On 14 July 1998, in the Stadio Olimpico, Rome, Hicham El Guerrouj ran 3:26.00 for the 1500 metres. That evening, a world record fell — a mark that still stands and has outlasted every other men’s metric mile record in history.
A clean break at 1400 metres
Paced by Robert Kibet and William Tanui, the 23-year-old Moroccan reached the bell in perfect position. He unleashed his kick with 100 metres remaining, pulling clear on the back straight while the chasing Kenyan trio of Laban Rotich, John Kibowen and Daniel Komen trailed some 30 metres behind.
Steve Ovett, calling the race live, captured the moment. “He’s getting faster and faster down the home straight. The world record is 3:27:37. He’s going to blitz it,” he said, then counted the clock. “3:26:00! My word, what a performance here!”
Shattering Morceli’s mark
El Guerrouj sliced 1.37 seconds off the standard Algerian Noureddine Morceli had held for two days shy of three years. The run earned him a Golden League world record bonus and confirmed his ascent after his first outdoor world title in Athens a year earlier.
Only El Guerrouj himself has approached the time since, clocking 3:26.12 in Brussels three years later. Three other men have broken the 3:27 barrier; none have repeated the feat multiple times as he did.
The making of an untouchable number
The performance capped a run of dominance that began after his painful fall in the 1996 Olympic final. After that Atlanta evening, King Hassan II told him, “You are a champion in the eyes of Moroccan people. Forget about this. You must persevere.” Over the next four years, El Guerrouj lost just once.
A year later he returned to the same Rome track and broke the mile world record too. He retired undefeated in his signature event, leaving a number that has resisted every charge for more than a quarter of a century.
