Hall Seems Set for a Mile Feat

The four-minute mile.

That phrase carries less weight at the world-class level than it did in 1954 when Roger Bannister of Britain became the first man in history to break four minutes in the mile. But it still has a magic ring at the high school level.

Just ask senior Ryan Hall of Big Bear High.

Hall, who will run in the men’s mile in the L.A. Invitational indoor track and field meet at the Sports Arena tonight, was the second-ranked high school miler in the nation last season when he ran 4:06.15. Then he had a superb cross-country season, finishing third in the national championships and breaking a 22-year-old course record at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut.

Yet he won’t mention the four-minute mile when asked about his goals for the outdoor season.

Mickey Hall, his father and coach at Big Bear, says Ryan probably will break four minutes this year.

Irv Ray, the coach at California Baptist College in Riverside, who has worked with the Halls for the last 15 months, seconds that opinion.

Steve Scott, who set the U.S. record of 3:47.69 in the mile in 1982, figures Hall can run 3:57 if he stays injury-free.

But the soft-spoken, devoutly religious Hall said he simply wants “to improve a lot over what I did last year,” when asked if he can become the fourth U.S. high school runner--and first since Marty Liquori in 1967--to break four minutes.

High school track fans are eagerly anticipating the coming season because Hall and senior Alan Webb of Reston, Va., each has a legitimate shot at the four-minute mile.

Webb, second in the national cross-country championships, set a national sophomore record of 4:06.94 in 1999 and ran 4:03.33 last year before an injury cut his season short.

Hall, who will run tonight against a field that includes Olympic bronze medalist Bernard Lagat of Kenya and U.S. Olympian Jason Pyrah, was regarded as an up-and-coming talent after running 4:22.97 in the 1,600 meters--about 15 yards short of a mile--as a sophomore in 1999. But he burst on the national scene last season when he lowered his best in the mile to 4:06.15 and ran 1,500 meters in 3:45.12, which converts to a mile in 4:03.13.

He also won the 3,200 meters in the state championships with a personal best of 8:55.12.

“He told me before the start of [his junior] season that he wanted to break 4:10,” Ray said. “I thought, ‘Wow. That’s a big improvement. That’s a lot to expect.’ ”

Hall ran up to 80 miles a week last summer, most of it at an elevation of 7,000 feet.

“I’m willing to do whatever it takes to get to where I want to go,” Hall said. “If I need to run 150 miles a week at some point in my career, I’ll do that.”

That attitude is Hall’s greatest asset, according to Scott, who trained under Ray for several years at the end of his career.

“He’s got all the ingredients to be a great runner,” Scott said. “Some guys have two or three or four of the ingredients, but he has them all.”

Ray said Hall’s active lifestyle while growing up in the mountains laid a great foundation for running.

“He’s like the Kenyans in that way,” Ray said. “He’s spent most of his life living at altitude. And he’s been active, whether it was playing baseball, football or basketball or riding a bike or whatever.

“You can tell him something that he needs to work on in his running form and he’s able to visualize it and put it into action.”

That ability enables Hall to look effortless while running hard. It was readily apparent midway through the Southern Section Division IV cross-country final at Mt. SAC in November, when Hall appeared to float up aptly named “Poop-out Hill” on his way to a course-record time of 14:28 over the 2.95-mile layout.

That race was the best of Hall’s young career, but he expects far greater things in the years ahead.

He wants to help put the U.S. back on the world map when it comes to the 1,500 meters and mile. For although Jim Ryun set a world record of 3:51.3 in the mile in 1966 and world records of 3:51.1 in the mile and 3:33.1 in the 1,500 meters in 1967, he is the last American to have done so in those events.

He is also the last American man to have won a medal in the Olympic Games in the 1,500, running second to Kip Keino of Kenya at Mexico City in 1968.

“That’s my dream,” Hall said of his long-term aspirations. “In 2004, I want to be further along than [any American] has ever been at my age. I want to run 3:47 [in the mile] and I want to be competitive in the Olympic Games.”

Just don’t ask him about running a four-minute mile this year.

Track and Field Facts

* What: L.A. Invitational indoor track and field meet

* Where: Sports Arena

* When: Today. High school events start at 11 a.m. Open events start at 4:25 p.m. with women’s pole vault. The rest of the open meet begins at 6:25.

* Who: Bernard Lagat of Kenya, the Olympic bronze medalist in the 1,500 meters, heads a list of entries in the men’s mile. Four defending state champions are entered in the high school meet.

* Tickets: Reserved seats, $23. General admission, $10.