Britain's Roger Bannister was the first man to go under four minutes in May 1954, with his compatriot Diane Leather the first woman to break five minutes in the same month. The current men's record is the 3:43.13 set by Hicham El Guerrouj in 1999.

Faith Kipyegon will attempt to become the first woman to break four minutes in the mile this summer. The 31-year-old Kenyan, who holds world records in the mile and 1500 meters, will make the attempt on June 26 at the Stade Charléty in Paris, France, according to a press release from Kipyegon’s sponsor, Nike.

Attempts to break the four-minute barrier in the mile run have been slower in women's races. Before Kipyegon, Romanian Paula Ivan came closest with a time of 4:15.61. It took 30 years for that time to be lowered by Sifan Hassan, who recorded a time of 4:12.33 in 2019, before Kenya's Kipyegon set the 4:07.64 record.