1977 Jubilee Games 800m Men - Alberto Juantarena, Mike Boit, Gary Cook

[@schteboroberts299]

One of the most beautiful strides in track history

[@Ruda-n4h]

Inimitable

[@peterdvideos]

“Magnificence” is the word that comes to mind when watching the great runner.

[@xoxb2]

I saw this live - the only athletics meeting I've ever been to. Juantorena was the big attraction. I was 11, and I was thrilled to see him live. In one of the races, presumably the 1500, unless they had a mile perhaps, was a young athlete called Sebastian Coe. I thought what a posh name it was. Pretty sure he didn't win, but I remember thinking, wow, he looks really good. So did Juantorena of course. I got Filbert Bayi's autograph afterwards. Great memories.

[@maracayedo]

EL CABALLO ALBERTO JUANTORENA, DE SANTIAGO DE CUBA, I went to Montreal in 1976 and I saw that race where he became Gold Metal in 400 and 800, I was 17 years old when I travel from Venezuela to see him.🇻🇪🇺🇸🇨🇺

[@nvan78]

Likewise, I was 21 yrs. old at the time sitting in the Olympic stadium in Montreal.

[@yoancarlosvillegasvaldes8137]

El verdadero caballo!!!!

[@sananto6896]

Juantarena was a man among boys. Amazing how strong and fast he was.

[@sananto6896]

Damn! I have never seen a runner winning so casually against world class competitors. Juan was just cursing to the finish. Amazing stuff. Thanks for posting.

[@johnrogan9420]

Cruising...Alberto never cursed.

[@LPCLASSICAL]

watch Coe's world cup win 1981 or his european cup performances

[@marybarratt2649]

He was amazing, remember him well.

[@Joejoe-ns7yv]

The cuban squad were my sports heroes when I was a kid .

[@johnstirling6597]

I remember Jon Coleman commentating on an 800 that Juantorena was in when he said, " and the big Cuban opens his legs and shows his class"...classic.

[@david2804me]

David Coleman

[@tommytempo1]

Ron Pickering.

[@LPCLASSICAL]

where does he say that? Have heard of that but never actually heard it. which Juantorena race?

[@tommytempo1]

@@LPCLASSICAL Preliminary rounds of the 400m, Montreal 1976.

[@LPCLASSICAL]

@@tommytempo1 cheers. I will take your word for it.

[@tomthumb3500]

Thanks for sharing.

[@vernonhendricks867]

Juantorena's beautiful running style.

[@johnrogan9420]

Once only in history...Alberto Juantoureno...thank goodness these films exist to prove him as the greatest!

[@gionncaomhinmorpheagh4791]

@Wolfgang Schnauzer Oh, do fuck off, fella! Alberto Juantorena was a natural athlete of awesome ability and never once was he ever accused of using performance-enhancing drugs - was man von westdeutschen Athleten nun nicht gerade behaupten kann. Meine ich nur. MsG

[@APBCTechnique]

Wolfgang Schnauzer I believe he was a natural athlete

[@APBCTechnique]

Gionn Caomhin Morpheagh I agree with you

[@bfc3057]

There were no allegations in the mid-late 70s because it was in its infancy for middle distance. With Cuba as a client state of the USSR, sport being of such huge national importance, there have to be suspicions. We'll never know.

[@juliomiguel6597]

@@bfc3057 I don't think the socialist States shared drugs. It was well known the case of German ( GDR, Marita Koch ) and maybe the soviet athletes, but not for other countries ( without assuring they were clean ). In the middle 80's I was close to the Cuban track and field environment and I never heard of the use of anything of the kind ( Cubans are known for talking too much ). On the other hand anything related to drugs in Cuba, even marijuana, was heavily penalized, to the point of sending to the death squad to Cuban more renowned General, Arnaldo Ochoa, for supposedly participating in the traffic of cocaine to USA.

[@ivanaguilera5008]

Alberto Juantorena un gigante,.. grande Campeón

[@gakaface]

Thanks for posting this Kevin. It's great to see a crystal clear view of the great Juantorena when all the other footage of him is of such poor quality. At the end of the race, it seems like he is thinking, "Who the F*#! was that?!"

[@ZZLZ-cj8tl]

Excellent Runner the best I ever saw at the 1979 Pepsi Invitational at Drake Stadium UCLA. El Caballo 9 foot stride. Number 1.

[@vladimirterzic7585]

Alberto Juantorena - elegant long step and speed endurance - "horse" power ever!!! 🌏 🌏 🌏 🥇🥇🥇

[@orvillebrown7235]

In Cuba they called him El Caballo ( the horse)

[@vladimirterzic7585]

@@orvillebrown7235 I know, legendary "El Caballo"!!!🌏🌏🌏

[@BigfistJP]

Legend has it that the announcer married Juantarena after the race.

[@depaola63]

9 foot stride ! ⭐️⚡️💪💖

[@gionncaomhinmorpheagh4791]

Alberto Juantorena, the only athlete to ever win Olympic gold in 800 and 400 metres at the same meeting. A feat never to be repeated because no runner has such a ten-foot stride like he has. MsG

[@jimmyvega287]

athing mu will do it hopefully

[@redd605]

@@jimmyvega287 , yes I agree , it's so strange how it's so rare athletes trying it I thought Michael Johnson could off, but the training for 800m is so different because you are doing close to the 1,500 m in training .

[@omaririgoyen1234]

And he did it Twice.

[@n.r.4077]

Juantorena, el mejor de todos los tiempos 🇨🇺🇨🇺🇨🇺🇨🇺❤❤❤❤

[@vigulfmusicproduct]

Juantarena. The Jungel Gaselle from the late 70s:)

[@melbrooks1192]

A thing of beauty.

[@guillemotpaumier3105]

Mi vecino a siboney la habana Impressionnante coleccion de medallas

[@OskarsKaminskis]

yes - that is what I am thinking - even from still photos - his stride is what I haven't seen ever - (after him) - seriously

[@MARMELADIAHGT]

ALBERTO JUANTORENA IS MY IDOL

[@coronavirusvip7227]

Juan torrena el elegante de la pista

[@jeffallinson8089]

Incredible run, at that point in time he was pretty much in a league of his own.

[@zabaleta66]

He barely hit full speed! Magnificent runner in his prime.

[@juliomiguel6597]

@zabaleta66 his prime was quite short, due to injuries. That same year 1977 he underwent surgery ( he had already been operated before the Montreal Games ) and it was the end of his prime. Recurrent injuries never left him to train properly again. It is a pity, we couldn't witnessed duels between Juantorena and Coe. He was quite new in the distance ( 800 m ) , less than two years, when he lost his best condition. Consider how many years it took to Coe for his best performances on 800 m ( Coe also ran 400 but he never got close to Juantorena's times )

[@candacenewman3902]

looking for races where my dad of Jamaica Seymour Newman, beat Juantarena at 800m and at 400m. Yes might have been underrated even now in JA, but still Seymour Newman is the 800m record holder of Jamaica since 1977. (42 years)

[@furfamilysue]

I would like to see those races.It is amazing your dad still holds the 800 record for Jamaica. Thanks to You Tube I just discovered Ivo Van Damme and other runners from these earlier eras.

[@actinggenius]

Juantorena is poetry is motion.

[@world3398]

CUBA 🇨🇺🇨🇺🇨🇺🏅

[@coronavirusvip7227]

Cuba pueblo sufrido x las malas políticas,pero muy buenos deportistas

[@michails.maipas814]

Your video super! Congrats!, I ran until now for the year 2020 only, many ultra marathons races register in duv ultra marathons statistics many thousands! miles!! 😊😊and I have to do one more race 100km on December 2020..

[@GlenP-hu6ex]

Juantorena was toying with them.

[@domenicomartelli6516]

Grande juantorena 1977 finale giubileo umanamente il rush finale giustamente guardava dx e sin x controllare l'avversario che insidiava la vittoria.

[@Croa-un2gl]

Su inmensa estatura y elegancia para correr eran sobrecogedoras. Su caracteristico movimiento de cabeza pareciera que lo ayudará a impulsarse.

[@paulofaraco2205]

Fanstatico atleta cubano , de autissimo nivel ,estilo unico👍

[@Michael-gu8ck]

i wonder how he would have performed in the 1500 meter or mile. I remember Juantorena being a freak of sorts at his height. Later of course we had the even taller 100 yd sprinter Usain Bolt.

[@abellizandro8743]

Is Usain taller, wow?

[@gakaface]

Just checked Wikipedia. Garry Cook in this race, one of the first times I think we see him in the senior ranks, was only 19 years old! That makes him a year and a half younger than Seb Coe but made the international scene at exactly the same time.

[@archiewoosung5062]

He also got the biggest prize in British athletics...the hand of Kathy Smallwood!

[@adrianonline69]

Love him

[@KIRWA_BETT]

The hairstyles defines there time.

[@woffer3881]

My uncle Zygmunt Zabierzowski was Juantorena's coach

[@juliomiguel6597]

Polish guy, his second father.

[@woffer3881]

@@juliomiguel6597 I know I have contact with Zygmunt's grandchildren

[@belingonza318]

Juan was a bad ass!

[@alanrobinson7819]

He was one of my favourite runners never knew why Coe didn’t have a go at this

[@LPCLASSICAL]

By the time Coe set his world 800M record Juantorena was past his best so sadly they never raced. They could have faced each other in the Moscow 800M but Juantorena only ran the 400m and finished 4th. He possibly did not want to face the 2 UK runners who were at their peak. A wise move.

[@juliomiguel6597]

@@LPCLASSICAL to understand the courage as athlete of Juantorena one should understand that medically he was unfit to run because of his flat feet. Due to this his career was mired with surgeries. His prime was quite short, due to injuries. That same year 1977 he underwent surgery again ( he had already been operated twice before the Montreal Games ) and it was the end of his prime. Recurrent injuries after this operation never let him properly train again. He went to Moscow almost without training, and was able nevertheless to reach to 4th place, what shows his resilience. Running both distances would have been silly. You should know that not too many runners has tried this duet, a challenge in itself due to its demanding physical condition, and to run both races in an Olympiad was a sheer prowess he was not in condition to attempt. ( Winning both races as he did in Montreal gives a measure of the unique quality of this athlete ) It is a pity, we couldn't witnessed duels between Juantorena and Coe ( and Ovett ) in their primes ( or close ). He was quite new in the distance ( 800 m ) , less than two years, when he lost his best condition. He established world record in Montreal with barely a few months of training. Consider how many years it took to Coe for his best performances on 800 m ( Coe also ran 400 but he never got close to Juantorena's times. Of course, Coe was rather a middle distance runner an Juantorena a sprinter who never tried 1500 m, where Coe also excelled. )

[@Yos674]

Empezó muy tardé en este evento. Su historia hubiera sido más grande

[@peterkerslake3201]

Gary switched to 400hurdles for Moscow games as Coe And Overt were so dominant at 800m, good move. He got Bronze

[@kevinsibley5693]

I think you're thinking of Gary Oakes, not Gary Cook

[@JulioCesarGuillen-pm3rj]

Era único , el Elegante de la Pista!!!

[@orestesvega2475]

Juan Tonera is half Cuban and half Jamaican, that is what made him the best runner.

[@johnrogan9420]

Just a stroll for the greatest runner ever at 800 meters!

[@simonsedwards1513]

John Rogan EPO

[@david2804me]

He was very good but there have been many better.... Sebastian Coe and David Rudisha for example. Coe was the first to run inside 1:43 and then the first inside 1:42...his WR of 1:41.73 stood for many years and he is still 4th on the all time fastest list..... Juantorena never broke 1:43 and he is 81st on the all time list...and Rudisha....he is the only man to break 1:41 and his WR in London 2012 still stands. So can you see that Juantorena, albeit a superb runner, is a long way from being the 'greatest runner ever at 800m'.

[@juliomiguel6597]

@@david2804me to understand the courage as athlete of Juantorena one should understand that medically he was unfit to run because of his flat feet. Due to this his career was mired with surgeries. His prime was quite short, due to injuries. That same year 1977 he underwent surgery again ( he had already been operated twice before the Montreal Games ) and it was the end of his prime. Recurrent injuries after this operation never let him properly train again. He was quite new in the distance ( 800 m ) , less than two years, when he lost his best condition. He established world record in Montreal with barely a few months of training. Consider how many years it took to Coe or Rudisha for their best performances on 800 m .

[@paulwilliams8389]

@@david2804me Bear in mind that Juantorena was primarily a 400m runner - if he had really concentrated 100% on the 800m there's no telling what times he might have run.

[@david2804me]

@@paulwilliams8389 hehe. Maybe… maybe not. One can only evaluate what someone did and not what they might have done if things had been different.

[@roshanfernando9657]

Would love to have seen a race involving Snell, Coe, Ovett, Rudisha and the seemingly casual running style of Juantoureno.

[@redd605]

He beat overt , in 1976 but I think he never raced coe,? Not sure .if he did , that says everything about him

[@roshanfernando9657]

@@redd605 I actually looked for that but couldn't find any mention of him up against Coe. Thought it strange.

[@redd605]

@@roshanfernando9657 the 1980 Olympic boycott ruined , what could of been the race of the Olympic in the 800 m with Steve ,seb Alberto,and Mike of Kenya in that final when all was at there very Best,at the same time.

[@redd605]

@@roshanfernando9657 the 1980 Olympic boycott ruined , what could of been the race of the Olympic in the 800 m with Steve ,seb Alberto,and Mike of Kenya in that final when all was at there very Best,at the same time.

[@Michael-gu8ck]

Ryan was better than Snell.

[@sagam4684]

Great alberto juantorena

[@jstevenson7121]

One reason he looked easy is that it was a slow race. The rest of the field were floundering to 1:46+, which even in those days was high school stuff.

[@ManfredBloch-zs3cp]

👋👋👋👋👋🇨🇺👋👋👋👋🇨🇺👋👋👋

[@ewaf88]

These were the days , with Coe and Ovette about to explode onto the scene

[@johnrogan9420]

No epo for Alberto...chopped sugar cane as part of his training...just toying with the Americans...university of new mexico....poor hapless runner...juantoreno was virually jogging...not even out of breathe at the finish...could have easily broken the 1000 meter on this night!

[@stephan6063]

He makes it loo like a 4x800m training session in 145 each

[@duiliomaggi7129]

a eso se le dice "rodar" pero bueno para eso tambien necesitas medir 1 80 minimo, por la longitud y poder llevar u a frecuencia no tan veloz... tremendo !

[@ふりてん-w9i]

アルベルト・ファントレナ キューバの短距離及び中距離選手 モントリオールオリンピックにおいて400m、800mの2種目でともに金メダルを獲得

[@cirosuperiore]

the Horse

[@redd605]

Was at his peak shame he didn't race Coe I knew he beat ovett in the Olympic final in 1976 and the 1980 robbed us of that meeting at the Olympic games.

[@david2804me]

Why did 1980 'rob us of that meeting"? Cuba boycotted the 1984 games not the 1980 games.

[@LPCLASSICAL]

Cuba were at the Moscow Olympics but I think Juantorena did not run. Correction he did run in the 400M coming 4th.

[@elzorro9987]

El Caballo!

[@richardnewman7962]

Even though the big horse was beaten by Seymour Newman in 400m in the CAC Games in Xalapa Mexico in 1977, 8 of August, he later with draw from the 800m,most likely would have been beaten also..

[@joseantoniomendezoliva6320]

Alb. Juantorena beautiful free running movement. Nobody like him.

[@archiewoosung5062]

Surely by this time Ovett was world class...how come he's not in the race?

[@siypic]

He was....

[@archiewoosung5062]

@@siypic Which lane do you think he was in?

[@siypic]

@@archiewoosung5062 No...lol....... he was world class and would have won it had he been in it...

[@archiewoosung5062]

@@siypic I see; I was looking to see whether Ovett raced Juantarena again after Montreal...would have expected to see him here.

[@siypic]

@@archiewoosung5062 Dont think he did.....his career really took off though in 1977 when he destroyed John Walker over the last 200m in the World 1500m

[@stephan6063]

dont understand why he didnt run full out try the record

[@anthonyjohnson8672]

WHITE LIGHTENING,,great athlete

[@soulyrasheed]

sadly, El Caballo never tried sub-50 second first lap at European circuit. he was capable of being first (well) under 1:43, maybe faster...

[@candacenewman3902]

why can't i find the race where Seymour Newman took double from Juantarena in 1977?

[@juliomiguel6597]

Seymour Newman did win 400 m to Juantorena in the 1977 Central American and Caribbean Championships in Athletics,, 45 66 ( Newman's best in the distance ) to 45.67 the times. In 1976 and 77 Juantorena was chosen best athlete in the world, so if he attended this minor event was surely because he was not free to avoid it ( Cuban government financed his career ) so he was not set to put all his efforts in this race. The event in the video was in 1977 too, and you can see he just strolled in it. He was to run in the World Championship in those days and for sure that was what mattered to him, so he didn't want to waste energies in other events. 45.66 was the best mark of Newman, 44.26 the best of Juantorena. Newman holds also the best mark in 800 m in Jamaica, but it is 2 seconds from Juantorena's. Addition: Seymour Newman was in this race, he got the third place.it was short after or before the race where Newman won to Juantorena.

[@candacenewman3902]

I was just searching. He is my dad. His record did get broken Last year on the 10th of June (2022) by Navasky (college student) I believe he ran 1:45.2

[@juliomiguel6597]

@@candacenewman3902 congratulations to your dad, perhaps no other runner won a race to Juantorena in the years 1976, 1977.

[@donnybrooklads]

Talk about schooling your competitors!

[@tonydiaz2541]

Mike Boit must still be putting on his spikes on the sideline.

[@jamescarpenter6585]

Ovett would’ve had him by then, Steve leapt forward in 77

[@keirbateman267]

Ovett would have given him a race. He wouldn't have been waving to his girlfriend though.

[@siypic]

He would...

[@zabaleta66]

Injuries beat Juantorena in the end....prime Juantorena destroys Ovett!

[@juliomiguel6597]

@@zabaleta66 i agree.

[@michaeldoogan2873]

There's only Juan-torina.

[@jmf5246]

I wonder how Steve Ovett would have faired 77 was his breakout year

[@willmorrisusa]

to John Organ... How was he better than Sebastian Coe at 800 meters? What you been smoking? Coe beat all his records at 800 meters & Coe had the 800 meter World Record from 1981 to 1997 @ 1:41.7

[@LPCLASSICAL]

You are correct. A 1976 peak form Juantorena could not have beaten Coe at his best. Coe was nearly 2 seconds faster.

[@beatrizhugo2006]

@@LPCLASSICAL That is a thing we will never know because Juantorena never ran at his all potential. why?. Nobody knows for he never said. And he wasted time looking at his side when he was running. Back in Cuba many people criticized that behavior, many said it was bad training.

[@LPCLASSICAL]

@@beatrizhugo2006 I don't know why you suppose he never ran at full potential. I looked at film of his 800M gold in Montreal. He looks like he is flat out and I do not see him looking to the side. In this 1977 video he is not flat out and looking to the side as he is being pressed and since he is running inside his ability wants to be ready to increase speed if needed. We saw Coe doing this too when he was defeating top class fields but when he was flat out for the line he did not do it. Had Ovett looked to the side in the last 10 metres in the John Treacy race he would have won.

[@juliomiguel6597]

@@LPCLASSICAL when Juantorena lost his prime due to surgeries, he had been in the distance for less than 2 years. Obviously he could have easily bettered his performances in a longer period. How many years did it take to Coe or Ovett to get theirs ? Coe was 21 years at the time of this event, and was for sure no match to Juantorena. Coe set his best mark in 1981 and at the time the had been running the distance for at least seven years.

[@paulwilliams8389]

@@juliomiguel6597 Quite right. We should bear in mind that Juantorena was primarily a 400m runner. Had he concentrated more on the 800m he could certainly have run sub 1-43.

[@StevenBradley-x6y]

The Cubans didn't want him to run against boit

[@nickbamber268]

Boit or clickbait?

[@banjocracy]

Boit?

[@peterkerslake3201]

YEs Kevin I should know better as I was a Haringey athlete at the same time as Gary Oakes. Was a long time ago so I

[@siypic]

A friend of mine Steve Martin was with Haringay fror the british League.....

[@mick1967]

Alberto Juantorena, my first track-and-field hero when I watched my first Olympic Games 1976. Watching this video I think his running style wasn't very economic because he was shaking his head all the time not like Paula Radcliffe but also not perfect. And he shows a little arrogance as well as he starts to look back to the opponents already 200m before the finish line.

[@juliomiguel6597]

@mick1967 I don't think it was arrogance, he always ran watching those coming behind him, from his beginnings as athlete. I think he couldn't avoid doing that, and if I don't mistake he was criticized because of it by his coach.

[@inhocsignovinces1081]

Cuba, DDR, and the USSR trained their athletes with the only aim to win over developing countries.

[@willmorrisusa]

that was to John Rogan not Organ

[@APBCTechnique]

He looked tired here in this slow run

[@backintobalance9542]

More endurance training he’d of run 140 for sure

[@david2804me]

huh? ... what does 'he'd of run' mean ??

[@juliomiguel6597]

I am glad you say this. Due to injuries he ran the distance for less than two years. I think with a little more time he would have got much better marks.

[@patrickmckeethen2143]

Mike Boit is not in this race.

[@nelsonkoech5546]

Then after that race have been dominated by my Kenyan brothers

[@engelbertbarkel9129]

doe mij toch maar david wottle

[@SirPeter6464]

Seems to be some political chanting. I presume against the big man. Very unfair if it was. Not a lot of hand shaking either.

[@orvillebrown7235]

it might have been cheering. He was liked. He was not gregarious either.

[@mikenealon4042]

viva el caballo

[@violetaemmagonzalezaraujo6956]

Te conocí en la parada de la 100 en la Ceguera cuando no eras conocido solo te pregunto k hizo Fidel Castro con tus premio y el de Iván Pedroso y otros ,a ti te dieron como rembolso un puesto a dedo patria y Vida 🇨🇺

[@frankvoncobbenrodt885]

Schlecht das die Läufer nicht namentlich genannt wurden 👎

[@anitdua]

He is a horse

[@archiewoosung2800]

Another awful commentary by Ron Pickering

[@LPCLASSICAL]

ha ha yes - Coleman was the main man - Pickering was just a windbag

[@davidgevans8932]

He was just jogging!!

[@Adam-us8mx]

My uncle Zygmunt Zabierzowski was Juantorena's coach

[@Enrique-hf8vd]

Juantorena siempre menciona y ha estado agradecido a su entrenador Zabierzowky quien lo guío a ser doble campeón olímpico . Saludos desde La Habana.