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 Sir Roger Bannister, the first person to run a mile in under four minutes, has died at the age of 88. 
 
 His time of three minutes 59.4 seconds, set at Iffley Road sports ground in Oxford on 6 May 1954, stood as a record for just 46 days but his place in athletics history was assured. 
 
 Bannister also won gold over the same distance at the 1954 Commonwealth Games and later became a leading neurologist. 
 
 He was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2011. 
 
 A statement from his family said: "Sir Roger Bannister, died peacefully in Oxford on 3 March, aged 88, surrounded by his family who were as loved by him, as he was loved by them. 
 
 "He banked his treasure in the hearts of his friends." 
 
 IAAF president Lord Coe, who ran a mile world record of 3:47.33 in 1981, said: "This is a day of intense sadness both for our nation and for all of us in athletics. 
 
 "There is not a single athlete of my generation who was not inspired by Roger and his achievements both on and off the track." 
 
 Bannister viewed running as something to be done in his spare time away from the demands of his medical studies at the University of Oxford, but that did not prevent him reaching the biggest stages in the sport. 
 
 He was considered for the British team at the 1948 London Olympics - just two years after taking up running as a 17-year-old - but did earn a place in the team at the 1952 Games in Helsinki, where he set a new British record en route to fourth in the 1500 metres final. 
 
 Bannister, who used his medical knowledge to devise his own training regime and investigate the mechanical aspects of running, turned his sights on becoming the first person to run inside four minutes for the mile after the Olympics and twice went close to achieving his goal in 1953. 
 
 American Wes Santee and Australia's John Landy were also targeting the record when Bannister finally achieved the feat in the spring of 1954. 
 
 The organisers of the London Marathon paid tribute to Bannister with a picture of him alongside pacesetters Chris Chataway (right) and Chris Brasher when he broke the mile world record 
 
 Bannister was helped in his achievement by Sir Christopher Chataway - who beat Bannister to the inaugural BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award later that year - and Chris Brasher, who acted as pacesetters. 
 
 Brasher, who went on to co-found the London Marathon, died in 2003 after a short illness and Chataway died from cancer in 2014. 
 
 Australian John Landy bettered Bannister's record the following month with a time of 3:57.9. 
 
 The men's mark has tumbled over the years, with Britons Sebastian Coe, Steve Ovett and Steve Cram each holding the record at least once in the 1980s. 
 
 The current mile world record is held by Moroccan Hicham El Guerrouj, who ran a time of 3:43.13 seconds in Rome on 7 July 1999. 
 
 At the end of 1954, Bannister retired from athletics to pursue his medical studies full-time and later became a consultant neurologist. 
 
 Media playback is not supported on this device Archive: Bannister reflects on his famous achievement 
 
 He continued to run to keep fit until he broke his ankle in a car accident in 1975, the same year he was knighted. 
 
 He revealed he had the neurological disorder Parkinson's disease in a BBC interview in 2014. 
 
 "I have seen, and looked after, patients with so many neurological and other disorders that I am not surprised I have acquired an illness," he said at the time. 
 
 "It's in the nature of things, there's a gentle irony to it." ||||| Team GB snowboarder Ellie Soutter has died at the age of 18, the British Olympic Association has announced. 
 
 Soutter, “one of the country’s best up-and-coming snowboarders”, died on her 18th birthday on Wednesday. 
 
 Last year she claimed Team GB’s only medal at the European Youth Olympic Winter Festival in Erzurum, Turkey. 
 
 A Freeride and Boardercross specialist, she had just been selected for the British team for the Junior World Championships in New Zealand. 
 
 Sporting deaths 2018 19 show all Sporting deaths 2018 1/19 Tommy Lawrence, 77 Played over 300 times for Liverpool during 14 years as keeper and nicknamed 'the Flying Pig' (14 May 1940 - 9 January 2018) Getty 2/19 Cyrille Regis, 59 Former England international footballer who played at West Bromwich Albion and Coventry City among other clubs and was a pioneer for black footballers everywhere (9 February 1958 – 14 January 2018) Getty 3/19 Dan Gurney, 86 American Formula 1 and Le Mans winner and first man to spray champagne on the podium (13 April 1931 – 14 January 2018) Getty 4/19 Jimmy Armfield, 82 England 1966 World Cup winner and Blackpool legend who spent all 17 years of his playing career at the club (21 September 1935 – 22 January 2018) Getty 5/19 Jarrod Bannister, 33 Commonwealth Games gold medallist in 2010, double Olympian and Australian record holder in the javelin (3 October 1984 - 8 February 2018) Getty 6/19 Liam Miller, 36 Former Manchester United and Celtic midfielder died aged 36 following a short battle with pancreatic cancer (13 February 1981 - 9 February 2018) Getty 7/19 Scott Westgarth, 31 Died after beating Dec Spelman on points in Doncaster (25 February 2018) Getty 8/19 David Astori, 31 Italy international and Fiorentina captain passed away in his sleep as he prepared to face Udinese (7 January 1987 – 4 March 2018) Getty 9/19 Sir Roger Bannister, 88 The first man to run a mile in sub-four minutes and a Commonwealth Games gold medallist (23 March 1929 – 4 March 2018) Getty 10/19 Ray Wilkins, 61 Former England captain, who also played for Manchester United, Chelsea and others died of cardiac arrest (14 September 1956 - 4 April 2018) Getty 11/19 Johnny Valiant, 71 Former WWE star (real name Thomas Sullivan) was killed after being hit by a truck (25 November 1946 - 4 April 2018) WWE 12/19 Eric Bristow, 60 Former BDO and PDC world champion passed away after collapsing at a darts event in Liverpool (25 April 1957 - 5 April 2018) Getty 13/19 Jlloyd Samuel, 37 Former Aston Villa, Bolton Wanderers and England under-21 left back died in a car accident after taking his daughter to school (29 March 1981 - 15 May 2018) Getty 14/19 Ray Wilson, 83 Former Huddersfield Town, Everton and England footballer, who won the 1966 World Cup, died after suffering from Alzheimer's Disease (17 December 1934-16 May 2018) Getty 15/19 Dan Kneen, 30 Isle of Man TT rider suffered a fatal accident in practice for the 2018 event (26 June 1987 - 30 May 2018) Tyco BMW 16/19 Adam Lyon, 26 Adam Lyon suffered a fatal accident at the 2018 Isle of Man TT, aged 26 www.iomtt.com 17/19 Leon White, 63 Vader, real name Leon White, died due to heart failure after being diagnosed with pneumonia (14 May 1955-18 June 2018) WWE 18/19 William Dunlop, 31 Irish road racer was killed in a crash during practice for the Skerries 100 (23 July 1985 - 07 July 2018) Getty 19/19 James Cowton, 26 Yorkshire road racer killed in a crash during the Southern 100 on the Isle of Man Facebook/James Cowton 1/19 Tommy Lawrence, 77 Played over 300 times for Liverpool during 14 years as keeper and nicknamed 'the Flying Pig' (14 May 1940 - 9 January 2018) Getty 2/19 Cyrille Regis, 59 Former England international footballer who played at West Bromwich Albion and Coventry City among other clubs and was a pioneer for black footballers everywhere (9 February 1958 – 14 January 2018) Getty 3/19 Dan Gurney, 86 American Formula 1 and Le Mans winner and first man to spray champagne on the podium (13 April 1931 – 14 January 2018) Getty 4/19 Jimmy Armfield, 82 England 1966 World Cup winner and Blackpool legend who spent all 17 years of his playing career at the club (21 September 1935 – 22 January 2018) Getty 5/19 Jarrod Bannister, 33 Commonwealth Games gold medallist in 2010, double Olympian and Australian record holder in the javelin (3 October 1984 - 8 February 2018) Getty 6/19 Liam Miller, 36 Former Manchester United and Celtic midfielder died aged 36 following a short battle with pancreatic cancer (13 February 1981 - 9 February 2018) Getty 7/19 Scott Westgarth, 31 Died after beating Dec Spelman on points in Doncaster (25 February 2018) Getty 8/19 David Astori, 31 Italy international and Fiorentina captain passed away in his sleep as he prepared to face Udinese (7 January 1987 – 4 March 2018) Getty 9/19 Sir Roger Bannister, 88 The first man to run a mile in sub-four minutes and a Commonwealth Games gold medallist (23 March 1929 – 4 March 2018) Getty 10/19 Ray Wilkins, 61 Former England captain, who also played for Manchester United, Chelsea and others died of cardiac arrest (14 September 1956 - 4 April 2018) Getty 11/19 Johnny Valiant, 71 Former WWE star (real name Thomas Sullivan) was killed after being hit by a truck (25 November 1946 - 4 April 2018) WWE 12/19 Eric Bristow, 60 Former BDO and PDC world champion passed away after collapsing at a darts event in Liverpool (25 April 1957 - 5 April 2018) Getty 13/19 Jlloyd Samuel, 37 Former Aston Villa, Bolton Wanderers and England under-21 left back died in a car accident after taking his daughter to school (29 March 1981 - 15 May 2018) Getty 14/19 Ray Wilson, 83 Former Huddersfield Town, Everton and England footballer, who won the 1966 World Cup, died after suffering from Alzheimer's Disease (17 December 1934-16 May 2018) Getty 15/19 Dan Kneen, 30 Isle of Man TT rider suffered a fatal accident in practice for the 2018 event (26 June 1987 - 30 May 2018) Tyco BMW 16/19 Adam Lyon, 26 Adam Lyon suffered a fatal accident at the 2018 Isle of Man TT, aged 26 www.iomtt.com 17/19 Leon White, 63 Vader, real name Leon White, died due to heart failure after being diagnosed with pneumonia (14 May 1955-18 June 2018) WWE 18/19 William Dunlop, 31 Irish road racer was killed in a crash during practice for the Skerries 100 (23 July 1985 - 07 July 2018) Getty 19/19 James Cowton, 26 Yorkshire road racer killed in a crash during the Southern 100 on the Isle of Man Facebook/James Cowton 
 
 She had been training abroad in recent weeks but was back home in the UK when she died. 
 
 “Ellie was an incredibly popular and well liked member of the team,” British Olympic Association chair Hugh Robertson and BOA Athlete Commission chair Ben Hawes said in a joint statement. 
 
 “Our thoughts are with her family and friends at this sad time.” 
 
 British Ski and Snowboard meanwhile said in a statement: “Ellie was one of the country's best up-and-coming snowboarders, competing in both snowboard cross and freeride”. 
 
 The statement added that Soutter had been due to return to competition next month. 
 
 Her father, Tony Soutter, said he was “so proud of the beautiful young woman she had turned into”. 
 
 This cruel world took my soulmate and "Bessie" from me yesterday on her 18th birthday,” he posted on Facebook. 
 
 “I was so proud of the beautiful young woman she had turned into. Ellie I will miss you more than you could have ever imagined. Rest in peace you little Champion!” 
 
 Soutter, who grew up in Surrey before moving to the Alps, was due to return to snowboard cross competition next month. 
 
 She was an inaugural member of the British Europa Cup snowboard cross programme, and had been tipped to win a place in the Team GB squad for the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. 
 
 Her official website described going to the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing as her “ultimate ambition”, while listing her as an ambassador for the Les Gets Ski Station in the French Alps. 
 
 No further details have been given about her death at this time. 
 
 For confidential support call Samaritans on 116 123. 
 
 Follow the Independent Sport on Instagram here, for all of the best images, videos and stories from around the sporting world. ||||| “What’s the equivalent of the four-minute mile for women?” The question was casually thrown out in a group of about ten sports-minded women, a mix of athletes and business leaders. We were all gathered around a big open table inside Oiselle headquarters in Seattle. There was no immediate answer, and the question lingered awkwardly in the air. 
 
 
 
 “4:40?” Someone said. “4:40 or 4:30?” 
 
 
 
 Another long pause. “4:30, definitely 4:30.” 
 
 
 
 There were a few nods, but the long pause and the unfamiliarity with this number, 4:30, tinged the air with sadness. Here we were, a group of avid runners, some with athletic careers spanning more than two decades, including a Division 1 runner and several post-collegiate athletes, and yet the question and the answer felt foreign. How are our own benchmarks so unfamiliar? 
 
 
 
 On the men’s side, the milestones are easy to call up, featuring names you’ve heard hundreds of times: Roger Bannister, the four-minute mile; the life and death of Steve Prefontaine; the “World’s Fastest Man” and its parade of kings—Lewis, Johnson, Bolt. 
 
 
 
 It’s not that the women’s side of the sport hasn’t had fearless protagonists and watershed moments. There’s Wilma Rudolph, the iconic sprinter of the 1950s and ’60s who became the first American woman to win three Olympic golds in track and field. There’s Joan Benoit-Samuelson, the first ever women’s Olympic marathon champion. And many more. But their stories are less well-known outside the insular running world. And when you look closer at the dominant narratives for female athletes, it becomes clear that many are not focused on a woman’s heroic talent or strength but center more around the simple concept of inclusion. 
 
 In 1967, Kathrine Switzer became the first registered woman to run the Boston Marathon. Her finish time (4 hours and 20 minutes) is infrequently cited; it’s not considered the point. Few people realize that Switzer went on to run 2:51 at the New York City Marathon in 1975, making her the third-fastest American woman marathoner at the time. Instead, the picture of the race director attempting to physically remove her from the course is one of the most iconic images of a female athlete. 
 
 
 
 In 1972, the passage of Title IX made it illegal to discriminate against female participation in sports at federally funded schools. And it’s often Title IX—rather an individual or her athletic achievements—that’s cited to celebrate progress for women in sports. Title IX was pivotal, but isn’t it reasonable to ask for more? Haven’t we earned the right to have athletic traditions and narratives that go beyond simply being allowed to participate? 
 
 
 
 The predictable counterpoint to all of this is that the dearth of women’s milestones and tradition is a result of our relatively recent entry into competitive sports—we’ve been sending large numbers of women through the college sports system only for about 45 years. But unfortunately, the tradition of nontradition marches on. 
 
 
 
 This spring, Nike made its attempt to break the two-hour barrier in the marathon, Breaking2, with no female equivalent in sight. The men’s goal is not to be discounted. It’s so ambitious that Nike built a special shoe, recruited world-class pacers, and guided the lead athlete, Eliud Kipchoge, with a laser pointer through every step. The company then poured millions of dollars into the creation of a moment—and an incredible moment it was. People from all over the world watched the live broadcast and followed it on social media. 
 
 
 
 But where is the women’s Breaking2? Was it never even considered because, like the four-minute mile, we lack a goal with numeric roundness? Or was it because the company—and the industry itself—lacks the necessary interest and creativity to define what the equivalent mark would be for women? (The world record progression suggests that a sub-2:12 women’s marathon, three minutes faster than Paula Radcliffe’s world record of 2:15, is the number to chase. Though others have argued that Radcliffe’s time may be even closer to the women’s equivalent of a sub-two-hour performance.) 
 
 Round numbers are nice, but women’s participation in sports is about more than that. Tradition is a result of both cultural reverence and the way we tell stories about female athletes. This means sharing those moments with a broader audience so we understand the significance of the feat. For example, Emma Coburn’s recent gold medal at the IAAF World Championships was one of the most iconic, exciting races in recent running history, for men or women. Don’t take my word for it. Watch it. 
 
 
 
 Regardless of the sport, milestones and lore give sports fans and participants something to look toward, celebrate, talk about, and even shoot for. 
 
 
 
 But traditions are also an investment that must compound over time. After all, it’s easy to celebrate a single moment—like Joan Benoit’s winning of the Olympic marathon. But we must continue to cherish its value, emphasize the tradition it started, and at the same time be on the lookout for what’s next. 
 
 
 
 So, as our team pondered the women’s equivalent for the four-minute mile, we concluded with a directive: We would put a stake in the ground for the women’s mile. We would add our voices to a nascent group that was already talking about sub-4:30. (Bring Back the Mile, a website and community that aims to reestablish the mile as a preeminent distance in the United States, has done an excellent job of tracking the American women who have broken 4:30.) The sub-4:30 club is a rarefied group—even more so than the sub-four-minute milers, a mark that almost 500 American men have achieved. Only 71 American women have broken 4:30 (including former Oiselle athletes Kate Grace, Lauren Penney, and Amanda Winslow). 
 
 The 4:30 mile. We will shout it from the rooftops, drop it into casual conversations, and speak of the women who break it with reverence. Because as it turns out, if we want someone to be a household name, we might have to build the houses. 
 
 Sally Bergesen (@oiselle_sally) is the founder and CEO of Oiselle, a Seattle-based athletic apparel company and athlete sponsor by and for women.
– Britain's Roger Bannister, the first runner to break the 4-minute barrier in the mile, has died at age 88. Bannister's family said in a statement that he died peacefully on Saturday in Oxford. On a windy late afternoon in Oxford on May 6, 1954, Bannister ran four laps on a cinder track in 3 minutes, 59.4 seconds to crack the mythical 4-minute mile—a feat many had thought humanly impossible, reports the AP. "There is not a single athlete of my generation who was not inspired by Roger and his achievements both on and off the track," said Lord Sebastian Coe, the holder of a 3:47:33 mile he ran in 1981. Indeed, Bannister's record stood for just 46 days, but as the BBC puts it, "his place in athletics history was assured." A medical student who went on to have a long and distinguished career as a neurologist, Bannister viewed running as more of a hobby, but used his medical knowledge to inform his training and break down the mechanics of running. A few months after his record in 1954, Bannister beat Australian rival John Landy in the "Miracle Mile" or "Mile of the Century" at the Empire Games in Vancouver, British Columbia, as both men ran under 4 minutes.