View source for Steve Ovett

{{Short description|British former middle-distance runner}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2014}}
{{Use British English|date=June 2012}}
{{Infobox sportsperson
| name = Steve Ovett <br /> <small>[[Order of the British Empire|OBE]]</small>
| image = SteveOvett.jpg
| image_size = 250
| caption = Ovett in [[Toronto]], [[Ontario]], Canada in September 1986
| sport = [[Track and field#Running|Track]]
| event = [[800&nbsp;metres]], [[1500&nbsp;metres]], [[Mile run|mile]], [[5000&nbsp;metres]]
| headercolor = lightsteelblue
| alias =
| club = 
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1955|10|09}}
| birth_place = [[Brighton]], [[Sussex]], England
| height = 6 ft 0 in
| weight = 154 lb
| turnedpro = 
| retired = 
| pb = '''[[800 metres|800 m]]''': 1:44.09<ref name="IAAF">{{cite web |url=https://www.iaaf.org/athletes/great-britain-ni/steve-ovett-2170 |author=IAAF |author-link=International Association of Athletics Federations |title=''Steve OVETT - Athlete Profile''}}</ref> <br> '''[[1500 metres|1500 m]]''': 3:30.77<ref name="IAAF"/> <br> '''[[Mile run|Mile]]''': 3:48.40<ref name="IAAF"/> <br> '''[[3000 metres|3000 m]]''': 7:41.3<ref name="IAAF"/> <br> '''[[Two miles|2-mile]]''': 8:13.51<ref name="IAAF"/> <br> '''[[5000 meters|5000 m]]''': 13:20.06<ref name="IAAF"/>
| olympics =
| worlds =
| highestranking = 
| coaching =
| updated = 
| medaltemplates = 
{{Medal|Sport|Men's [[Athletics (sport)|athletics]]}}
{{Medal|Country | {{GBR2}} }}
{{Medal|Competition|[[Olympic Games]]}}
{{Medal|Gold|[[1980 Summer Olympics|1980 Moscow]]|[[Athletics at the 1980 Summer Olympics – Men's 800 metres|800 m]]}}
{{Medal|Bronze|[[1980 Summer Olympics|1980 Moscow]]|[[Athletics at the 1980 Summer Olympics – Men's 1500 metres|1500 m]]}}
{{Medal|Comp|[[European Athletics Championships|European Championships]]}}
{{Medal|Gold|[[1978 European Championships in Athletics|1978 Prague]]|[[1978 European Athletics Championships – Men's 1500 metres|1500 m]]}}
{{Medal|Silver|[[1974 European Championships in Athletics|1974 Rome]]|[[1974 European Athletics Championships – Men's 800 metres|800 m]]}}
{{Medal|Silver|[[1978 European Championships in Athletics|1978 Prague]]|[[1978 European Athletics Championships – Men's 800 metres|800 m]]}}
{{Medal|Competition|[[IAAF World Cup]]}}
{{Medal|Gold| [[1977 IAAF World Cup|1977 Düsseldorf]] |1500 m}}
{{Medal|Gold| [[1981 IAAF World Cup|1981 Rome]] |1500 m}}
{{Medal|Country|{{ENG}}}}
{{Medal|Comp|[[Athletics at the Commonwealth Games|Commonwealth Games]]}}
{{Medal|Gold|[[1986 Commonwealth Games|1986 Edinburgh]]|[[5000 m]]}}
}}

'''Stephen Michael James Ovett''', {{post-nominals|country=GBR|OBE}} ({{IPAc-en|oʊ|ˈ|v|ɛ|t}}; born 9 October 1955) is a retired British track athlete. A [[middle-distance runner]], he was the [[gold medalist]] in the [[800 metres]] at the [[1980 Summer Olympics|1980 Olympic Games]] in [[Moscow]]. Ovett set five [[List of world records in athletics|world records]] for [[1500 metres]] and the [[mile run]], and a world best at [[two miles]]. He won 45 consecutive 1500 and mile races from 1977 to 1980.

==Early life==
Born in [[Brighton]], [[Sussex]], and educated at [[Varndean College|Varndean Grammar School]], Ovett was a talented teenage athlete. As a youngster, he showed great promise as a [[football (soccer)|football]]er, but gave it up for athletics, because he preferred individual rather than team sports.{{Citation needed|date=August 2009}} As a youngster he won the under-15 (Junior boys) [[English Schools' Athletics Championships]] title at [[400 metres]] in 1970 and the under-17 (Intermediate boys) 800 metres title in 1972.<ref>{{cite web |title=List of English Schools' Athletics Championships boys winners |url=http://www.gbrathletics.com/bc/esb.htm |website=GBRATHLETICS |access-date=21 January 2020}}</ref>

==Athletics career==
===Early promise===
Ovett's first major athletics title came in 1973, when he won the 800 metres at the [[1973 European Athletics Junior Championships]]. The following year, still only aged 18, he won the silver medal at 800 metres in the [[1974 European Athletics Championships]], setting a new European Junior 800 m record of 1:45.77 in the process.<ref name="The Perfect Distance">{{cite book |last=Butcher |first=Pat |title=The Perfect Distance: Ovett and Coe - The Record Breaking Rivalry |year=2005 |publisher=Phoenix Press |isbn=0-7538-1900-7 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/perfectdistanceo0000butc }}</ref><ref name="uka">{{cite web |url=http://www.uka.org.uk/e-inspire/hall-of-fame-athletes/steve-ovett/ |title=UKA Steve Ovett |publisher=Uka.org.uk |access-date=3 September 2011}}</ref> Ovett won [[Amateur Athletic Association of England|AAA]] titles in the 800 m from 1974 to 1976; he would later add to these AAA titles by winning the 1500 m in 1979 and the [[Mile run|mile]] in 1980.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nuts.org.uk/Champs/AAA/index.htm |title=AAA, WAAA and National Championships Medallists |website=National Union of Track Statisticians |access-date=30 May 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gbrathletics.com/bc/aaa.htm |title=AAA Championships (men) |website=GBR Athletics |access-date=30 May 2025}}</ref>

Ovett gained some Olympic experience in [[1976 Summer Olympics]] in [[Montreal, Quebec]], Canada, when he ran in [[Athletics at the 1976 Summer Olympics – Men's 800 metres|the final of the 800 m]] and was placed fifth, behind winner [[Alberto Juantorena]] of [[Cuba]]. Ovett finished fifth because he ran the first lap too inconsistently.<ref name="The Perfect Distance"/> He failed to reach the 1500 m final, having been obstructed in the semi-final when Canadian athlete Dave Hill fell and Ovett had to hurdle over him. As this happened 170 m from the finish, Ovett had little time to recover, and was out-sprinted to the line by fellow countryman, [[Dave Moorcroft]], with Ovett finishing only sixth.<ref>Simon Turnbull "Steve Ovett - Portrait of an Athlete", 1982, p58</ref>

===Breakthrough to world prominence===
In 1977, Ovett began to regularly defeat the 1500 metres Olympic champion [[John Walker (runner)|John Walker]]. In the early season Debenhams Mile, Ovett defeated Walker and set a British record of 3:54.7. Then in the European Cup 1500 m, Ovett produced a last lap of 52.4 seconds to win a fiercely competitive race just ahead of his friend and rival [[Thomas Wessinghage]]. At the inaugural [[IAAF World Cup in Athletics]], he commenced a "[[Kick (running)|kick]]" with 200 m to go, running the final turn in 11.8 s and the last 200 m in 25.1 s. He left John Walker and the rest of the field far behind. He won gold ahead of Wessinghage. As Ovett raced away from the field, [[Ron Pickering]], commenting for the race on BBC Television, said "and there's one man's blazing speed that has torn this field asunder". Ovett's time of 3:34.45 was a British record.{{CN|date=July 2025}}

The British public by now showed a keen interest in Ovett, and it was at the [[1978 European Championships in Athletics#Track|European Championships]] in 1978, that he raced against [[Sebastian Coe]] for the first time in their senior careers, beginning a rivalry that was widely covered. He led Coe in the 800 m and appeared to be on his way to gold, before being caught by the [[East Germany|East German]] [[Olaf Beyer]], whose time of 1:44:09 turned out to be his fastest ever 800 m run. Coe finished 3rd. At the time the British press reported that Coe and Ovett had clashed after the race but Coe later revealed: "When Steve came over, he put his hand on my shoulder and said something. The media thought we were having a row, but what Steve actually said was, 'Who the fuck was that?'"<ref name="uka" /><ref name="times">{{cite web |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/article616564.ece |title=Sport |publisher=Timesonline.co.uk |date=20 June 2013 |access-date=20 July 2014}}{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> Ovett recovered to win the gold medal in the 1500 m, in which Coe did not participate. In that race, Ovett waved to the crowd on the home straight and clearly slowed down in the last metres yet still won by over a second from [[Ireland]]'s [[Eamonn Coghlan]].<ref name="The Perfect Distance"/>

In 1978, Ovett set extremely fast times at disparate distances. He ran an 800 m in 1:44.09 (the world record at the time was [[Alberto Juantorena]]'s 1:43.44) and set a [[2 miles|2-mile]] world's best with 8:13.51, handing ''[[Track & Field News]]'' Athlete of the Year [[Henry Rono]] one of his few losses in his record-breaking season.

During his career, Ovett was noted for the unusual range of his races; shortly before the 1980 Olympics, he ran four events of four different lengths in 10 days: a mile in [[Oslo]], 800 metres in [[Gothenburg]], 600 m at Crystal Palace and 3000 m in [[Welwyn Garden City]]. In 1977, when an airline strike forced him to miss a scheduled event, he signed up at the last minute for the Dartford half-marathon and won it with ease, wearing borrowed shoes, in a time of 1:05:38,<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.ukresults.net/history/77darthalf.html | title=John Schofield - Race Results Service - Dartford Half Marathon, Kent 20th August 1977 }}</ref> running a course more than twice as long as anything he had attempted in public before, against the British marathon champion.<ref name="guardianolysrs"/>

Ovett arrived at the [[1980 Summer Olympics|1980 Moscow Olympics]] as favourite to take the 1500 m title, being unbeaten over the 1500 m and the mile for three years.<ref name="guardianolysrs">{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2012/apr/18/50-olympic-moments-coe-ovett-moscow-1980 |title=50 stunning Olympic moments No23: Coe v Ovett, Moscow 1980 |date=18 April 2012 |work=The Guardian |author=Simon Burnton}}</ref> Earlier that month, he had established a new mile [[world record]] of 3:48.8 and two weeks later equalled [[Sebastian Coe]]'s world record of 3:32.1 in the 1500 m. The Moscow Olympics marked only the second time that Ovett and Coe had met each other in international competition (the first being the 800 m in the 1978 European Championships), and there was huge media speculation over which would emerge as the greater.

Ovett's participation in the 800 m would serve as a test for the 1500 m. In the 800 m final, Ovett was only in sixth place at the halfway mark, but pushed his way through the crowd to second place. Seventy metres from the line, Ovett took the lead and held off a challenge from Coe to win by four metres.<ref name="guardianolysrs"/> In the 1500 m, contested six days later, Ovett ran close behind Coe's shoulder for most of the race, but on the final bend Coe made a strong 'kick' and Ovett dropped two metres behind, unable to close the gap in the home straight. Coe won gold, East Germany's [[Jürgen Straub]], who had accelerated after 800 metres, held off Ovett for the silver medal, and Ovett had to settle for bronze.<ref name="The Perfect Distance"/>

[[File:800 meter track at the 1984 Summer Olympics.jpg|thumb|189 px|Ovett in an 800 metres quarter-final at the 1984 Summer Olympics]]

Though in 1980 Ovett had tied Coe's 1500 m world record of 3:32.1, new timing rules came into effect in 1981, which would recognise records over [[400 metres|400 m]] to the hundredth of a second. This would have the effect of giving Coe sole possession of the record, as Coe ran 3:32.03 to Ovett's 3:32.09. However, Ovett avoided this unusual removal of a record via rule change by setting a new record later in 1980 of 3:31.36.

During 1981, both Ovett and Coe were at their peak. They did not meet in a race that year but [[World record progression for the mile run|exchanged world records in the mile three times during a 9-day period]]. Ovett suffered an upset in a 1500 m race in Oslo that year. With Ovett and Coe so dominant and Coe not involved in the race, Ovett was the strong favourite. During the race [[Tom Byers (athlete)|Tom Byers]], who had been asked to act as a [[Pacemaker (running)|pacemaker]] set off quickly and the pack, being given the split times for the leader and believing that they were going faster than they actually were, declined to follow his pace. As a result, by the start of the last lap Byers had a lead of almost ten seconds and so decided to finish the race. Ovett ran the last lap almost nine seconds quicker than Byers but finished second by 0.53s, later commenting "We all ran like a load of hacks."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.espn.com/moresports/columns/hollobaugh_jeff/69968.html |title=ESPN.com - MORESPORTS - How low can Loroupe go? |publisher=Espn.go.com |date=21 September 1999 |access-date=3 September 2011}}</ref>

Ovett's 1982 season was wrecked by injury. When out training on the streets of Brighton in late 1981, he tripped and impaled his thigh on some low railings at [[St John the Baptist's Church, Hove|St John the Baptist Church]] on Church Road.<ref name="guardianolysrs"/> He had recovered by the spring of 1982, but further injuries hampered his progress.

===Later career===
He returned to action in 1983, although once again his season had been hampered by injuries, which resulted in his not being selected for the 800 m at the [[1983 World Championships in Athletics|World Championships]] in [[Helsinki]]. He was selected for the 1500 m, but ran a poor tactical race in the final and finished 4th, behind winner [[Steve Cram]]. He was yet to reach his peak for 1983, which followed with a 1500 m world record of 3:30.77 in [[Rieti]]. A few days later, he finished a close 2nd to Steve Cram in an epic mile race in [[Crystal Palace National Sports Centre|Crystal Palace]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Steve OVETT|url=https://www.worldathletics.org/athletes/great-britain-ni/steve-ovett-14346067 |website=World Athletics |access-date=29 July 2020}}</ref>

In 1984, after a successful season of winter training in [[Australia]], Ovett's progress was slightly hampered by minor injuries and a bout of [[bronchitis]]. He attempted to defend his 800 m title in the [[1984 Summer Olympics|1984 Olympic Games]], but after arriving in [[Los Angeles]] he began to suffer from respiratory problems.<ref name="guardianolysrs"/> He was unlucky to be drawn against eventual winner [[Joaquim Cruz]] in each of his two heats and also the semi-final, in which he only narrowly qualified for the final, lunging for the finish in 4th place and appearing to collapse over the line. He had run 1:44:81, his second fastest time ever at the distance. He recovered in time to make the final, but was clearly below his best and finished eighth, after which he collapsed and spent two nights in hospital. Against the advice of his friends and doctors, he returned a few days later to compete in the 1500 m. Running in fourth place at the beginning of the last lap of the final, Ovett dropped out. He later collapsed with chest pains and was taken away on a stretcher.

His career then wound down, although in August 1986 he won the [[5000 metres|5000 m]] at the [[Commonwealth Games]] in [[Edinburgh]]. However, the following month, in the European Championships, he failed to finish in hot conditions, allowing [[Jack Buckner]] (GB) - whom Ovett had beaten with consummate ease in Edinburgh - to win the gold. In the [[1987 World Athletics Championships]], he finished a lacklustre tenth in the [[1987 World Championships in Athletics – Men's 5000 metres|5000-metres final]]. He then failed to make the [[1988 Summer Olympics|1988 Olympic]] team and finally announced his retirement in 1991, a year after Sebastian Coe.

==Post-retirement==
He has been a [[track and field]] [[television]] commentator for the [[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation]] since 1992. He now lives in [[Australia]] and was a part of the [[BBC]]'s on-location commentary team for the [[2006 Commonwealth Games]] in [[Melbourne]].

In 1987 a bronze statue of Steve Ovett was erected in [[Preston Park, Brighton]]. However, it was stolen in 2007, and later replaced in 2012 with a copy of the original. (The replacement is in Madeira Drive.)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/1661635.heros_statue_stolen_from_park/ |title=Athlete's statue stolen from park (From The Argus) |publisher=Theargus.co.uk |date=4 September 2007 |access-date=3 September 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/5075784.Steve_Ovett_to_start_Brighton_Marathon/ |title=Steve Ovett to start Brighton Marathon (From The Argus) |publisher=Theargus.co.uk |date=23 March 2010 |access-date=3 September 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/9834898.Steve_Ovett_statue_unveiled_in_Brighton/ |title=Steve Ovett statue unveiled in Brighton (From The Argus) |publisher=Theargus.co.uk |date=24 July 2012 |access-date=24 July 2012}}</ref>

==Personal life==
During the Moscow Games, the British press homed in on a signal Ovett had made to a television camera in Moscow, after his 800 m win. It later transpired that the signal represented the letters ILY (I love you) and were intended for his girlfriend, Rachel Waller (whom he later married, but from whom he is now divorced).<ref name="uka" />

His brother, [[Nick Ovett]], represented Great Britain at [[luge]] in the Winter Olympics of [[1988 Winter Olympics|1988]] and [[1992 Winter Olympics|1992]].<ref>{{cite web |author=Todor Krastev |url=http://www.todor66.com/olim/1988w/Luge_Men_Singles.html |title=Luge Men Singles Olympic Games 1988 Calgari (CAN) - 14,15.02 |publisher=Todor66.com |date=21 December 2009 |access-date=1 August 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author=Todor Krastev |url=http://www.todor66.com/olim/1992w/Luge_Men_Singles.html |title=Luge Men Singles XVI Winter Olympic Games 1992 Albertville(FRA) - 09,10.02 |publisher=Todor66.com |date=5 February 2012 |access-date=1 August 2013}}</ref>

Ovett's son [[Freddy Ovett|Freddy]] also showed promise as a middle distance runner, winning the U-13 Pan-Pacific 800 m title,<ref name="times" /> before switching to road cycling after sustaining a knee injury whilst at the [[University of Oregon]]. He joined the development squad of the French {{UCI team code|ALM|2015}} team in 2015.<ref>{{cite news |last=Clarke |first=Stuart |date=4 March 2015 |title=Steve Ovett's son swaps running for cycling |url=http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest-news/steve-ovetts-son-swaps-running-for-cycling-160712 |newspaper=[[Cycling Weekly]] |access-date=13 March 2015}}</ref>

==Personal bests==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Distance!!Time!!Date
|-
|[[400 metres]]||47.5||1974
|-
|[[800 metres]]||1:44.09||1978
|-
|[[1000 metres]]||2:15.91||1979
|-
|[[1500 metres]]||3:30.77||1983
|-
|[[Mile]]||3:48.40||1981
|-
|[[2000 metres]]||4:57.71||1982
|-
|[[3000 metres]]||7:41.3||1977
|-
|[[Two miles]]||8:13.51||1978
|-
|[[5000 metres]]||13:20.06||1986
|-
|[[Half Marathon]]||1:05:38||1977
|}
*From UK Athletics<ref name="uka" />

==References==
{{commons category|Steve Ovett}}
{{Reflist|2}}

{{s-start}}
{{s-ach|rec}}
{{succession box|title=Men's [[1500 metres world record]] holder|years=27 August 1980 – 28 August 1983<br>4 September 1983 – 16 July 1985
|before=[[Sebastian Coe]]|after=[[Sydney Maree]]
|before2=[[Sydney Maree]]|after2=[[Steve Cram]]}}
{{succession box|title=Men's [[mile run world record]] holder|years=1 July 1980 – 19 August 1981<br>26 August 1981 – 28 August 1981
|before=[[Sebastian Coe]]|after=[[Sebastian Coe]]
|before2=[[Sebastian Coe]]|after2=[[Sebastian Coe]]}}
{{succession box|before=[[Sebastian Coe]] &<br>Steve Ovett|title=[[European record progression 1500 metres men|Men's 1500 metres European record holder]]|years=27 August 1980 - 15 July 1985|after=[[Steve Cram]]}}
{{s-ach}}
{{succession box|title=[[BBC Sports Personality of the Year]]|before=[[Virginia Wade]] |after=[[Sebastian Coe]]|years=1978}}
{{s-end}}

{{Footer Olympic Champions 800 m Men}}
{{Footer Olympic Champions Great Britain Men}}
{{Footer European Champions 1500 m Men}}
{{Footer Commonwealth Champions 5000m Men}}
{{Footer IAAF World Cup Champions 1500m Men}}
{{Footer UK NC 1500 Metres Men}}
{{Footer WBYP 1500m Men}}
{{Footer WBYP Mile Men}}
{{BBC Sports Personality of the Year winners}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ovett, Steve}}
[[Category:1955 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Athletes from Brighton]]
[[Category:English men middle-distance runners]]
[[Category:British men middle-distance runners]]
[[Category:Olympic athletes for Great Britain]]
[[Category:Olympic gold medallists for Great Britain]]
[[Category:Olympic bronze medallists for Great Britain]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1976 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1980 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1984 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:English Olympic competitors]]
[[Category:Commonwealth Games gold medallists for England]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1986 Commonwealth Games]]
[[Category:European Athletics Championships medalists]]
[[Category:World Athletics Championships athletes for Great Britain]]
[[Category:World record setters in the sport of athletics]]
[[Category:BBC Sports Personality of the Year winners]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 1980 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Officers of the Order of the British Empire]]
[[Category:Olympic gold medalists in athletics]]
[[Category:Medallists at the 1986 Commonwealth Games]]
[[Category:Commonwealth Games gold medallists in athletics]]