<P> In the sport of athletics, a four - minute mile means completing a mile run (1,760 yards, or 1,609.344 metres) in less than four minutes . It was first achieved in 1954 by Roger Bannister in 3: 59.4 . The "four - minute barrier" has since been broken by over 1,400 male athletes, and is now the standard of all male professional middle distance runners . In the last 50 years the mile record has been lowered by almost 17 seconds, and currently stands at 3: 43.13 . Running a mile in four minutes translates to a speed of 15 miles per hour (24.14 km / h, or 2: 29.13 per kilometre, or 14.91 seconds per 100 metres). It also equals 22 feet per second (1,320 feet per minute). </P> <P> Breaking the four - minute barrier was first achieved on 6 May 1954 at Oxford University's Iffley Road Track, by Englishman Roger Bannister, with the help of fellow - runners Chris Chataway and Chris Brasher as pacemakers . </P>

The first man to run a mile in 4 minutes