oldoldrunner wrote:
And we were denied the best of Henry Rono. In January of 1980 a very fit Rono went to Australia and ran a 27:31 10k all by himself. I remember reading that this time was off base running only and that great things were to come at the Moscow Olympics. Then a runner's(s) dream was smashed. The 1980 Olympic Boycott. Sadly to say Henry Rono was never quite the same runner again.
If no boycott, Rono, Yifter (1980 Olymic 10k champ) and young 27:29 American Craig Virgin on that starting line. Almost 30-years later and I still say F@#$#$$g politics.
Amen. The Moscow Games change dramatically if you add all of the athletes whose countries boycott the Games. Here is the All-Time World list going into the 1980 games.
The two runners who would have attacked the race relentlessly were the two fastest all-time.
1 27.22.47 Henry Rono
2 27.29.16 Craig Virgin
3 27.30.30 Brendan Foster
4 27.30.47 Samson Kimobwa
5 27.30.8 (Dave Bedford)
6 27.30.99 Martti Vainio
7 27.31.48 Venanzio Ortis
8 27.31.50 Aleksandr Antipov
9 27.36.27 David Black
10 27.36.64 Gerard Tebroke
11 27.36.8 Karl Fleschen
12 27.37.88 Fernando Mamede
13 27.38.6 Lasse Viren
14 37.39.4 (Ron Clarke)
15 27.39.6 (Emil Puttemens)
16 27.39.76 Mike McLeod
17 27.40.06 Ilie Floroiu
18 27.40.61 Enn Sellik
19 27.41.0 Miruts Yifter
20 27.41.25 Jos Hermens
21 27.41.26 Knut Kvalheim
22 27.41.34 Leon Schots
23 27.41.89 Aleksandr Fedotkin
24 27.41.92 Michael Musyoki
25 27.41.95 Dick Quax
26 27.42.09 Detlef Uhlemann
27 27.42.65 Carlos Lopes
28 27.42.65 Franco Fava
29 27.42.69 Miruts Yifter
30 27.42.8 Frank Zimmermann
31 27.43.03 Ian Stewart
32 27.43.44 Toshihiko Seko
33 27.43.6 (Steve Prefontaine)
34 27.44.28 Kaarlo Maaninka
35 27.44.64 Mohamed Kedir