Yeah this is an example of Coe's weakness in slow tactical races. His 3rd lap here is an unmitigated disaster - he spends so much energy getting passed at the 850m mark then having to surge back onto the shoulder of Gonzalez running in lane 2 on the curves. I don't agree that simply "Coe at his best" wins this race because that's a purely physical thing and let's not forget Cram was in pretty good shape too - he won the Commonwealth 800m in 1.43.2 running 51.8X & 51.3X in Edinburgh (as well as the 1500 of course). Either way it was a good championships for Coe to finally win an 800 that mattered and fair that Cram walked away with something too as he was the best MD runner in the world that year
As 2:42 (of the video, 2:07 of the race) Coe appears to try to pass Cram and then goes backwards quite suddenly. Did their elbows collide as Cram held him off?
Cram had the better mile time, so on pure pace, surely he would be the favorite. Coe relied on being able to follow Cram, use his wind shield, then use his better finishing kick.
Coe clearly doesn't care in this race whether he won or not. He had finally won an 800m major championships. He just didn't care enough and is half asleep He said as much afterwards.
@@bfc3057 It's interesting that he was initially dismissive of Ovett's comment in 1980 when he said that he didn't have the same desire for the 1500m after winning the 800m in Moscow but said that he understood exactly what he meant after these championships.
Nobody could give Cram yardage at his best. Coe had to mark him like a limpet to have a chance. Wide running and letting the supreme stayer get away was suicide. Never thought he was the brightest spark in the box on or off the track. Amazing and unique ability, but here driving a Porsche in to a tree.
enough of this Coe-Cram chatter. Gladwin is the man. Okay maybe not as fast as the other two but he did come to my school when I was a lad and gave us some athletic coaching, top bloke!
sebby was looking for crammy after the finish of the 800m in this but steve had exited the track area apparently in deep dejection, considering dropping out of the 15. if you look at the finish of this race, the 1500, seb is definitely smiling about steve winning. I think sebby just didn't care to win the 15 since winning a major 800 title was so much more important to him. yes, the 15 title would have been good to win, but the 800 awards were the ones that coe really wanted. I wouldn't go so far as to say coe let cram win, but you have to say I believe winning the 1500 was more important to cram than it was to sebby. in a way, I am reminded of the 1980 Olympics and how different that era of middle distance history might have been if coe had won the 800 and ovett had won the 1500.
I have to agree with you. I think Coe and Cram came to an agreement to share the honours at this Championship. Cram guaranteed Coe the 800 and Coe guaranteed Cram the 1500. Their performances were inconsistent with their form. If you saw Cram's form in the CG, he was light years better over 800 and 1500 than he was here. In the 800 he was 1.5 seconds quicker and would have left Coe over 10 metres behind him. Coe knew that he needed to cement his 800m credentials in what he knew would be his last credible major championship challenge. I reckon they did a deal. Coe's smile was that of a secret acknowledgement of the completion of a gentlemen's contract.
Coe loses this race at 2;21 when he loses contact with Cram and has to come around wide on the last two bends, Cram running for home at 300M is a big issue if you're adrift, Coe said himself for the LA 84 1500, no matter what he could not let Cram be ahead of him at any point in the race, thus race showed why. That being said, great run by Cram, he learned from his LA experience.
+David Shreeves: Coe was ill at the Commonwealth Games in '86, he caught a virus, as did a lot of the team. I don't remember him having hepatitis, he did have toxoplasmosis between 1982 & 1984, which is similar apparently, he did also seem to catch flu, cold more often after he caught toxoplasmosis . I think his form here was his best since LA, he won the 800 at the Europeans in 86 and ran 3:29:77 a short time later in Rieti his fastest time ever for the 1500m
Having won the 800 title only 3 or 4 days earlier with an outstanding kick that left Cram for dust, this defeat was totally inexcusable, especially as Coe was THE definitive 1500m specialist tactician (along with Steve Ovett) of his era, despite his denial of this and his publically stated preference for the 800m. I agree with you 100%. He lost this race at 600m - 700m out when he decided to follow Cram instead of get in front of him. Worse than that, he allowed minor athletes, like Jose Gonzales to box him. What is completely baffling though is that Cram won this race with a 53 second last lap, whereas Coe would routinely close with 51 second last laps for finishing times like this. It wouldn't surprise me if Coe really threw this race.
I think that year he was concentrating on 800m. Tom McKean got the 3rd 800 spot for the Europeans by finishing in front of Elliott at the Commonwealth Games.
athleticscoach2012 I meant in major championships eg. 1978/1982 Europeans and on other occasions. Yes, he did break world records because he went for it albeit with a pacemaker. The likes of Olaf Beyer and Hans Peter Ferner should never have beaten him - he was watching Steve Ovett too much I feel and should have had the courage of his convictions IMHO. But hey, what great athletes over the middle distances we had then - halcyon days...
SIMON WOODS in 1978 Europeans Coe lead front ran the entire first 600m leading through 400m in 49.32 a then unheard of first lap, The only race he ran badly tactically was the 1980 800m probably because he had tried to front run against Ovett and it did not work. In 1982 he was ill and after the 800m pulled out of the 1500m it had nothing to do with tactics. If Coe, Ovett or Cram had tried to lead out from the gun against each other they would have got beat because they were too close in ability. You are right about those days though we will not see their like again
athleticscoach2012 No pal. Coe only ran from the front in Grand Prix meetings where he was going for world records. He never risked going for world records in major events.
athleticscoach2012 Coe ran badly here just gave cram to much of a lead with 600 to go sometimes Coe was tactly bad like in Moscow 800 he shud of easily won that cram was tactically a better athlete
Just watched J Ingbrigtsen 2022! Tactics? Control from the front, run hard. Hardly seem like tactics at all. These older races seem so much more physical and dangerous, because they're going slower I guess.
Hadn't really noticed before but Coe had ample opportunity to get closer to Cram when the pace was still relatively slow before they reached the bell. Would be interesting to know his thoughts on that. Also noticed just how limp and pathetic Cram's celebrations were (not just here), in contrast to his dominant and impressive races.
I think perhaps a lot of expectation was on Cram, so it was probably just relief to have got it done, plus he had had some injury problems leading up to this.
Steeve Cram est comme John Mac Enroe, il touche à peine le tartan tout comme le tennisman effleurait la balle avec sa raquette. Très grand athlète britannique !
Coen was very small cram had a massive advantage his stride length was very big that's a huge advantage also cram because he was taller obviously had more strength and power very difficult for coen because he was average height
@davejordan7272, Coe was elite, but I respectfully disagree with your statement. Cram was the defending champ in the European Championships 1500m and Cram held the European record at the time of the above video. Cram’s record was 3 seconds faster than Coe’s Olympic record performance at the 1984 games in LA (I use LA as my example since it’s consistent with your “2 years earlier” claim). Cram shouldn’t be overlooked as an elite runner and a credible rival to Coe.
@@ROFusion don’t get me wrong here cram was an unbelievable athlete however his record compared to Coe is not as impressive Cram won 1 Olympic medal finishing behind Coe ,Coe won 4, cram broke 3 world records Coe broke 9 outdoor WR and 3 indoor , not quite sure where you get 3 seconds from Coe ,Cram and Ovett we’re knocking of 1/100th of seconds off Coe WR 1500 m stood at 3.29.77, Cram was 3.29.67 Coe mile record stood at 3.47.33, Cram stood at 3.46.32 Cram was a great track athlete but for me record shows Coe was ahead of him
@@davejordan7272 The 3 seconds thing is in reference to Seb running 3:32 at the 84 Olympics (an Olympic record at the time) compared to Cram’s Euro record of 3:29. The above video is from 1986, so I was citing Coe’s 1984 performance so I could directly address your claim. As far as everything else you said, keep in mind that I already consider Coe elite, so I’m not denigrating his body of work. I’m just pointing out that a prime-level Cram was at a high enough level that a prime-level Coe wouldn’t simply (in your words) “blitz” Cram as if Cram was some generic, forgettable athlete.
@@ROFusion generic forgettable athlete, not at no point have i suggested that. A bit over the top, that one .I said in his prime coe would blitz them all, and blitz in some sports means by a long way but as you know in athletics terms blitz could only mean a matter of seconds or less , how often do you here the quote he SMASHED the world rcord and yet it’s sometimes its a second or even less cram at one point finishing 10 meters behind Coe in a World Cup race and a golden mile,I suppose one thing I hope we can agree on they were both great middle distance runners in an unbelievable era of British runners,Coe,Ovett, Cram, Elliott,McKean , Coghlan, Morecroft
cram was fantastic in this,coe looked leggy-v like ovett in the 1983 world 1500m.coe takes silver,no disgrace in that.what id give to see all three at their 'true peaks' in the same race and if you could chuck in aouita aswel.if u exclude the 800 which coe would win in both a championship and record chase(tbf cram and aouita werent really 800m runners)and go for 1500 and the mile-id say mile 1.ovett 2.cram 3.coe 4.aouita 1500m 1.ovett 2.coe 3.cram 4.aouita for championship final.for chasing records mile 1-4 any of them but suspect ovett tbh,1500m 1-4 any of them but suspect cram.id also have loved to see a peak ovett take on a peak aouita at 5000m,probs aouita would win in a record chase but in a championship id take ovett.ovett is now v underrated.
Of all the greats of the era, I'd have to agree that Steve Ovett was the ultimate racing athlete over the 1500m upwards. He had 45 straight wins over three seasons from 1977 to 1980.
I love watching these old races. Many thanks
Steve Cram always does it in style!
Coe in a Moscow state of mind, blows it completely. 'I ran like a goon' he said.
Yeah this is an example of Coe's weakness in slow tactical races. His 3rd lap here is an unmitigated disaster - he spends so much energy getting passed at the 850m mark then having to surge back onto the shoulder of Gonzalez running in lane 2 on the curves. I don't agree that simply "Coe at his best" wins this race because that's a purely physical thing and let's not forget Cram was in pretty good shape too - he won the Commonwealth 800m in 1.43.2 running 51.8X & 51.3X in Edinburgh (as well as the 1500 of course). Either way it was a good championships for Coe to finally win an 800 that mattered and fair that Cram walked away with something too as he was the best MD runner in the world that year
As 2:42 (of the video, 2:07 of the race) Coe appears to try to pass Cram and then goes backwards quite suddenly. Did their elbows collide as Cram held him off?
this is an example of Cram's weakness..Too slow when the record was hitting 3:29's..Cram never ran fast again.
Cram had the better mile time, so on pure pace, surely he would be the favorite. Coe relied on being able to follow Cram, use his wind shield, then use his better finishing kick.
Coe clearly doesn't care in this race whether he won or not. He had finally won an 800m major championships. He just didn't care enough and is half asleep
He said as much afterwards.
@@bfc3057 It's interesting that he was initially dismissive of Ovett's comment in 1980 when he said that he didn't have the same desire for the 1500m after winning the 800m in Moscow but said that he understood exactly what he meant after these championships.
Nobody could give Cram yardage at his best. Coe had to mark him like a limpet to have a chance. Wide running and letting the supreme stayer get away was suicide. Never thought he was the brightest spark in the box on or off the track. Amazing and unique ability, but here driving a Porsche in to a tree.
enough of this Coe-Cram chatter. Gladwin is the man. Okay maybe not as fast as the other two but he did come to my school when I was a lad and gave us some athletic coaching, top bloke!
Yep, never given enough credit.
sebby was looking for crammy after the finish of the 800m in this but steve had exited the track area apparently in deep dejection, considering dropping out of the 15. if you look at the finish of this race, the 1500, seb is definitely smiling about steve winning. I think sebby just didn't care to win the 15 since winning a major 800 title was so much more important to him. yes, the 15 title would have been good to win, but the 800 awards were the ones that coe really wanted. I wouldn't go so far as to say coe let cram win, but you have to say I believe winning the 1500 was more important to cram than it was to sebby. in a way, I am reminded of the 1980 Olympics and how different that era of middle distance history might have been if coe had won the 800 and ovett had won the 1500.
Wat a load of bull
James Ford Hahaha!!!
I have to agree with you. I think Coe and Cram came to an agreement to share the honours at this Championship. Cram guaranteed Coe the 800 and Coe guaranteed Cram the 1500. Their performances were inconsistent with their form. If you saw Cram's form in the CG, he was light years better over 800 and 1500 than he was here. In the 800 he was 1.5 seconds quicker and would have left Coe over 10 metres behind him. Coe knew that he needed to cement his 800m credentials in what he knew would be his last credible major championship challenge. I reckon they did a deal. Coe's smile was that of a secret acknowledgement of the completion of a gentlemen's contract.
i would agree.same with ovett in the moscow 1500.coe and ovett supreme competitors but had a human side too
Look like a 1:50 last 800 meters.
World class
Do you have Mile ER 3:46.33 ?
2:07 through 800M is ridiculous slow
Coe loses this race at 2;21 when he loses contact with Cram and has to come around wide on the last two bends, Cram running for home at 300M is a big issue if you're adrift, Coe said himself for the LA 84 1500, no matter what he could not let Cram be ahead of him at any point in the race, thus race showed why. That being said, great run by Cram, he learned from his LA experience.
+David Shreeves: Coe was ill at the Commonwealth Games in '86, he caught a virus, as did a lot of the team. I don't remember him having hepatitis, he did have toxoplasmosis between 1982 & 1984, which is similar apparently, he did also seem to catch flu, cold more often after he caught toxoplasmosis . I think his form here was his best since LA, he won the 800 at the Europeans in 86 and ran 3:29:77 a short time later in Rieti his fastest time ever for the 1500m
Having won the 800 title only 3 or 4 days earlier with an outstanding kick that left Cram for dust, this defeat was totally inexcusable, especially as Coe was THE definitive 1500m specialist tactician (along with Steve Ovett) of his era, despite his denial of this and his publically stated preference for the 800m. I agree with you 100%. He lost this race at 600m - 700m out when he decided to follow Cram instead of get in front of him. Worse than that, he allowed minor athletes, like Jose Gonzales to box him. What is completely baffling though is that Cram won this race with a 53 second last lap, whereas Coe would routinely close with 51 second last laps for finishing times like this. It wouldn't surprise me if Coe really threw this race.
Where was Peter Elliott? We would have replicated the 800m clean sweep had he been selected.
I think that year he was concentrating on 800m. Tom McKean got the 3rd 800 spot for the Europeans by finishing in front of Elliott at the Commonwealth Games.
John Gladwin was given the third spot on account of his silver medal at the Commonwealth Games a month earlier.
How blessed we were in those days but why did Seb never have the courage of his convictions and just RUN ... make the others chase him?
What like in the numerous world records he front ran and the Olympic 1500m final which he won from the bell!
athleticscoach2012 I meant in major championships eg. 1978/1982 Europeans and on other occasions. Yes, he did break world records because he went for it albeit with a pacemaker. The likes of Olaf Beyer and Hans Peter Ferner should never have beaten him - he was watching Steve Ovett too much I feel and should have had the courage of his convictions IMHO. But hey, what great athletes over the middle distances we had then - halcyon days...
SIMON WOODS in 1978 Europeans Coe lead front ran the entire first 600m leading through 400m in 49.32 a then unheard of first lap, The only race he ran badly tactically was the 1980 800m probably because he had tried to front run against Ovett and it did not work. In 1982 he was ill and after the 800m pulled out of the 1500m it had nothing to do with tactics. If Coe, Ovett or Cram had tried to lead out from the gun against each other they would have got beat because they were too close in ability. You are right about those days though we will not see their like again
athleticscoach2012 No pal. Coe only ran from the front in Grand Prix meetings where he was going for world records. He never risked going for world records in major events.
athleticscoach2012 Coe ran badly here just gave cram to much of a lead with 600 to go sometimes Coe was tactly bad like in Moscow 800 he shud of easily won that cram was tactically a better athlete
Just watched J Ingbrigtsen 2022! Tactics? Control from the front, run hard. Hardly seem like tactics at all.
These older races seem so much more physical and dangerous, because they're going slower I guess.
Hadn't really noticed before but Coe had ample opportunity to get closer to Cram when the pace was still relatively slow before they reached the bell. Would be interesting to know his thoughts on that. Also noticed just how limp and pathetic Cram's celebrations were (not just here), in contrast to his dominant and impressive races.
I think perhaps a lot of expectation was on Cram, so it was probably just relief to have got it done, plus he had had some injury problems leading up to this.
Cram best middle distance runner to not get a gold, for a few years between the Olympics he was the best.
Coe lost position while the pace was too quick. That’s a disaster same like 1980 800m Olympic final.
He was an expert at that. Just lets people go past.
Steeve Cram est comme John Mac Enroe, il touche à peine le tartan tout comme le tennisman effleurait la balle avec sa raquette. Très grand athlète britannique !
1986 was Steve’s year
The mile is a Steve event, esp. in the 1980s... lol
Cram the man
Deus é tudo!
Coen was very small cram had a massive advantage his stride length was very big that's a huge advantage also cram because he was taller obviously had more strength and power very difficult for coen because he was average height
Coe past his best, 2 years previous he would have blitzed the whole field
@davejordan7272, Coe was elite, but I respectfully disagree with your statement. Cram was the defending champ in the European Championships 1500m and Cram held the European record at the time of the above video. Cram’s record was 3 seconds faster than Coe’s Olympic record performance at the 1984 games in LA (I use LA as my example since it’s consistent with your “2 years earlier” claim). Cram shouldn’t be overlooked as an elite runner and a credible rival to Coe.
@@ROFusion don’t get me wrong here cram was an unbelievable athlete however his record compared to Coe is not as impressive Cram won 1 Olympic medal finishing behind Coe ,Coe won 4, cram broke 3 world records Coe broke 9 outdoor WR and 3 indoor , not quite sure where you get 3 seconds from Coe ,Cram and Ovett we’re knocking of 1/100th of seconds off Coe WR 1500 m stood at 3.29.77, Cram was 3.29.67 Coe mile record stood at 3.47.33, Cram stood at 3.46.32 Cram was a great track athlete but for me record shows Coe was ahead of him
@@davejordan7272 The 3 seconds thing is in reference to Seb running 3:32 at the 84 Olympics (an Olympic record at the time) compared to Cram’s Euro record of 3:29. The above video is from 1986, so I was citing Coe’s 1984 performance so I could directly address your claim. As far as everything else you said, keep in mind that I already consider Coe elite, so I’m not denigrating his body of work. I’m just pointing out that a prime-level Cram was at a high enough level that a prime-level Coe wouldn’t simply (in your words) “blitz” Cram as if Cram was some generic, forgettable athlete.
@@ROFusion generic forgettable athlete, not at no point have i suggested that. A bit over the top, that one .I said in his prime coe would blitz them all, and blitz in some sports means by a long way but as you know in athletics terms blitz could only mean a matter of seconds or less , how often do you here the quote he SMASHED the world rcord and yet it’s sometimes its a second or even less cram at one point finishing 10 meters behind Coe in a World Cup race and a golden mile,I suppose one thing I hope we can agree on they were both great middle distance runners in an unbelievable era of British runners,Coe,Ovett, Cram, Elliott,McKean , Coghlan, Morecroft
💕💕
Coe got the tactics wrong.....Again.
I wanted coe, I m not mad on cram
cram was fantastic in this,coe looked leggy-v like ovett in the 1983 world 1500m.coe takes silver,no disgrace in that.what id give to see all three at their 'true peaks' in the same race and if you could chuck in aouita aswel.if u exclude the 800 which coe would win in both a championship and record chase(tbf cram and aouita werent really 800m runners)and go for 1500 and the mile-id say mile 1.ovett 2.cram 3.coe 4.aouita 1500m 1.ovett 2.coe 3.cram 4.aouita for championship final.for chasing records mile 1-4 any of them but suspect ovett tbh,1500m 1-4 any of them but suspect cram.id also have loved to see a peak ovett take on a peak aouita at 5000m,probs aouita would win in a record chase but in a championship id take ovett.ovett is now v underrated.
Joe McMullen 100%agree
Of all the greats of the era, I'd have to agree that Steve Ovett was the ultimate racing athlete over the 1500m upwards. He had 45 straight wins over three seasons from 1977 to 1980.
@@UKAdvertsChannel but lost his 46th to 2 athletes in the most important 1500m of his life the 1980 1500m - Coe Gold and Straub silver
Steve Cram has been visiting Pat Butcher's hairdresser.
Kenyans with Kip Keino vibes needed...what a cake walk...3:41 should rate 10th place...not a gold medal.
Cram was good, so was Coe but was a poor looser.
whenever cram met coe and ovett and they were all fit cram won
Coe beat Cram days earlier in this championships and was the only man to defeat Cram in 1985
Lol. Except on the only 2 occasions when the 3 were all in the same race - The 1980 and 84 Olympic finals - when Coe won both!
@@deano27671 yes when cram and ovett were unfit
@@darrenshaw767 in the 800 : cram was a better 1500 runner
@@andrewallen3826 well I suggest you edit your post then. Lol
Karma to coe
Крєм красавец!
Can see tracks wet but crap time at that level
The first 800m was about 16 seconds outside world record pace!
@@trickygoose2 26 SECONDS more LIKE!!!!
Coe always lacked courage
@baw0909 Which is why he's got two gold medals.