On the 40th anniversary of the Los Angeles Olympics 3000m, here is an exclusive extract from the book Collision Course
“The first I saw the barefoot bullet from Bloemfontein in the flesh, I was sitting on a giant rubbish bin. Two months after arriving in England from South Africa during the ill-fated summer of 1984, Zola was running 1500m on a cold, blustery weekend at the UK Championships and the venue, Cwmbran Stadium in South Wales, was packed with spectators. So much so that I improvised by viewing the race from the top of a wheelie bin between the main stand and the home straight in order to see Zola escape an early stumble before cutting loose to win by six seconds in a world junior record of 4:04.39.
More than 30 years later, we meet for an interview at the Picturehouse cinema in London’s West End. The surroundings are rather more salubrious than Cwmbran Stadium and the chairs in the movie theatre’s members’ bar are considerably more comfortable than the temporary seat I took back in 1984 to watch her run. Some things do not change, though, such as Zola’s desire to take her shoes off. “They hurt me a little,” she says, before suggesting she’d feel better if she took them off.
For a moment I wonder if she is mischievously playing up to her reputation by throwing a tiny barefoot white lie into the start of our conversation. Or maybe her feet genuinely do have the urge to breathe. Either way, it is a nice touch of irony and later on, as I look back on the incident, I decide she was probably telling the truth, mainly because if there are three words to describe the way she comes across during our interview, they are: open, honest and natural.
When it comes to her personality, Zola is a complete contrast to the shy, reticent and nervous teenager who arrived in England in 1984. She turned 50 in May 2016 and is now a confident, assured middle-aged woman. Her slightly uncomfortable footwear aside, she wears an attractive black dress with a small yet prominent chain and crucifix around her neck. If she is a little overdressed for a quiet Friday afternoon in August, it is because she is attending a film premiere soon after our meeting.
It is no ordinary premiere either. The Fall, as it is called, is a documentary that looks at the early lives of herself and Mary as they build toward the eponymous moment in Los Angeles and both runners are in the British capital to attend the screening.
Not surprisingly, this is not the first time Zola has…
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