A high school student broke a record that was held for nearly 60 years by running a mile at lightning speed.
Gary Martin took part in the Pennsylvania Catholic League Championship on Monday, 16 May, unaware he was set to make sporting history.
Taking to the track, the 17-year-old student was cheered on as he ran a full mile in under four minutes, crossing the finish line at precisely 3:57.98.
By making this time, Martin narrowly broke the high school record previously set in 1965 by former student Jim Ryun, who ran a mile in 3:58.03.
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Martin’s feat makes him the 14th American high school athlete to compete a sub-four-minute mile, as well as the first to hit this target without the help of an assisting pacer since Ryun’s 1960s record.
Speaking to CBS News about his achievement, Martin, a senior at Archbishop Wood High School, said it was exciting to see so many people cheering him on.
“You usually don't get that type of environment at a small, local meet," he told the outlet. "But to have everyone going crazy over what I had just done was really cool.
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“To my teammates coming up and hugging me, my coach hugging me, and other kids from other schools coming up and patting me on the back, it was cool.”
Martin also shared a clip of the moment on Twitter, writing: “Here’s a video of the last 45 seconds or so of the mile from Saturday for anyone who’s asked. Thanks to the person who decided to record it and got a good shot.”
Dozens of people have congratulated the athlete online, including this person who said, “Congrats – all your hard work has paid off.”
Another wrote, “AMAZING is an understatement,” while a third commented, “Major respect for that runner!”
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Even his school got involved, writing on their Twitter page, “Congratulations to Wood’s very own Gary Martin on running his mile in 3:57:98 at the PCL Track & Field Championship!!! Gary, you have worked so hard to achieve this goal, your Viking family couldn’t be prouder.”
As for what’s next, it looks like Martin’s got a bright future ahead, expressing his dream of one day going to the Olympics.
"I'd like to think that it's not crazy for me to say that it's a dream now," he told CBS News. "Obviously, I'm still a long ways away and have some work to do, but I'm confident in my ability. I have the dream, now I just have to put the work in and chase it."
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Daisy Phillipson