Yomif Kejelcha’s 3:47.01 clocking at the Bruce Lehane Invitational in Boston has been ratified as the world indoor mile record.
Before that race on 3 March, the 21-year-old Ethiopian had narrowly missed out on breaking world indoor records in his two previous races. He finished just 0.01 outside the world indoor mile record at the Millrose Games, clocking 3:48.46, and was then beaten to the world indoor 1500m record in Birmingham one week later when compatriot Samuel Tefera won in 3:31.04.
But in Boston, Yomif finally succeeded in getting his name into the record books and broke the previous mark of 3:48.45 that had been set by Hicham El Guerrouj in Gent on 12 February 1997.
Yomif passed through the 1500m checkpoint in 3:31.25, the third-fastest indoor clocking in history for that distance, and covered the final 400m in 56.26. His winning time of 3:47.01 is the fastest mile ever recorded by an Ethiopian athlete, indoors or out.
Yomif sought redemption from two previous failed pursuits of El Guerrouj records earlier in the season, and with the help of consistent splits he got it and then some; not only did his time crush the indoor world record, but Yomif’s 3:47.01 is the fastest mile period since Alan Webb’s 3:46.91 outdoor American record in 2007.