Four-minute mile man Sir Roger Bannister analyses men's 1,500m Olympic final

The first man to run a mile in four minutes, Sir Roger Bannister, has revealed his thoughts on last night's 1,500m final.

Bannister, who accomplished his achievement nearly 60 years ago in 1954, was impressed with Taoufik Makhloufi of Algeria, who broke clear of the field to win gold.

"I mean it was faster than the heats and semi-finals, which were very disappointingly bunched up," Bannister, 83, said.

"It was wonderful to see the move at 300 metres from the end (from Makhloufi), boldly fighting off any possibility of a threat. It was a great race. 3:34."

Bannister was in attendance with London 2012 chief Lord Sebastian Coe, who said: "Everything with Roger is very analytical. 'Why on earth has he done that?'"

Last month, Bannister carried the Olympic torch on the same Oxford track where he broke the four-minute barrier.

Written by
Pascal Lemesre