By John Walshe
Last Sunday’s Ballyhooly 10km road race in North Cork saw a unique meeting between two people with historic miling connections.
The race is held in honour of local man John Hartnett and this year the 1972 Olympian (who now lives in the US) was on hand to start the event and present the prizes. During a chequered career at Villanova University, among Hartnett’s many achievements was breaking Ronnie Delany’s Irish mile record with a time of 3:54.7.
One of the competitors in Sunday’s low-key but friendly race was a young man from Notting Hill in London bearing the famous name of Bannister. Julius Bannister, grandson of Sir Roger Bannister, the first man to run a mile under four minutes, was on holiday in the village and in his first-ever road race won the junior prize in a time of 50:39.
Roger Bannister achieved immortality on May 6th, 1954, when he ran the mile in 3:59.4 at the Iffley Road track in Oxford – 20 years later John Hartnett covered the same distance on the grass track of the Mardyke in 3:56.3 at the Cork City Sports.
That feat is portrayed in an iconic photograph that can be seen on the wall in the reception area of the Mardyke Arena Health & Leisure Centre in Cork.
Picture shows John Hartnett and Julius Bannister at the prize-giving in Ballyhooly.
PS: Thanks John!
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