Tokyo Olympiad - Billy Mills

[Carizmojones]

the greatest race I have and will ever see, and I did watch it as it happened. No other race has ever come close.

[ommief]

At the halfway mark he was ahead of his PB for the 5K. He said he hurt so much at that point he was looking for his wife in the stands so that when he quit he could do so on the other side of the track. Of course he fought through it and won what is still the greatest race I've ever seen.

[moznico]

@rmaxjames your kidding right?

[Tonys714]

i think the announcer meant 10,000 killometers-not meters lol

[blackhawk11995]

@Tonys714 no he meant what he said. 10,000 kilometers would be 10 milllion meters.

[caravaggio31]

Probably the greatest US win ever at Olympics athletics. An indian did the job. God bless him.

[knickkilla]

@spiritedathlete Couldn't have said it better myself. Very kind words

[joezbballstar]

Sorry this was way before my time but are they running on a cinder track? I'm guessing so since you said that there was not much traction on the inside lane.

[Jaysne]

An incredible moment. Mills ran 45 seconds faster than he ever had before. He also said that being knocked to the outside during the last lap was a break for him, because the track was firmer there--not chewed up like it was on the rail--and he got better traction because of it.

[martynhanson]

Clarke didn't push him for nothing. If you look again he is coming into Clarke's lane. Clarke was in his rights to give him a shove.

[stonekeeper86]

@martynhanson Doesn't even matter....Mills kicks his ass anyway!!!

[ernesttubb]

Thanks for posting this. You just reminded me that I've been wanting to buy a copy of this. It's a great documentary.

[dennismoore56]

One word- Integrity

[bumblebeemoi]

Billy was not a "flash in the pan" since he set a world record in the 6 mile in 65.

[rabbit605]

Amazing quality for the times! - HD compared to the other videos. For the finish - start at 4:54 - shows how much ground Mills had to make up in the last 200m to win. While this film excels in quality, I just wish it had the American announcer's excitement from all the other films - "Look at Mills!!......Look at Mills!

He looked like he was in a 100 m dash passing the leader instead of finishing a 10000.

Best kick ever!!!

[gustavodlx]

Billy Mills is an inspiration to everyone! His performance really makes me proud to be American and I am very proud of that Man! He is Oglala Lakota Sioux Indian and is a role model for his People.

[bertie7896]

Awesome!! He didn't know whether he got first place or if he had another lap to go so he had to ask... Only way I know is he told me so...

[shrimphunter2133]

Does anyone know where I can find some audio of his voice in the 1964 Olympics after he won??????????? Im making a documentary!

[dc3rvant3s]

dood, this is actual footage, awesome!

[bumblebeemoi]

Notice the final stretch to the tape. Both Clarke and Gammoudi are struggling and straining. Mills has long, powerful, yet graceful strides. It is beautiful to watch.

[bumblebeemoi]

Some have said that Mills was a "Flash in the Pan." In 1965 he set a world record in the 6 mile. No flashes win both a gold record and a world record.

[cristoballs]

after seeing this i'm a little disappointed with the way the movie running brave portrayed the elbowing from clarke and gamuddi(sp?). great race to watch however. i wish someone had access to the entire race. it would be awesome to watch.

[broadjumper1]

While movie (which was pretty awful really), makes Clarke's push look a lot worse than it was, there's old black & white footage that shows that it caused Mills to break stride a move out an entire lane because of the contact. Fortunately it didn't cost him the race.

[oneputtsteven]

Perhaps the greatest upset in Olympic history. MIills is STILL the only American to ever win the 10,000. Nice to see most of the race and in color instead of the B&W last lap.

[poo72]

This was a legendary win and mad Mills a living legend. Sorry for Clarke because he never won an olympic gold medal. His records were in own class at that time

[zizouchannelis]

Gammoudi was the best at that time, he got 2 gold medal after that. VIVA TUNISIA! that was awesome run from Billy Mills though. VIVA USA!

[slbrulesrocks]

Billy Mills your my hero

[jcpdloco]

Just totally AWESOME!!

[hwyfan]

Billy Mills ran the race of his lifetime here. He ran 2 full minutes faster than what he had ever previously finished.

Ron Clarke, in spite of his many accomplishments and record setting at multiple distances -- never won gold in the Olympics. In 1968, he nearly died in the finals of the 10k when he passed out from altitude sickness and suffered heart damage.

The Australian press was particularly cruel, running headlines proclaiming "Clarke fails again".

[kurosawa501]

I love 0:24 to 1:14. It may be my favorite shot in the entire film. Ichikawa is a master.

[randacct]

It's great to finally have a different video of this race on the internet. Great to see the two shoves on the last lap from a different perspective. Competition has improved- not so much lapping now.