The Wanamaker Mile is an indoor mile race (1,609.344 m) for elite middle distance runners held annually at the Millrose Games in New York City. Alongside Oslo's Dream Mile and Eugene's Bowerman Mile, the Wanamaker Mile is among the world's premier mile races. It is the signature and concluding event of the Millrose Games, and is named in honor of department store owner Rodman Wanamaker.
The race is a tradition for Irish runners: past Irish winners include Ronnie Delany (1956–1959), Eamonn Coghlan (1977, '79–'81, '83, '85 and '87), Marcus O'Sullivan (1986, '88–'90 and 1992), Niall Bruton (1994 and 1996), and Mark Carroll (2000). Ray Flynn, the Irish record holder in the mile and the current meeting director of the Millrose Games, has also competed in the Wanamaker Mile.
It was at the Millrose Games that Coghlan earned the nickname "Chairman of the Boards" (from the surface of the track being made of wooden boards). O'Sullivan has run 11 sub-four-minute miles in the Wanamaker.
The Wanamaker Mile has been won by over 40 different men, including Glenn Cunningham, Kip Keino, Tony Waldrop, Filbert Bayi, Steve Scott, Noureddine Morceli, Bernard Lagat, Yared Nuguse, Matthew Centrowitz Jr., Dave Patrick, Marcus O'Sullivan, Ron Delany, and Eamonn Coghlan.
History The Millrose Games were first held in a local armory in 1908, being organized by the employees of Wanamaker's New York City department store. The employees formed the recreational Millrose Athletic Association. "Millrose" was the name of the country home of Rodman Wanamaker in Cheltenham, Pennsylvania. When this local armory overflowed, the Millrose Games were moved to Madison Square Garden in 1914.
In 1915, the "Wanamaker 2 Mile Race" was held. From 1916 to 1925, the games' signature event was the 1.5 mile run. In 1925, the last edition of the "Wanamaker 1.5 Mile Race" was won by "Flying Finn" Paavo Nurmi, the nine-time Olympic gold medalist from Finland. In 1926, the race was shortened to one mile, and thus the Wanamaker Mile was born. The winner of the 1926 race was James J. Connolly, who had represented the United States at the 1920 and 1924 Olympics.
In the 1929 Wanamaker, American athlete Ray Conger became the first and only athlete to defeat and upset "Flying Finn" Paavo Nurmi in the mile. Although Conger was modest about his win, he would be known as "the man who beat Nurmi" for decades.
The first time the Wanamaker Mile was won in a sub-four minute time was by American athlete Tony Waldrop in 1974, in 3:59.7. The first women's race for the Wanamaker Mile was held in 1982, and was won by Mary Decker.
The Wanamaker Mile was once held every year at 10:00 p.m., a tradition started by the legendary sports announcer Ted Husing. Husing would broadcast the race live on radio during the nightly news. In 2002, the mile was moved to 9 p.m. to accommodate television coverage.
Madison Square Garden, which possessed a 146-meter track, was the venue for the race from 1914 until 2012, when it was moved to The Armory in Upper Manhattan, a much faster 200-meter mondo track. Accompanying this venue change, the Millrose Games and therefore the Wanamaker Mile shifted from a Friday evening format to an all-day Saturday format. By 2018, the start time had been moved to late afternoon when it was nationally televised live on NBC. In the 2019 Wanamaker Mile, Yomif Kejelcha won in 3:48.46 to miss Hicham El Guerrouj's then-world record of 3:48.45 by just one hundredth of a second. Kejelcha would later go on to break El Guerrouj's indoor mile world record by almost 1.5 seconds in Boston, with a time of 3:47.01.
In the 2023 Wanamaker Mile, Yared Nuguse ran an American record time of 3:47.38, missing Kejelcha's 3:47.01 mark by .37 seconds. In 2024, Nuguse defended his Wanamaker Mile title, in a time of 3:47.83, but did not run faster than he did in 2023.
In the 2025 Wanamaker Mile, Nuguse broke Kejelcha's world record of 3:47.01, clocking a new world record of 3:46.63. Finishing behind Nuguse was Hobbs Kessler in 3:46.90, also under the previous record. Cameron Myers set a world under-20 record and Australian record of 3:47.48, while Azeddine Habz set a French record of 3:47.56, and Andrew Coscoran set an Irish record of 3:49.26. Nuguse's world record lasted for 5 days, until Jakob Ingebrigtsen ran 3:45.14 in Liévin, France.
Sponsors The sponsors of the Wanamaker Mile have varied over the years, with the NYRR often supporting the race. In 2023, the Rudin family sponsored the event in the 115th Millrose Games.
Records In 2010, Bernard Lagat surpassed Eamonn Coghlan's record of seven Wanamaker Mile victories with his eighth victory. Prior to Coghlan, Glenn Cunningham was among the first men to dominate the event, winning six out of seven Wanamaker Miles from 1933 to 1939.
Mary Decker, Doina Melinte and Regina Jacobs are all tied for most Wanamaker victories on the women's side, with three wins each.
The current men's event record in the Wanamaker Mile is held by American athlete Yared Nuguse, who ran a world record time of 3:46.63 in the 2025 Wanamaker Mile, improving Yomif Kejelcha's 2019 indoor mile world record of 3:47.01 by 0.38 seconds.
The current women's event record in the Wanamaker Mile was set in 2024 by American athlete Elinor Purrier, with a time of 4:16.41, also the American record. Purrier had eclipsed her previous 2020 American record time of 4:16.85 during this race.
Annual champions Key:
Meet record (bolded)1500 meter race (women only)
Men Year Athlete Country TimeArmory Era2026Cam Myers3:47.572025Yared Nuguse3:46.632024Yared Nuguse3:47.832023Yared Nuguse3:47.382022Ollie Hoare3:50.832021Meet cancelled due to COVID-192020Chris O'Hare3:55.612019Yomif Kejelcha3:48.462018Chris O'Hare3:54.142017Eric Jenkins3:53.232016Matt Centrowitz Jr.3:50.632015Matt Centrowitz Jr.3:51.352014Will Leer3:52.472013Lopez Lomong3:51.212012Matt Centrowitz Jr.3:53.92Madison Square Garden Era2011Deresse Mekonnen3:58.58 2010Bernard Lagat3:56.342009Bernard Lagat3:58.442008Bernard Lagat3:57.912007Bernard Lagat3:54.262006Bernard Lagat3:56.852005Bernard Lagat3:52.87 2004Hudson De Souza4:02.93 2003Bernard Lagat4:00.36 2002Laban Rotich3:57.042001Bernard Lagat3:58.26 2000Mark Carroll3:58.191999William Tanui3:59.241998Laban Rotich3:55.691997Isaac Viciosa3:59.341996Niall Bruton4:00.58 1995Graham Hood3:57.081994Niall Bruton3:58.711993Noureddine Morceli3:55.061992Marcus O’Sullivan4:00.65 1991Noureddine Morceli3:53.501990Marcus O’Sullivan3:59.351989Marcus O’Sullivan3:54.271988Marcus O’Sullivan3:56.891987Eamonn Coghlan3:55.91 1986Marcus O'Sullivan3:56.051985Eamonn Coghlan3:53.821984Steve Scott3:59.381983Eamonn Coghlan3:54.401982Steve Scott3:55.371981Eamonn Coghlan3:53.01980Eamonn Coghlan3:58.21979Eamonn Coghlan3:55.01978Dick Buerkle3.58.41977Eamonn Coghlan4.00.21976Paul Cummings3.57.61975Filbert Bayi3:59.31974Tony Waldrop3:59.71973Henryk Szordykowski4:04.41972John Mason4:03.21971Marty Liquori4:00.61970Marty Liquori4:02.61969Marty Liquori4:00.81968Preston Davis4:03.91967Dave Patrick4:03.71966Kipchoge Keino4:03.91965John Whetton4:05.41964Tom O'Hara4:00.61963Tom O'Hara4:01.51962Peter Close4:08.61961Istvan Rozsavolgyi4:06.01960James Grelle4:06.41959Ron Delany4:06.51958Ron Delany4:04.61957Ron Delany4:06.71956Ron Delany4:09.51955Gunnar Nielsen4:03.61954Josy Barthel4:07.51953Fred Dwyer4:08.21952Don A. Gehrmann4:11.21951Don A. Gehrmann4:07.51950Don A. Gehrmann4:09.31949Don A. Gehrmann4:09.51948Gilbert Dodds4:05.31947Gilbert Dodds4:09.21946Leslie MacMitchell4:19.01945James Rafferty4:13.11944Gilbert Dodds4:10.61943Earl Mitchell4:08.61942Leslie MacMitchell4:11.31941Walter J. Mehl4:13.61940Charles H. Fenske4:07.41939Glenn Cunningham4:13.01938Glenn Cunningham4:11.01937Glenn Cunningham4:14.41936Joseph R. Mangan4:11.01935Glenn Cunningham4:11.01934Glenn Cunningham4:11.21933Glenn Cunningham4:13.01932Gene Venzke4:11.21931Ray Conger4:13.61930Ray Conger4:21.81929Ray Conger4:17.41928Lloyd Hahn4:18.61927Lloyd Hahn4:15.61926James J. Connolly4:17.2Wanamaker 1.5-Mile1925Paavo Nurmi6:39.41924Joie W. Ray6:48.81923Joie W. Ray6:41.81922Joie W. Ray6:42.81921Harold C. Cutbill6:55.61920Joie W. Ray6:52.21919Joie W. Ray6:51.01918Joie W. Ray6:57.81917Joie W. Ray6:45.01916John W. Overton6:53.0Wanamaker 2-Mile1915Sydney Leslie9:20
Women Year Athlete Country TimeArmory Era2026Nikki Hiltz4:19.642025Georgia Bell4:23.252024Elinor St. Pierre4:16.412023Laura Muir4:20.152022Elinor St. Pierre4:19.302021Meet cancelled due to COVID-192020Elinor Purrier4:16.852019Konstanze Klosterhalfen4:19.982018Colleen Quigley4:30.052017Sifan Hassan4:19.892016Shannon Rowbury4:24.392015Shannon Rowbury4:24.322014Mary Cain4:27.732013Sheila Reid4:27.022012Jenny Simpson4:07.27Madison Square Garden Era2011Sara Hall4:15.352010Hannah England4:31.482009Kara Goucher4:33.192008Kara Goucher4:36.032007Not Held2006Carmen Douma-Hussar4:35.642005Carmen Douma-Hussar4:32.472004Carmen Douma-Hussar4:16.782003Elena Iagar4:36.082002Regina Jacobs4:34.602001Regina Jacobs4:42.152000Regina Jacobs4:24.041999Regina Jacobs4:31.651998Suzy Hamilton4:30.911997Mary Decker4:26.671996Kathy Franey4:36.461995Angela Chalmers4:31.661994Hassiba Boulmerka4:30.011993Shelly Steely4:32.271992Doina Melinte4:30.031991Doina Melinte4:33.811990Doina Melinte4:31.401989Paula Ivan4:23.721988Doina Melinte4:21.451987Lynn Williams4:36.711986Wendy Sly4:28.581985Mary Decker4:22.101984Cindy Bremser4:35.811983Mary Decker4:25.271982Mary Decker4:21.471981Maggie Keyes4:14.91980Mary Decker4:00.81979Francie Larrieu4:15.01978Jan Merrill4:19.71977Francie Larrieu4:15.81976Jan Merrill4:15.2
See also Mile run world record progression Four-minute mile Dicksonpokalen Dream Mile Emsley Carr Mile Bowerman Mile
References
External links Wanamaker Mile Champions List List of All Wanamaker Mile Finishers (1926-2022) The Wanamaker Mile: More than 50 years of History