Seb Coe winning 1981 World Cup 800m

A week after breaking the Mile world record for the 2nd time in 1981, Seb Coe ran for the European Select team in the 800m at the World Cup in Rome. It was to be his last race of an unbeaten season, and reinforced his ranking as World Number 1, with a crushing defeat of a world class field which included Olympic bronze medallist Kirov, Cruz and Robinson from the USA.
Although the finishing time, 1:46.16, was not fast, his last 200m was run in 24.7 and his last 100m in 12.0! And that was easing up over the last 30m. His kick at the beginning of the home straight pulled him clear of the rest of the field by more than 8m and over 1 second.

[@MikeFloutier]

Never tire of watching this man; that acceleration, as David Coleman says; "Astonishing!"

[@bemopacific7076]

Coe had the best homestretch kick of any middle distance runner. People can bring up fast last laps, last 300s or 200s by other all-time greats, but if the race was left to the middle of the final turn onward no one could or can match Coe past or present. That's really where he stands out even today.

[@redrum4100]

Lowe better finish. m.kzbin.info/www/bejne/n2XMep6XlLaEaJY

[@joemcm1]

in a kick-race to the line a peak ovett was at least his match.no-one else could touch either of them,id agree on that

[@forgive7449]

☺ coe really looks silky smooth. class

[@kevinkilduff2064]

Awesome talent.

[@deano27671]

Yes, indeed he was. Once in a lifetime talent.

[@owenthackeray4195]

Coe 1981 untouchable.

[@SirPeter6464]

Great to see Coe in his prime. Light up any day.

[@deano27671]

At the end of 81 in an interview with AW, Coe said his main aim for 82 was to win the European 800 and lower his WR in that event. He said he believed he could get it down to 1:40, and was going to try and experiment in the winter with hitting 400 in 48 high/49 low. One wonders if he did this and if so how it went!? He also intended running the 1500 in Athens & had 3 races lined up against Ovett. He also said that he believed he could run sub 3:30 and a 3:45 mile. He'd have been 25; peak age!

[@MrSupplementScene]

I was actually believing this up until the '3 races against Ovett', nah not believable. And he might have wanted sub 1:41 but whether it was attainable or not is a whole other ball park.

[@adamd4390]

Never know as it wasn't to be

[@mickeymouse7861]

The three races with Ovett were indeed planned, but due to illness and injury by both parties, they never took place. However, Coe and his coach Peter were proved right when Coe ran under 3.30 just a few years later.

[@mathematics5573]

He probably could have run 1:40 in the modern era, but a lot of what he said was probably just playing a game of poker with his competitors. trying to scare them

[@jeremyhomewood9573]

@@mickeymouse7861 indeed when coe was well passed his best in 1986 !!!!!!!!

[@tommytempo1]

A different class - fantastic run. Another Coe & Ovett double.

[@mickeymouse7861]

This looks like a decent performance until you look at the splits and then you realise that it was a phenomenal performance. Only half way around the bend does Coe begin sprinting to maintain the lead and then stops sprinting with thirty metres to go. Yet, as Dean says, Coe runs 24.7 (last 200m) and 12.0 (last 100m). If he had sprinted the last 200m properly, we could have been looking at a last 200m of perhaps (significantly) under 24 secs.

[@simonedwards8888]

Dean Hall definitely !!!!!!!!!

[@LPCLASSICAL]

I wonder what Coe was expecting his 1982 season would bring? I am sure he would have expected gold success at the Euros - and improvements to his world records? perhaps we would have seen Coe lowering his 800M record. Such a shame about the illness as I think 1982 would have been Coe's best season.

[@andrewallen1083]

Coe in 81 was a Greek god

[@KingLiopleurodon]

We all knew Deano would be here. And he is. Just as Ovett's win in this WC 15 was archetypical for him, so too was this 8 for Coe. Classic Coe MO at his peak, kick hard off the bend and move effortlessly away from all opponents. Such a silky sprint technique, it looks 45 point for 400. Which he was. He made his opponents look third rate.

[@deano27671]

Well I should be here as I uploaded this video! Lol. Coe was so far above the rest of this field in this race. He ran a last 100 of 12.0 easing up. It's a shame someone didn't take it out at a fact pace, as I believe Coe could have run close to his WR that night.

[@KryptonitetoallBS]

deano27671 Is there anywhere on the Internet where I can find a full resume of Seb Coe's career please? I'm not interested in Wikipedia. What I'm looking for is total races run, preferably by year and number of wins. If the same is available for Ovett, Cram, EG, Morceli etc that would be a bonus!

[@deano27671]

The Great Distance Runners site has fairly extensive lists.

[@KryptonitetoallBS]

@@deano27671 Thanks.

[@gowers1972]

Cruz ran similarly to how Coe ran in the '80 Moscow final.

[@patsquires3654]

I think coes 800m and 1000m world record from 1981 was as near to perfect as one can get, I have no doubt that coe could have run 328 for the 1500m and 345 for the mile that golden 81 season

[@deano27671]

pat squires totally agree. Cheers for comment.

[@patsquires3654]

hi deano how come you have such a first class knowledge of seb coe, were you ever a runner yourself ? and did you ever see seb coe run ?

[@deano27671]

pat squires Thanks for comments. I was never anything other than a fun runner and reasonable enough to run X Country for my school. I started following athletics when the 1980 Olympics were on, and Coe was always my favourite athlete. I just read a lot about him and the middle distance scene and watched a lot of his races and analysed a lot of his split times. I saw him race twice (and he lost both times! Lol). I also met him twice.

[@patsquires3654]

can you believe I watched him race 4 times and twice he lost, I met him once at the southern counties 1984 and another time at harringey 1988, I used to be a 400m runner with a best time of 49 seconds, so I know how fast he was going when he broke his 800m record, my best time would only have been good enough to pace him for the first lap ?

[@deano27671]

@@patsquires3654 I wish I could have run 49 secs for 400m! Very impressive.

[@201081hero]

Before this event was run some experts were drawing parallels with Cruz to Steve Ovett's run in the same stadium 7 years previously, and although the race results were very different (Ovett 2nd in the European Champs, Cruz 6th in the World Cup) the raw talent was evident in both athletes at only 18 years old and later proved as both became Olympic champions over 800m.

[@deano27671]

@ARRISIPPY Thanks. Yes, he ran a great tactical race in Athens a year later, and certainly would have won had he not had glandular fever. Would have won the World title in 83 if anywhere near the form he showed here. Was unlucky in 84, as Cruz improved dramatically that year and Coe not quite back to best. I'd like to think that this World Cup win was equivalent to a World title, when you consider all the best 800m athletes in the world that year were here.

[@terraflow__bryanburdo4547]

Cruz was just lost back there....

[@LPCLASSICAL]

I think Coe went through in about 54.5? final time was 1.46.2 so what does that make the second lap? Certainly not as quick as Ovett's second lap in Moscow which was a 1.45.5. But then Coe does not seem to go until 200 M out.

[@adamd4390]

Stuart approx 51.7 wereas ovett in moscow was like 50.4/5

[@gakaface]

Yes, about 51.7 or 51.8 for Coe here. He was running pretty easily until the last 120 metres though. Whereas Ovett in Moscow did the last lap in 50.7 which is by far the fastest last lap ever at a top level 800m event.

[@simonsedwards1513]

@@gakaface 39 YEARS LATER !!!!!!!!!! AND OVETT IS STILL THE QUICKEST FOR 2nd LAP IN S MAJOR CHAMPIONSHIP!!!!!!!! FASTER THAN COE, RUDISHA,CRUZ,,,THE LIST IS ENDLESS!!!!!!!!! 50'6 400 !!!!!!!! 1980 Moscow and COE was way out in lane two and three most of the race terrified of ovett HAVING TO ENDURE THE MOUNTAINOUS WEIGHT OF EVERY ONE IN THE WORLD SAYING '£I,LL PUT MY FUKKIN MORTGAGE ON YOU WINNING SEB!!!!!!!!" THE WORLD BASICALLY WRAPPED THAT GOLD ROUND SEBS NECK!!!!!! PRESSURE DROP,,,, UNDER HEAVY MANNERS HEAVY DUTY DISCIPLINE !!!!!!!!!!!!! LIKE A RABBITS TRANSFIXED GLARE INTO THE CARS LIGHT ABOUT TO CRUSH HIM,,,,totally UNABLE TO MOVE!!!!!!! STEVEN MICHAEL JAMES OVETT HAD THAT AURA !!!!!!!! COE FELT IT,,,,,TERRIFYING ,,,,AND COE HAD TO HANG ONTO THAT PACE,,,,IN 2/ LANE 3 ???

[@stonekeeper86]

what was Coes record going against Cruz?

[@redrum4100]

Stone Keeper They probably ran against each other more, but the only two races I defo recall them being in was the 1981 World Cup Final (Coe win) and the 1984 Olympics final (Cruz win).

[@gakaface]

Cruz beat Coe in 1985 running 1:42.5 with Coe running second in 1:43.07 - his third best time over the 800m. It's on KZbin - look for Cruz 1985.

[@joemcm1]

unsure but a peak coe would take a peak cruz

[@owenthackeray4195]

Coe at his best.1979-1982

[@mathematics5573]

coe should have run under 90 secs for 800m. then he'd still hold the WR

[@mathematics5573]

he had a down season in 1982. he best years were, 77, 78, 79, 80. 81 and 84 and 86..

[@deano27671]

Yes I know. Sometimes they give inaccurate split times or the clock doesn't stop in the right place. If you look at the race in slow motion using pause button, you'll see that his torso was above the 200m line at c. 1:21.4, giving a last 200 of 24.7. This was later given in AW as his last 200 split, and while they have got split times wrong as well in past, the evidence of the on screen clock confirms it as correct. Cheers.

[@cocoablini]

Robinson is the GOAT

[@redrum4100]

Due to his Olympic titles and world records?

[@simonsedwards1513]

Every time he was pacemaker for seb he fucked it up,,,, on purpose!!!!!! The goat??? PFFFFFFT!!!!!!

[@joemcm1]

class run.if only ovett could have been in this race too.if he had i reckon we would have got the neck and neck finish between them we all craved.who would have won? ....ovett

[@deano27671]

Joe McMullen lol. In your dreams. Coe ran a last 100m in 12.0, easing up at end. Ovett never finished an 800 that quickly. As a comparison Ovett’s last 100 in the Moscow 800 was 12.7. Ovett had 2 chances to run against Coe in 81 and chose to avoid him: first in the Dream Mile in Oslo, when Coe asked Andy Norman to run. Norman said No’, but assured Coe that Ovett was already down to run the Golden Mile in Brussels. Ovett withdrew a few days before the Brussels race and chose to run a low key 800m in a slow time in Norway the same night. Clearly Ovett didn’t feel he was capable of beating him.

[@joemcm1]

@@deano27671 oh come on deano you know better than to quote times/splits to me.coe would have buckled with ovett so close breathing down his neck

[@deano27671]

Joe McMullen Oh, you mean like he did in the Moscow 1500!?

[@joemcm1]

@@deano27671 he wasnt interested in that race,like ive always said he let coe win.anyways deano weve been arguing the merits of coe and ovett for years-we will never know which is part of the mystique of it all

[@joemcm1]

@@deano27671 been saying for years-ovett let him win

[@GOATAli]

kipketer notwinning gold was a bigger disappointment. kipketer was even more dominant

[@davidshannon2860]

GOATAli no he wasn't more dominant Coe wud have beaten him at his peak no doubt

[@mathematics5573]

I also disagree. AI agree with David Shannon: Coe at best, if he'd done modern training, would have challenged Kipketer and Rudisha. Possibly beaten him quite a lot. Coe probably would have run under 1.41 in the 2000s.

[@fitzieo1]

Yes it's true about the 3 faces with Overt O believe one was due to take place over 3000 metres. Deano will correct me, I am sure.

[@mathematics5573]

Coe should have run a 45 sec final lap their and run a 1.39 800m time

[@1976stoney]

Coleman undersold it. It was a 24.14 last 200 which could have been a 23.9 if he'd run hard to the line! Unheard of.

[@charlesthorndike2702]

Last 200m: 24.12 (!) Last 100m: 12.0

[@adamd4390]

Shouldnt of let that starter loose with the gun really

[@johnrogan9420]

Blood doping...like carrying an oxygen tank internally...no lactic acid ..S.Coe...what a cheater!