Athletics: Willis to be paced in record bid

A pacemaker has been named to help Nick Willis in his quest to lower John Walker's long-standing New Zealand allcomers mile record in Christchurch next month.

Olympic 1500m bronze medallist Willis and British rival Andrew Baddeley both have their eyes on Walker's time of three minutes 50.6 seconds set in 1981 and will attack it at the International Track Meet on March 13.

Top United States middle distance runner Rob Myers will be the pacemaker for a mile field which organisers describe as the best gathered in New Zealand for 25 years.

"It takes a top runner in their own right to have the speed and strength to lead a field for 2-3 laps at the right pace," said meet director Craig Motley.

"Myers is a sub-four minute miler and a training partner of Nick's, and securing a pacemaker of his calibre makes it far more likely that the record attempt will be successful."

- NZPA