Dave Wottle’s Signature Hat, Plus His 4-Minute Mile

In Parts 1 and 2 of this interview series with Olympic Gold medalist Dave Wottle, we covered a lot of ground, discussing his epic come-from-behind 800-meter final at Munich in 1972; his involvement in the U.S. sprinters Eddie Hart’s and Rey Robinson’s 100-meter controversial semifinals disqualification, also at Munich; his chance meeting with Sir Roger Bannister; and the use of steroids in track and field.

Here, in the final part, Wottle discusses his first sub-four-minute mile, the signature hat he wore while competing – and on the Olympics medals podium – and what he thinks the next sub-four-minute-mile challenge is. Following are edited excerpts from a recent phone conversation.

Jim Clash: When I interviewed Sir Roger Bannister, first person to break the four-minute mile, before his death, he told me the next equivalent of his mark was the sub-two-hour marathon. Now that that’s been achieved, what is the next big mark in track?

Dave Wottle: Geez. Well, from an 800 [meter] mark, it would be under 1:40. Right now, it’s 140.9. But the mile has that mystique, as does the marathon. It’s hard to imagine what would rival those. I’ve always thought of myself as a miler. When you go to meets these days, it’s the 100 [meters] and the mile, although they don’t run the mile much anymore. That’s a bit surprising, because the 1,500 [meters] doesn’t have the same feel.

Clash: You’ve always thought of yourself as a miler, as you just said. Do you remember the first time you ran under four minutes?

Wottle: It was at the Central Collegiate Conference meet in Indiana [June 6, 1970]. I ran the mile, and the half there. They set a pretty good pace in the mile. We came through in 2:01, back then a pretty good pace for the first half, and then I kicked it in. I ran 3:59.

I knew that I could do it, but when you do, it’s such a shock. I can remember driving back from Indiana to Bowling Green. I was in a cloud of euphoria that stuck with me for weeks. I kept saying to myself, “I can’t believe I’m a sub-four-minute miler.” It was big-time [laughs]. [Wottle’s best-ever mile time was 3:53.3, in 1973.]

Clash: Your signature trademark while competing was the golf cap. How did that routine come about?

Wottle: In May ‘71, before the [Munich] Olympics, I started wearing this hat I’d gotten officiating track meets at BG [Bowling Green]. I wore it through summer training – it kept the hair out of my eyes, and was a sweatband and sun visor. I stopped wearing hats during cross country season – we all wore stocking caps – and indoors during winter there was no reason to wear a hat at all. I stared wearing it again in ‘72. Back then, you were allowed to wear hats in the Games. The IOC [International Olympic Committee] passed a rule after ’72 that athletes could not wear them at track events, only in the marathon. After the Olympics, no one knew who I was without the hat, so I kept wearing it [laughs].

Clash: You even wore it on the medals stand, correct?

Wottle: My mom and dad were at Munich, and the first thing my mom told me wasn’t congratulations, it was, “I can’t believe you wore that hat during the National Anthem.” It’s like what you’d think a mother would do [laughs]. Then, the first question asked by the media in the news conference after the 800 meters – an Australian reporter – was, what was I protesting? I also had put my hand over the USA patch on my jacket, but was only doing it to place my hand over my heart.

That’s when it first hit me, and hit hard. I was in the [U.S.] Air Force ROTC, and I thought I might get court-marshaled. Who knows what would might happen? It was really embarrassing, and was made an issue because of the 1968 [Mexico City] Games with Tommie Smith and John Carlos doing that black-gloved first pump. Later, I got a telegram from [President Richard] Nixon, and one from [Vice President Spiro] Agnew, saying it was all right, which made me feel a little better.

Clash: Where’s the hat now?

Wottle: It’s in the National Track And Field Hall Of Fame at the Armory in New York City.

MORE FROM FORBESDave Wottle On His Amazing Comeback To Win 800-Meter Gold At MunichBy Jim ClashMORE FROM FORBESDave Wottle On Meeting Sir Roger Bannister, Munich ’72, MoreBy Jim Clash