Billy Mills Wins 10K Gold, 48th Anniversary

 

Today, Sunday October 14th, marks the 48th Anniversary of the greatest finish in American running history.  Billy Mills won the 10,000 Meter Run at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo with a 28:24.4, an Olympic Record at the time.  His story was documented in the movie Running Brave, a staple in any runner's movie library.

I watched this movie for the first time at cross country camp at Lindsey Wilson College in 1994 before my junior year.  In the days before Amazon, movies like that had to be special-ordered through a store.  My mom ended up ordering it and almost a year later it came in. It was so long that my Mom had forgotten she had ordered it.  I still watch it at least twice a year, 18 years later. 

Billy Mills was an unknown on the world scene with all the attention being on the favorite, Australian Ron Clarke.  Mills held on with the front runners never giving up. With less than a lap to go he was pushed out into the middle lanes of the track.  He fought back, passing everyone to win with less than 100 meters to go.  The raw footage is below. 

The Billy Mills story is one that would be enjoyable for anyone to watch not just runners, so check it out.