MIT's Ryan Wilson sets sights on even bigger prize after running sub 4-minute mile
CAMBRIDGE -- It has been a special week for MIT indoor track runner Ryan Wilson.
The graduate student became the first Boston area student athlete to run a sub 4-minute mile. He was also named the Division 3 National Athlete of the Week.
"It felt amazing. I saw my teammates and I actually gave them a smile with about 400 [meters] to go. I took off and I got the time," Wilson told WBZ-TV. "About halfway through, I was expecting to see the clock at much slower for how easy I was feeling. At that point, I felt I had sub-4 in the bag and I was thinking about the Division 3 record."
Wilson's previous personal best was a 4:06 mile. His time of 3 minutes, 55.29 seconds at last weekend's David Hemery Valentine Invitational at Boston University was not only his first-ever sub 4-minute mile, but it's also the fastest by a D3 student athlete, ranking 22nd all time in any division.
"It's really cool. I've only had it for a few days now so I'm not sure [how to feel]," he said of owning the record. "I'm really thankful. It's slowly been kicking in each day that I wake up."
Casual runners everywhere must be wondering what it's like to run a mile in under four minutes.
"It's kind of fun honestly," said Wilson. "It feels like you're on a bike or something."
It was also fun for his coach, Riley Macon, who says Wilson lifts up his entire MIT team.
"Everybody loves Ryan. Everybody is rooting for him," said Macon. "So for him to be the one that does it, I mean, tears were had. It was pretty exceptional."
For as much as Wilson means to his school, the university means even more to the California native. The funny thing is, he hated the weather -- and all the homework -- when he first arrived as a freshman.
"Yeah, I just can't even describe how much MIT has changed my life ever since I've been here," said Wilson. "Not just in the running sense or the academic sense, but my development as a person."
The next goals for Wilson involve bringing home National Team titles, and eventually, making the Olympic trials.
"That would be similar to the feeling of going sub-4," he said.
They are lofty goals, but nobody would be surprised if this speedster adds them to an already impressive list of accomplishments.
