SPOTLIGHT NOSTALGIA

T

HE FINAL months of 1978 and early part

of 1979 were so bleak that the period

was dubbed by historians as ‘the winter

of discontent’. Suffering its lowest

temperatures for years, Britain was battered by

blizzards and snow storms. The harsh climate

meant some people were unable to do their jobs.

Weather aside, widespread trade union strikes

added to the misery.

Against this backdrop a slim, 22-year-old

middle-distance runner from Sheffield battled

the elements during his 70-mile training

weeks while simultaneously trying to complete

his final year of an economics degree at

Loughborough University. It was a gruelling

regimen but provided a rugged springboard for

a monumental summer on the track that would

see him break three world records in the space

of 41 days.

Going into the 1979 season, Coe was already

well known in athletics circles thanks to his

European indoor 800m title in 1977 and his bold

front-running tactics over 800m at the European

Championships in Prague in 1978, where an

unprecedented first lap of 49.32 saw him

ultimately fade to third behind Steve Ovett and

Olaf Beyer of East Germany. His PBs of 1:43.97

for 800m, 3:42.67 for 1500m and 3:57.67 for the

mile, though, were improved by around 1.5, 10

and 9 seconds respectively during a golden spell

AW CELEBRATES THE 40th

ANNIVERSARY OF SEB COE’S

‘THREE WORLD RECORDS IN

41 DAYS’ FROM 1979

WORDS: JASON HENDERSON

PICTURES: MARK SHEARMAN

’

‘

Oslo had witnessed many fine

world records over the years ... but

Coe’s 800m record was just as

sensational as he chopped just over

a second from Juantorena’s time

41

days

Three world records in 41 days in 1979

July 5 Oslo Bislett Games 800m 1:42.33 WR

July 17 Oslo Golden Mile One mile 3:48.95 WR

August 15 Zurich Weltklasse 1500m 3:32.03 WR