a second commencing January 1, 1957. Previously, records were rounded up to the nearest fifth of a second. Those rounded-up marks were: Cunningham's 4:06.8 ; Hägg's 4:06.2 ; Hägg's 4:01.4 ; Landy's 3:58.0. Landy's mark was not retroactively adjusted when the new rule came into effect. Auto times to the hundredth of a second were accepted by the IAAF for events up to and including 10,000 m beginning in 1981.
Men's Indoor
Men Indoor Pre-IAAF
Men Indoor IAAF era
The IAAF started to recognize indoor world records in 1987, with the then world's best time, Coghlan's 3:49.78, ratified as the inaugural record for the mile.| Time | Athlete | Nationality | Date | Venue |
| 3:49.78 | Eamonn Coghlan | February 27, 1983 | East Rutherford | |
| 3:48.45 | Hicham El Guerrouj | February 12, 1997 | Ghent | |
| 3:47.01 | Yomif Kejelcha | March 3, 2019 | Boston |
Women
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at: 26/01/1980 tillpos: 65.1
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at: 09/07/1982 tillpos: 54.24
at: 09/09/1982 tillpos: 52.32
at: 21/08/1985 tillpos: 50.13
at: 10/07/1989 tillpos: 46.83
at: 14/08/1996 tillpos: 37.68
Pre-IAAF
| Time | Athlete | Nationality | Date | Venue |
| 6:13.2 | Elizabeth Atkinson | 24 June 1921 | Manchester | |
| 5:27.5 | Ruth Christmas | 20 August 1932 | London | |
| 5:24.0 | Gladys Lunn | 1 June 1936 | Brentwood | |
| 5:23.0 | Gladys Lunn | 18 July 1936 | London | |
| 5:20.8 | Gladys Lunn | 8 May 1937 | Dudley | |
| 5:17.0 | Gladys Lunn | 7 August 1937 | London | |
| 5:15.3 | Evelyn Forster | 22 July 1939 | London | |
| 5:11.0 | Anne Oliver | 14 June 1952 | London | |
| 5:09.8 | Enid Harding | 4 June 1953 | London | |
| 5:08.0 | Anne Oliver | 12 September 1953 | Consett | |
| 5:02.6 | Diane Leather | 30 September 1953 | London | |
| 5:00.3 | Edith Treybal | 1 November 1953 | Timișoara | |
| 5:00.2 | Diane Leather | 26 May 1954 | Birmingham | |
| 4:59.6 | Diane Leather | 29 May 1954 | Birmingham | |
| 4:50.8 | Diane Leather | 24 May 1955 | London | |
| 4:45.0 | Diane Leather | 21 September 1955 | London | |
| 4:41.4 | Marise Chamberlain | 8 December 1962 | Perth | |
| 4:39.2 | Anne Smith | 13 May 1967 | London |
Women's IAAF era
The first world record in the mile for women was recognized by the International Amateur Athletics Federation, now known as the International Association of Athletics Federations, in 1967.To June 21, 2009, the IAAF has ratified 13 world records in the event.
| Time | Auto | Athlete | Nationality | Date | Venue |
| 4:37.0 | Anne Smith | 3 June 1967 | London | ||
| 4:36.8 | Maria Gommers | 14 June 1969 | Leicester | ||
| 4:35.3 | Ellen Tittel | 20 August 1971 | Sittard | ||
| 4:29.5 | Paola Pigni | 8 August 1973 | Viareggio | ||
| 4:23.8 | Natalia Mărășescu | 21 May 1977 | Bucharest | ||
| 4:22.1 | 4:22.09 | Natalia Mărășescu | 27 January 1979 | Auckland | |
| 4:21.7 | 4:21.68 | Mary Decker | 26 January 1980 | Auckland | |
| 4:20.89 | Lyudmila Veselkova | 12 September 1981 | Bologna | ||
| 4:18.08 | Mary Decker-Tabb | 9 July 1982 | Paris | ||
| 4:17.44 | Maricica Puică | 9 September 1982 | Rieti | ||
| 4:16.71 | Mary Decker-Slaney | 21 August 1985 | Zürich | ||
| 4:15.61 | Paula Ivan | 10 July 1989 | Nice | ||
| 4:12.56 | Svetlana Masterkova | 14 August 1996 | Zürich | ||
| 4:12.33 | Sifan Hassan | 12 July 2019 | Monaco |
The "Time" column indicates the ratified mark; the "Auto" column indicates a fully automatic time that was also recorded in the event when hand-timed marks were used for official records, or which was the basis for the official mark, rounded to the 10th of a second, depending on the rules then in place.
The IAAF recognized times to the hundredth of a second starting in 1981.
Decker ran 4:17.55 in Houston on 16 February 1980, and Natalya Artyomova ran 4:15.8 in Leningrad on 6 August 1984, but neither time was ratified by the IAAF.