Book
The Perfect Distance Ovett & Coe: The Record Breaking Rivalry
'A quarter of a century ago, Britain was a nation divided. It was not the split between those who loved the newly elected Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher with a strange passion, and those who hated her with visceral contempt. It was the not the ever-widening gap between the haves and the have-nots. It was not the traditional rift between the north and the south. But it was all of those things, and more. It was Steve Ovett versus Sebastian Coe.'
Steve Ovett and Sebastian Coe presided over the golden era of British athletics. Between them, they won three Olympic gold medals, two silvers and one bronze, and set seventeen world records. They were part of the landscape of the late 1970s and early 1980s, both household names, whose exploits were watched by millions. Before an age of video, satellite and digital television news channels. BBC and ITV evening news bulletins were often interrupted to accomodate their races live, and other breaking news of them. The pendulum of success swung between the pair of them for over a decade, each breaking the other's records, and memorably triumphing in each other's favourite event, in their big showdown at the Olympic Games in Moscow, which boasted the largest viewing figures in history for an athletics event. Their names were, and will remain inextricably linked.
"… treading in his footprints, before the dust could settle there" – a Homeric rivalry.
Testimonials
“Outstanding” – Irish Times
“…the author brilliantly recaptures the dramatic tension between these two giants of the track” – Sunday Telegraph
“.. their fierce rivalry transformed their clashes at the Olympics into unmissable events”. – Economist
“A magnificent book” – El Païs
“If ever an athletics track was graced by geniuses, these were the pair. Hopefully this account of their long rivalry will soon be translated into French” – Libération
“Written as meticulously as the runners’ preparation or their record breaking rivalry on the track” – Observer
“A beautifully researched account” – Independent
“A superb book” – Athletics International
“A masterpiece” – The Winged Foot
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