John Landy

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John Landy ( John Michael Landy ; born April 12, 1930 in Melbourne ) is an Australian medium and long-distance runner who was active in the 1950s. He set a world record in the mile run and was the second person after Roger Bannister to cover an English mile (1,609 m) in less than four minutes. From 2001 to 2006 he was governor of the state of Victoria .

biography

Landy grew up in Melbourne , where he attended Memorial Grammar School in the Malvern neighborhood . He then spent a few years in Geelong , 75 km southwest of Melbourne , before returning to Melbourne to study agricultural science (graduated in 1954). While still a student, he represented Australia at the 1952 Olympic Games in Helsinki. There he recorded times of 3: 57.0 min and 14: 56.4 min over 1500 meters and 5000 meters , with which he did not make it into the finals. In the same year he had already taken part in state championships for the first time and took second place over 880 yards and one mile (1: 55.3 and 4: 13.8 min).

In the following years he won five championship titles:

  • 1953: 800 m (1: 53.6 min) and 1 mile (4: 04.2 min)
  • 1954: 1 mile (4: 05.6 min)
  • 1956: 1 mile (4: 04.2 min) and 3 miles (13: 42.2 min)

His year of success was 1954. His attempts to run the mile under 4 minutes in the early Australian season failed, so that Roger Bannister was afraid of being late for Landy, on May 6, 1954 with 3: 59.4 minutes over the mile in Oxford as the first runner on earth to break the four-minute sound barrier in a race specially arranged for him. Landy replaced him six weeks later in Turku with a performance of 3: 58.0 min as the world record holder . Since he was also stopped at the 1,500 meter mark with 3: 41.8 min, the two-week-old world record set by the American Wes Santee (3: 42.8 min) was also a thing of the past.

Bannister overtakes Landy (right), bronze statue in Vancouver at the intersection of East Hastings Street and Renfrew Street

The duel Landy against Bannister at the British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Vancouver was eagerly awaited. Millions of sports fans who followed the event on radio and television witnessed a competition that went down in history as the "race of the century" in August 1954. Only Bannister was able to follow Landy, who had already taken the lead in the first lap. The race reached its dramatic climax when Landy looked back over his left shoulder on the last corner and Bannister passed him on the right at the same time. The Briton won in 3: 58.8 minutes, and Landy had to be content with the silver medal, although he stayed under four minutes for the second time in his life with 3: 59.6 minutes.

In his second Olympic participation in the 1500 meter run of the 1956 Games in his native Melbourne, Landy won over 1500 meters in 3: 42.0 minutes behind the Irish Ron Delany (gold in 3: 41.2 minutes) and Klaus Richtzenhain from the GDR ( Silver in also 3: 42.0 min) the bronze medal. At these games, Landy was also given the honor of taking the Olympic oath on behalf of all athletes.

However, Landy became famous primarily for his sporting fairness. At the national championships in 1956 in Melbourne's Olympic Park, Ron Clarke fell as a result of a bump in the third round of the mile race. The uninvolved Landy stopped to help him get back on his feet. Then he caught up with the field, which had meanwhile been far behind, took the lead and finally crossed the finish line first (Clarke was fifth). The race is still one of the great moments in Australian sports history.

John Landy received several awards:

Landy worked for ICI (now ORICA ltd.), A company active in the chemical industry. He also wrote two science books and made a name for himself through lecturing. From January 1, 2001 to April 7, 2006, he served as Governor of Victoria .

He has been married to Lynne Landy since 1971. The couple have two children.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Arnd Krüger (2006). Training Theory and Why Roger Bannister was the First Four Minute Miler, in: Sport in History 26, 2, 305-324 (ISSN 1746-0271).
  2. ↑ YouTube : Bannister Landy Miracle Mile 1954 (6:50 min; discontinued December 7, 2008)
  3. ↑ The Governor of Victoria: Biographical Notes: John Landy ( Memento of the original from August 10, 2002 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.governor.vic.gov.au
personal data
SURNAME Landy, John
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Landy, John Michael
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Australian middle distance runner
DATE OF BIRTH April 12, 1930
PLACE OF BIRTH Melbourne