September 3 Birthdays

1891
Norman Taber, United States, middle-distance runner. While studying at Brown University, Norman Stephen Taber was selected to run on the United States team at the 1912 (Stockholm) Olympic Games, where he won a bronze medal in the 1,500m (3:56.9) and a gold medal as part of the United States entry in the 3,000m team race. After graduating from Brown, Taber went to Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar. Returning to the United States, he decided in 1915 to make an attempt at the world record in the one-mile run. On 16 July 1915 in a paced and carefully orchestrated time trial on the Harvard track, Taber ran a 4:12-3/5 mile, breaking not only the world record for amateurs of 4:14-2/5 held by John Paul Jones of the U.S., but also the thirty-year old professional record of 4:12-3/4 set by Walter George. Taber was the fastest miler ever. Eight years later his record was broken by the legendary Paavo Nurmi of Finland.