Simpson’s decision to skip the rest of the indoor season to focus on a big outdoor campaign is completely logical. The big allure to racing indoors is for athletes to test their fitness after months of monotonous training, but everyone knows the real show is in the summer, when a lot more money is on the line and the competition goes into hyperdrive. For a world-class athlete like Simpson, indoors is just the first baby step in a season that will stretch until September, meaning that even American records take a back seat to Diamond League races and World Championship finals. It’s very much possible that Simpson would have skipped indoors entirely if New Balance wasn’t the title sponsor last weekend in Boston. 

 

While indoors will always serve as the appetizer for the main course that is outdoor track, one race stands out during the winter that rivals the anticipation and intensity of a Diamond League race or a US outdoor final in the summer. Since 1908, the Millrose Games have been a New York City staple, and the Wanamaker Mile its premiere event from its inception in 1926. Named after department store heir Rodman Wanamaker, the race has become synonymous with everything good about indoor track, that being an intimate setting with crowds right on top of the track. Held inside Madison Square Garden until 2012, the race was famous for its late start time (10pm) and tight turns on a much-too-small track (4-lanes on a 146.3m track!), which produced a fan experience unrivaled in the sport.

The noise of the crowd while the athletes zoomed by could only be described as deafening, a tradition that was borne from the memorable performances that have made the Wanamaker Mile the prestigious event it is today. Irishman Eamonn Coghlan, who won the Wanamaker seven times and held the indoor mile world record from 1979-1997,  was nicknamed “Chairman of the Boards” for his success on the old wooden track at Millrose. When Bernard Lagat exceeded Coghlan’s total with his eighth Wanamaker victory in 2010, Lagat said “It ranks among the top,” comparing the accomplishment with his World and Olympic medals. “To me, it’s like winning the Olympics today.”  

 

In 2012, the Millrose Games moved to its current home at the Armory, a faster track with a more user-friendly 200m oval for the athletes to compete on. The tradition of fast times and intense crowd experience lives on within the new venue, as voiced by last year’s Wanamaker Mile champion Will Leer. “I couldn’t hear a split because it’s so loud in here, people are going nuts.” 

Will Leer took down Nick Willis and Lawi Lalang in 2014

With a tradition of excellence that has spanned 88 years and crowned 48 different champions, winning the Wanamaker title secures a spot in history for the victor, a career defining moment that is unmatched on the indoor calendar outside of World Championships. Leer continued, “To be able to pull off a win here is absolutely enormous, it gives me a tremendous amount of confidence.” Leer won last year’s race in a new PB of 3:52.47, the second fastest winning time in Wanamaker history. Like any pro, his enthusiasm was reserved for bigger races down the road, but Leer was emphatic that the crowd experience was a big factor in his performance. “Indoors, one of the beauties is that you’re never far from the crowd. When they start roaring when you pass people, it gives you that extra boost when you’re hurting.” 

 

The 108th Millrose Games will return to the Armory this Saturday in New York City, and another loaded field is set to compete in the Wanamaker Mile for the event’s nightcap. Leer returns again this year looking to defend his title, and so too does 40-year-old Bernard Lagat, seeking an unfathomable ninth Wanamaker victory. 2012 champion Matthew Centrowitz will also compete in the storied race, as will Olympic silver medalist Nick Willis, once again making the Millrose mile the best distance race on the indoor calendar. The race isn’t just for the pros either, as the NCAA mile record has been broken every year since 2012 at the Millrose Games, with Edward Cheserek looking to make it four in a row this year. 

 

Events with the tradition and prestige of the Wanamaker Mile are crucial to the overall health of our sport. It’s understandable that indoors takes a back seat to outdoors for the athletes, especially in a World Championship year, but for domestic fans experiencing track for the first time, an event on US soil in a primetime slot will resonate a lot more than a race in Beijing thousands of miles away. Outdoor championships are the most important races for the athletes, as careers are defined by medals, but a fan experience like the one found during the Wanamaker Mile needs to be more common in a sport lacking cultural relevance outside of the Olympics every four years. For now though, us diehard fans should appreciate the Wanamaker Mile for the spectacle that it is- the greatest indoor event in history. 

2015 Millrose Games Entries