Seb Coe Beats Steve Ovett To Win 1500m Gold - Moscow 1980 Olympics

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Sebastian Coe arrived at the 1980 Moscow Games as the world record holder and favourite at 800m, However, he ran what he called "the worst race of my life" and finished second behind Ovett.
Six days later, a determined Coe redeemed himself in the 1500m, beating Ovett to take gold.
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[@gosnell67]

Beautiful quality film, but I wish you would upload the whole race, with no slow-motion, and (most of all) no awful background music.

[@WhoMichaelWho]

Such an emotional race for me. I was 15. I lived it and here I am in tear of joy again.

[@deano27671]

Yes John Charlton, I agree with you about Straub. He was certainly on PEDs in Moscow, same as Beyer in Prague. Pat Butcher discusses the 2 East Germans in his book about Coe & Ovett, The Perfect Distance. Can't recall what Coe says about Straub in that. Cheers.

[@user-nq4rv3zn3i]

Ovett was asking cram has coe arrive yet for the 1500m final; this tells me ovett knew coe would be out for revenge and so bottled it , just like coe bottled it in the 800m

[@kevinkilduff2064]

For my money, Seb is the greatest 1500m runner of all time. I would say that about the 800m also but Seb was not tactically adept in his two Olympic 800s and despite being favored as the world record holder, he lost fair and square in Moscow and LA.

[@mikearndt2217]

Seb still the best ever within that genre - greatest middle distance runner that has ever walked the face of the earth!

[@ncode03]

The guy got silver was even happier than he was.

[@Painter19]

Still can't understand this 41 years later. How did Ovett lose this and Coe lose the 800m? Its like the twilight zone. In any event they beat each other in an important race!

[@richardmilliken8705]

On any given Sunday, anything can happen between top competitors. Great Locker-room speech by Pacino. I wanted to lace up my spikes one more time, but the reality is that Salazar & Dillon would've smoked me again, in the 1974 Massachusetts High School All- State XC Championship. My best mile time back then, was 4:18 and they came through the 1st mile in 4:22.

[@scooters47]

Ovette was a great runner but Coe was a legend.

[@tomdunbar8579]

I think Ovette let Coe win that one. LOL

[@GusYoung]

Amazing!

[@grahamtaylor6883]

Nice commentary

[@davidcole9971]

3 great British runners....

[@andrewbruce4807]

Do you know where I could source clips from the 1980 Olympic games? Thank You.

[@leefran71]

Could ovett have overtaken that 2nd place guy, he seemed to ease up too early

[@qburnett127]

I love the Olympics

[@ydaveyyy]

Ovett overdid the partying after winning the 800m. 😉

[@jeffreybayles1162]

Ovett beat Coe in the 800 at the same Olympics,when they went 1-2

[@neathletics2439]

Of course Coe could beat Ovett in 1980. Coe was already a phenomenal athlete and the world record holder. But him apart, no one else 1977-81 could get near Ovett in a sprint finish over 1500m. Beyer did it in Prague '78 over 800m when Ovett was preoccupied with Coe (after the fall of Berlin Wall, it was proven that Beyer was on a drugs program at the time). Even though Straub & Beyer had the same drug dispensing coach, I still struggle to accept that Straub could beat Ovett over 1500m. Unless Steve's 800m victory had completely taken his competitive edge away...

[@deano27671]

Ovett NEVER ran a last 100m in a 1500 (under 3:45) as fast as Coe's 12.1 that day. There was nothing he could do to beat Coe in the 1500 final. Ovett actually ran his last 100m here in the 1500 final (12.6) faster than he ran the last 100 in the 800 final (12.7)! Straub should not have beaten Ovett in Moscow. Straub ran nothing approaching this race in quality before or after Moscow. I fear Ovett was the victim of state sponsored doping by an East German for the 2nd time in his career. Note that both Ovett's defeats to East German's happened in cities that were behind the Iron Curtain; Prague & Moscow. Ovett should be seen as having done the 800/1500 double in 78. Shame.

[@neathletics2439]

deano27671 Deano, I read Coe's recent biography, in it he refers to Beyer's proven use of drugs and regrets that it cost Ovett a rare major Championship 800/1500 Double. Watch the 1978 race again. Coe says keep your eyes on Beyer after crossing the line...no lap of honour - he just sprints down the tunnel. Apparently, drug test candidates were selected at random after the race from athletes still on the track. Yes, Ovett was robbed in Prague. However, Coe never raises any suspicion on Straub, even though he & Beyer shared the same coach. In fact, Seb actually thanks him for helping him to win gold - admitting that the very fast second half of the Moscow 1500m suited him more than Ovett. Personally, I don't think it would have made any difference how those races were run. It was destiny. And the two greatest middle distance runners we ever produced were just meant to share the Gold medals in Moscow.

[@Sean-zg4iy]

I think we you make a strong case there.

[@elizabethtanner9050]

@@deano27671 ovett never gave himself a chance of beating coe, by being a stride and a half behind going into the last 200

[@Halyein]

Is it possible to watch this without sentimental background music and have the BBC commentary instead?

[@rishabhraj2308]

mute the sound of ur device

[@APBCTechnique]

You can find the full race on KZbin 👍

[@cbs70sfan49]

I seem to recall reading somewhere that Ovett said he slowed down on purpose in the Moscow 1500. Something about not wanting to finish directly behind Coe.

[@mikem9252]

Battle of the Brits - ovett had great closing speed but he was a 4-spd and coe a 5-spd -- a healthy coe was not gonna be fetched

[@Terrum]

Nice music too

[@shawnyoung8752]

It was a chess match for 7 8 years. Always fun to watch.

[@DiegoRuiz1991]

Possibly because they do not have the rights to the original sound or to a decent commentary...

[@RJGMorris]

Missing the Olympics

[@slickflyguy]

Boycotted games with not enough competition in most events. The US and other countries that boycotted the games should have created an alternative sports event to counter the games even though the IOC rejected then President Carter's idea to move the games to Greece.

[@liivv]

Does anyone know the date this race took place on?

[@rob1n792]

Aug 1 80

[@TheJomightymaniac]

Olympics in Britain again please xD

[@DiegoRuiz1991]

Sorry but 2016 is Rio and 2020 will be time for some more Spanish passion. Third time's a charm and Madrid is gonna innovate when it comes to venues (floating beach volleyball courts and stands and basketball inside a bullring that will seat like 30 000 people)

[@joemcm1]

ovett let him have it-he said as much in his biog,even when he said coe was the best ever,which i dont think btw-2 supreme athletes,who was n best? ovett -if both at their best over 800/1500 in 'races' ovett would win 6/10 imo with coes win coming most in 800-forget boring splits etc.racing is realtime

[@joemcm1]

so im a w*nker for having an opinion am i.'firsthgyhgyhuy'-run home to mammy now its past your bedtime you idiot

[@johnsrous1616]

Joe McMullen I agree with u whole-heartedly on Coe was the best at 800m Ovett would be best at 1500

[@DogLover51543]

Cool

[@KryptonitetoallBS]

Steve Ovett will go down in history as one of the greatest middle distance runners of all time. Unfortunately for him in this race he came up against THE greatest middle distance runner of all time!

[@davidbaldwin133]

Ovett won the 800m and was not sufficiently motivated in this race with a gold already. Ovett was the better 1500m runner, coe was better at 800m.splits don't matter its about start to finish, it's a race not a time trial.

[@KryptonitetoallBS]

@@davidbaldwin133 It would be interesting to get Ovett's view on this. I find it hard to believe that a man like Ovett would not be as you put it " sufficiently motivated" to win his main event the 1500 metres. Everything about his character says he would have been totally focused and determined to get the one medal he craved more than any other!

[@davidbaldwin133]

@@KryptonitetoallBS 10 days after coe finished the 1500m final with his 12.1 last 100m he was beaten in viaggrio Italy over 800m by Don paige of the USA. Paige never broke 1.44 in his career. Where was coes blistering finish in this race? The most likely explanation is he was on an emotional comedown after winning the 1500m just as ovett was in the 1500m final. Ovett never looked right in the 1500m final to me he looked wheezy and laboured. The most telling moment of this race is the iconic picture or coe crossing the line eyes agog, arms spread. Sraub is full of joy at finishing second, look at the expression on ovett's face it reads"thank goodness that's over now I can go home". When I say ovett was not motivated enough to win the 1500m I am not saying he did not want to win it or that he didn't try. Ovett's take on it has been had the 1500 been first he would of won and then lost the 800m second. After his win he said he just wanted to go home. Things are won and lost in the mind some times. Had coe won the 800m I suspect we would be talking about ovett's last 100m in 12.1. Had they met at 1500m a week after Moscow I would of backed ovett to win as he would of had more time to get himself back in the right frame of mind. Coe never ran another race that season after that defeat to paige. My own feeling is they were as good as each other and one gold each was a reflection of this.

[@KryptonitetoallBS]

@@davidbaldwin133 There are others who frequent these pages far more knowledgeable than me regarding Coe and his running schedule so I'll leave the explanation to his defeat in Italy to them. Coe is the greatest 800-1 mile runner ever in my opinion BUT he lost plenty of races. Even the best lose and there can be a multitude of explanations however for the "Elite" athletes in an Olympic final it must be unbelievably rare or non existent for the reason to be " not sufficiently motivated" and I say this as a professional sports coach myself. Ovett was the best 1500 metre runner around until Coe took over around 1980ish. Maybe things would have turned out different if Ovett hadn't had the church railings incident. If Coe hadn't missed most of 1982 and 1983 with various illness's maybe the record books would look very different. Ovett probably needed more of a challenge from 1977/78/79 in the 1500 as he only did enough to make sure of victory. Either way they were an absolute delight to watch and were almost completely responsible for the huge interest in middle distance running in the UK and beyond!

[@elizabethtanner9050]

@@KryptonitetoallBS The key to the outcome of the race, with the benefit of hindsight, was that coe was a stride and a half ahead of ovett, going into the last 200 metres. After his experience in the 800, coe made sure he was up with the pace, and loitering at the back of the field

[@joedrumer9029]

THAT IS the history of PRESIDENT

[@chonchotigorn]

Thailand Win

[@colinbrigham8253]

Ovett beat Coe in the 800m which was coe's distance and having pocketed a gold and silenced the Conservative english press who favoured Coe who became a conservative Mp later clearly found himself flat while Coe was desperate for the win 🤗

[@joemcm1]

just thought id add-look at ovetts face at the end of the 800m-he knows he ran a good race and most of the time that would have won him gold-but hes smiling saying seb beat me fair and square but he knows he had some left and let him have it-the ultimate sportsman

[@lantaykalman]

Have you ever run a race?

[@deano27671]

LOL. Oh really!? The fact that Coe ran the fastest (still to this day) last 100m in a Championship 1500m, in 12.1, had nothing to do with it? Ovett NEVER ran a last 100m in a 1500 (under 3:45) as fast as that. There was nothing he could do to beat Coe that day. Ovett actually ran his last 100m here in the 1500 final (12.6) faster than he ran the last 100 in the 800 final (12.7). So the facts don't back you up in anyway. The only point I will agree on is that Straub should not have beaten Ovett. Straub ran nothing approaching this race in quality before or after Moscow. I fear Ovett was the victim of state sponsored doping by an EAst German for the 2nd time in his career.

[@johnblack9298]

John Walker was the greatest

[@huguesdesesquelles7252]

I wished urine retesting would go back to the 1980s

[@linglingjr]

Show the whole damn race. I don't care how nice your footage looks or how much you paid for music licensing, the fact you upload this 1 minute nonsense and take down other full versions of it is pathetic.

[@hughjanus501]

Ovett was a cart horse.

[@rogerclark3229]

And you are a donkey!

[@joedrumer9029]

@@rogerclark3229 I THINK SO TOO

[@davidbaldwin133]

What🤔

[@johnny5805]

Abhorrent right wing politician, fantastic athlete .

[@darenwright1071]

Ruined by dubbed over music, same as every other Grest Britain win on You tube.