Olympic Runner Attempts Beer Mile

The mile is a running staple, testing everyone from Olympic athletes to reluctant high school students to run as fast as they possibly can. Running a mile is hard enough when you’re well rested and well hydrated, but running a mile while drinking a beer is a whole other beast. But that’s exactly what Nick Symmonds, the Olympic runner for the 800 meter, took a stab at — setting the world beer mile record.

The world beer mile — yes, it really exists — involves downing a beer after each lap around the track in a one mile run. That means drinking four full-sized beers in fewer than five minutes, in between running laps. The beer mile record is 5:09; Symmonds came in ten seconds behind with a time of 5:19, placing him third in overall beer mile rankings.

Not one to leave good-enough alone, Symmonds plans to attempt another beer mile in the near future. Beer mile training will certainly be a change of pace from his usual routine. Symmonds finished fifth in the 800-meter race in London, behind Duane Solomon, also from the US. Maybe the beer training will be good practice for the Olympic games in Rio. 

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