Page "Steve Ovett" Paragraph 10

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 finish, he shot into the lead and held off Coe to win by three metres.

In the 1500 m, contested six days later, Coe won and Ovett had to settle for third place.

More specifically, Ovett ran behind Coe's shoulder for quite a long time, but on the final bend he fell two metres behind Coe and failed to close the gap in the home straight.

East Germany's Jürgen Straub, who had accelerated after 800 metres, held off Ovett for the silver medal.