‘The Greatest Race’ - Men’s 1500m at the 1974 Commonwealth Games, Christchurch, NZ
From Tanzanian Farm to Commonwealth Fame
On 2 February 1974, a young, largely unknown Tanzanian athlete crossed the finish line of the final of the 1500m at the Commonwealth Games in Christchurch in a time of 3:32.2. Filbert Bayi, who came from farming stock in the Rift Valley and had built up his stamina herding cows and goats and running 8 miles to and from school every day, at 20 years of age, had smashed the World Record by almost a second.
2015 Getty Images
5 of the top 7 times in history in one race
Leading from the front, Bayi left home-favorite (and future gold medalist at the 1976 Montreal Olympics) John Walker, and a field that included three Olympic-medalists from Munich 1972, including New Zealand’s other middle-distance talent, Ron Dixon, in his wake.
Walker also went under the old World Record, while Ben Jipcho, Rod Dixon, and Graham Crouch ran the fourth, fifth, and seventh fastest 1500m times recorded at the time.
It is still classed as one of the greatest 1500m races of all time. There was no jockeying for position in the race; Bayi led from the beginning in a fast pace and was 20 metres ahead at 800 metres, the other runners strung out in a line behind him.
Sir Roger Bannister, the first athlete to ever break the 4-minute mile, called it “the greatest race I have ever seen.”
Run on a Sport Group Track
Sport Group’s global track brand is Rekortan, the world’s most certified track. However, the 1974 Commonwealth Games was run on a Laykold track. Laykold is now Sport Group’s global tennis court brand but in the 70s, the brand covered track also. Laykold is a small but important part of Sport Group’s 50-year legacy with track and field.
A formidable field in all disciplines
Beyond the 1500m, the track competition at the Games was high class, featuring many medalists from the 1972 Munich Olympics.
1972 Olympic Gold medalist Don Quarrie clinched the 100m and 200m Golds. Ben Jipcho, who won silver in Munich, ran Games records in both the 3000m steeplechase and 5000m with Brendon Foster (bronze in 1972) hot on his heels. Australia’s three-time Olympic silver medalist Raelene Boyle took the 100m and 200m double, while Mary Peters (1972 Olympic champion) won Pentathlon Gold with 4455 points.
“Walker also went under the old World Record, while Ben Jipcho, Rod Dixon, and Graham Crouch ran the fourth, fifth, and seventh fastest 1500m times recorded at the time.”
Changing the face of middle-distance running
Although the much-anticipated clash between Bayi and Walker never came to fruition at the 1976 Montreal Olympics due to an African boycott, Bayi’s win in Christchurch changed the face of middle distance running. He had proven the benefits of running hard from the gun, avoiding the pack and the dangers that come with it – a lesson he had learnt the hard way when he failed to progress from the heats at the Munich Games two years before.
"Think about the change that occurred in the 1500m at Christchurch. The 1500m was usually a slow race and then a sprint finish. But in 1974 I changed that from the beginning to the end." - Filbert Bayi
Bayi went on to win silver in the 3000m Steeplechase at the 1980 Moscow Olympics, which was run on the iconic Tartan track, also a Sport Group brand, and still available in Europe.