Wanamaker Mile

The Wanamaker Mile is an indoor mile race held annually at the Millrose Games in New York City. It was named in honour of department store owner Rodman Wanamaker. The event was first held in 1926 inside Madison Square Garden, which was the venue for the race until 2012 when it was moved to the Armory in Upper Manhattan.

The race was held every year at 10:00 p.m. This was a tradition started by the legendary sports announcer Ted Husing. Husing would broadcast the race live during the nightly news. In 2002, the mile was moved to 9 p.m. to accommodate television coverage.

The race is also a tradition for Irish runners. Past Irish winners include Ronnie Delaney (1956-1959), Eamonn Coghlan (1977, '79-'81, '83, '85 and '87), Marcus O'Sullivan (1986, '88-'90, 1992 and 1996), Niall Bruton (1994), and Mark Carroll (2000).

It was at the Millrose Games where Coghlan earned the nickname, "Chairman of the Boards" (because the surface of the track was made of wooden boards). In addition O'Sullivan has run 11 sub-four-minute miles in the Wanamaker.

In 2010, Bernard Lagat surpassed Eamonn Coghlan's record of seven Wanamaker Mile victories with a record eighth victory.

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