"I thought they must have miscounted the laps," said Marty Liquori, the champion miler who ran for Essex Catholic High in Newark at the time.
Great Nephew was a British thoroughbred who became a champion miler in France.
His Juddmonte breeding operation soon produced Warning, by Known Fact out of the broodmare Slightly Dangerous, who became Europe's champion miler in the 1988 season.
Today, he said, the world champion female miler would finish only 180 meters behind the top man.
To highlight this achievement, the champion miler Dr. Fager set the world record of 1 mile on any surface of 1:32.25 on August 24, 1968.
He was a champion 'miler' of the Scottish Universities (1901-1902) and Edinburgh University from 1901 to 1903.
Like his sire Red God, Blushing Groom had been a champion miler but many of his offspring are renowned for their stamina and have been able to win consistently at longer distances.
The race is named in honour of Gunsynd, the champion miler of the early 1970s known as the Goondiwindi Grey.
He was twice named Japan's champion miler.
He was a son of Nureyev, France's champion miler in 1980, who was in turn the son of the great Northern Dancer.