Updated March 04, 2018 23:41:50

Photo: Roger Bannister hits the tape to break the four-minute mile in Oxford, England. (AP)

British athlete Roger Bannister, the first man to run a mile in under four minutes, has died aged 88.

Bannister became the first man to break the four-minute mile when he clocked three minutes 59.4 seconds at a sports ground in Oxford on May 6, 1954.

The Briton, who also set a British record on his way to the 1500m final at the 1952 Olympics in Helsinki, was helped by pacesetters Christopher Chataway and Chris Brasher during his record-breaking run.

Australian John Landy surpassed Bannister's record just a month later with a time of 3:57.9.

Bannister also won gold at the Commonwealth Games later that year before retiring from athletics to pursue medical studies full-time. He became a neurologist.

British Prime Minister Theresa May led the tributes to the former athlete.

The current mile record was set by Moroccan Hicham El Guerrouj, who set a time of 3:43.13 in Rome on July 7 1999.

Bannister was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2011.

Photo: Roger Bannister retired from athletics to become a neurologist. (AP: Sang Tan)

Reuters

Topics: athletics, sport, england

First posted March 04, 2018 23:29:48