Gary Martin, a high school student in suburban Philadelphia, has broken a 57-year-old record set by Jim Ryun, running the mile in less than 4 minutes. The Archbishop Wood senior hit the tape at an astonishing 3:57.98, and did so without the help of what’s known in track and field as a “rabbit” or pace-setter who runs ahead of the group to spur them to run faster. Martin is the 14th high schooler to break a 4-minute mile, according to Let’s Run website. Ryun, later a Republican politician, set the record for U.S. high school races at a 1965 Kansas track meet, and later went on to win the silver medal at the 1968 Olympics.
