What is the greatest Olympic track race of all time?

What about Jauntorena completeing the 400/800 double in 76? Will we ever see that again?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtsTHhep_DA

For drama and build up nothing will ever come close to Coe v Ovett over 1500m at Moscow. Even though the wrong guy one and there have to be questions about Straub in the light of what was unearthed later about the East Germans.

Les wrote:

Kip Keino 1968... Ryun never really recovered from that loss.

That's what DEVASTATED is. You don't recover. There is no revastation.

and then wintruth wrote:

Amazing race and incredible finish from Wottle, but why do people keep saying it was a master performance from him? He ended up winning by a hair's breath, let a likely doped up Russian get a ridiculous lead over him. He was the best in the field (as his later world record showed), yet let the outcome of the race essentially be out of his control. It looked like he had something left at the end.

His world record was earlier! He was the world record holder and nearly let it slip away.

Thinking of the sprints, the 2000 400M hurdles were great. Angelo Taylor winning from Lane 1. Nobody wins from Lane 1 in a sprint race with a curve.

Now that you mention it, John Akii-Bua winning gold and setting the WR for 400m hurdles in Munich Olympics:

Bunch of youngsters on this site.

10,000m at 72 Olympics. This race had everything. Bedford ran 61 first lap, a world record and numerous national records and the winner Viren fell, picked himself up and proceeded to break the world record. You won't ever see that again.

By all accounts, the 10,000 in 1956 - Kuts v Pirie - is the greatest track race of all time. Unsurpassed in the brutality of the way Kuts destroyed the British great.

5,000 ; 1952 and 1976?

a doped one but a goodie

1980 moscow womens 800m

winner 1.53 and all finalists under 2 minutes

my vote is for the 1956 100m final. I can still see Bobby Morrow edging out Thane Baker to bring home the gold!! Where would the running world be today if this had never occurred? And we can't forget that the final was run into an 11 mph headwind.

That, my friends, is athletics!!!

Phelps in the 200 fly is the winner.

1996 : 100m: Christie, Fredericks, Mitchell, Boldon, Bailey...........

The 1988 Olympic 100m final is the most disgraceful since almost everyone was a known doper

the 100 is always doped

they were probably more doped 10 years later

olden sloh wrote:

1972 men's 800m

This ^^

El G and the guy on his hip both breaking WR in the mile... pretty solid.

Poop, you said "Olympic". Oh well, don't feel like deleting at this point :-)

I'm a big fan of the '88 and '96 Olympic marathons. Both had close finishes, with the latter being (IIRC) the only time in an Olympic marathon in which all three top finishers were in the stadium at the same time. And in '88 Gelindo Bordin's come back in the late stages to move from bronze to gold was pretty epic.

And then of course there are the old standards: Wottle's 800m in '72 which even today when I watch it, I can believe he actually pulls off, and the 5000m in that same year.

And while the 10,000 in '64 gets just recognition, I'm a big fan of the 5000 in '64 as well, because it was jam packed with talent (Schul, Jazy, Norpoth, Dellinger, Baillie, Clarke and a young Kip Keino), it had two Americans winning medals, and Schul's epic last 300 pretty much paved the sprint tactics of Farah and Rupp today.

1972 Games

West Germany's 4x1 women's relay victory over far superior East Germany squad.

Watch anchor leg Heide Rosenthal against Renate Stecher.

Sprinter Guy wrote:

Rio won't be nearly as competitive. Blake isn't what he was, Powell is out and Gay is out.

Although we now have bromell who ran 9.83 at trials. Another month older and stronger, he might go a little faster again at rio, and is more likely to recover well between races due to youth although gatlin and bolt seem to pull up fine after the semi's. Going to be a good one in my opinion.

Correct answer wrote:

Far from the greatest, but Kenny B 5000m in 2008 and T.Dibaba in 10000m in 2008. Both athletes at their absolute prime.

yeah, not the greatest race...but definitely a smackdown by Bekele in that race.

thank God....but I'm pretty disappointed the younger posters don't give history its due (and I'm mortified to describe 1980 as 'history'). Maybe we should have generational categories....12.1 in the final 100m and that furious final 700m has got to put this race at the top or very, very close.