| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
Herb Elliott at the Olympic final, 1960 |
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| Men's Athletics | ||
| Competitor for Australia | ||
| Olympic Games | ||
| Gold | 1960 Rome | 1500 metres |
| Commonwealth Games | ||
| Gold | 1958 Cardiff | 880 yards |
| Gold | 1958 Cardiff | 1 mile |
Herbert James "Herb" Elliott AC MBE (born 25 February 1938) is a former Australian athlete, one of the world's greatest middle distance runners. In August 1958 he set the world record in the mile, clocking 3:54.5, 2.7 seconds under the record held by Derek Ibbotson; later in the month he set the 1500 metres world record, running 3.36.0, 2.1 seconds under the record held by Stanislav Jungwirth. In the 1500 metres at the 1960 Rome Olympics, he won the gold medal and bettered his own world record with a time of 3:35.6.
Few people have ever exercised such absolute authority in any branch of sport as Elliott did in middle distance running from 1957 to 1961. During that span he never lost a 1500 metres or 1-mile race.[1] During his career, he broke four minutes for the mile on 17 occasions.
Elliott is the chairman of one of the world´s largest iron ore mining companies, and of the Global Corporate Challenge health initiative.
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Elliott, a native of Perth, Western Australia, attended Aquinas College, in Perth. Aquinas College is renowned for its sport culture, and it was this culture that helped Elliott achieve such heights in athletics.[2] He also attended Cambridge University.
He set a new world record for the mile on 6 August 1958 (3:54.5) at Morton Stadium in Dublin. Later that month he broke the 1500 metres world record in Gothenburg with a time of 3:36.0.
At the 1958 Commonwealth Games in Cardiff, Wales, he won gold in the 880 yards and the mile. Two years later, at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome, Elliott won the gold medal in the 1500 metres, setting a new world record as well (3:35.6).
Elliott credited his visionary and iconoclastic coach, Percy Cerutty, with inspiration to train harder and more naturally than anyone of his era. Cerutty was known to avoid the track, talk about role models outside athletics (such as Leonardo Da Vinci and Jesus), and bring his athletes to the unspoiled seaside beauty of Portsea training camp south of Melbourne, where Elliott would sprint up sand dunes until he dropped. "Faster," Cerutty would say, "It's only pain."
After winning in Rome in 1960, he started a degree course at Cambridge University, England. He retired from athletics after running the half mile in the 1962 University v AAA match.[3]
From May 2005, he served as Deputy Chairman of Fortescue Metals Group, the world's fifth largest iron ore miner by capacity, and has been the non-executive chairman of the firm since March 2007.[4][5] On 18 August 2011, Elliott is expected to step down as chairman to hand over the role to retiring chief executive Andrew Forrest but will stay on as deputy chairman.[6] Earlier Elliott served as the CEO of Puma North America and between 2001 and 2006 as a board member at Ansell, one of the world's biggest condom makers.
He was one of the bearers of the Olympic Torch at the opening ceremony of the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, and entered the stadium for the final segment before the lighting of the Olympic Flame.
Herb Elliott has been ranked in Western Australia's 100 most influential people.
There is a biography covering his career, The Golden Mile (Cassell, 1961).
In the Queen's Birthday Honours List of 1964, he was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE). In the Queen's Birthday Honours List of 2002, he was appointed a Companion of the Order of Australia (AC). The citation read: For service to community leadership through the development of sport in Australia, continuing involvement in the Olympic movement at national and international levels, and as a supporter and benefactor of community and charitable organisations for youth, health promotion and cultural understanding.
He is an Australian Living Treasure.
| Records | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Stanislav Jungwirth |
Men's 1,500m World Record Holder 28 August 1958 – 8 July 1967 |
Succeeded by Jim Ryun |
| Preceded by Derek Ibbotson |
Men's Mile World Record Holder 6 August 1958 – 27 January 1962 |
Succeeded by Peter Snell |
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