Roger Bannister's 4-minute mile shoes to go on auction block

The running shoes worn by Roger Bannister when he broke the 4-minute mile will be going on sale.

Christie's says the leather shoes will be up for auction on Sept. 10 in London and are expected to fetch between 30,000 ($47,000) and 50,000 pounds ($78,000).

The shoes, made by GT Law and Son, had long, thin spikes and weighed 4 1/2 ounces, much lighter than other shoes at the time.

Christie's says Bannister is expected to donate some of the proceeds to a charity for medical research.

Bannister's shoes as displayed at Christie's auction house in London.

Bannister became the first runner to break the fabled 4-minute barrier when he clocked 3 minutes, 59.4 seconds on May 6, 1954, at the Iffley Road Track in Oxford.

Bannister is now 86 and lives in Oxford. He is coping with the effects of Parkinson's.