http://sport.guardian.co.uk/london2012/story/0,14213,1411967,00.html
Grace, speed and determination won him two gold medals. Off the track he is just as competitive. This week he will be fighting to bring the 2012 Olympic Games to London Clare Balding Sunday February 13, 2005 The Observer Lord Sebastian Newbold Coe, OBE, BSc, prefers to be known as Seb. Slim, fit, intelligent, eloquent, well dressed and handsome, he cuts an impressive figure. He is 48, although the signs of advancing years are being battered into submission by a combination of regular exercise, careful diet, fresh air and what appears to be just a hint of tinted shampoo. The chairman of London's 2012 Olympic bid, Coe will be at the epicentre of this week's inspection by delegates from the International Olympic Committee. The report drawn up by the inspectors is crucial to London staging the Olympic Games. The visit must go smoothly, the presentations must be impressive and it would help if it doesn't tip down with rain. For mere mortals, it would be a week of sleepless nights and strange bowel movements but for the double Olympic champion, former Conservative MP, government whip and president of the Amateur Athletics Association, it is a challenge to be relished. After all, as Coe is fond of saying, 'stress is entirely self-inflicted'. Coe is one of life's great overachievers. There simply aren't enough pies for his multi-talented fingers, not enough challenges out there for a man who wants to prove himself over and again. He was one of the world's greatest ever middle-distance runners, moving with the grace and elegance of a thoroughbred racehorse. To watch him flow through a race was like watching a beautifully choreographed ballet, but the grim determination etched on his face belied the steel within. Looking good was useless if it did not produce results. In the late '70s and early '80s, Great Britain was divided, not by politics but by athletic allegiance. You were either with Coe or with Ovett. You couldn't be both. Ovett was rugged, moody and tough. He was not pretty to watch but he was seen as the honest, working class grafter, short on words but long on effort. Coe, with a degree in economics and social history from Loughborough, was the clean-cut, polite embodiment of middle-class suburbia. In girls' talk, Ovett was the bit of rough while Coe was the one you'd bring home to meet your parents. The two were not close friends. Coe was coached throughout his career by his father, Peter, a tough, sharp tongued, forceful character who cajoled and pushed all four of his children to make the most of themselves. His eldest son got the closest attention and the full force of his father's ambition. They had rows along the way but Coe has always paid generous tribute to his father, arguing that he would have been nothing without him. In 1973, when Coe was 17, Peter announced that his son would slice five seconds off the world record for the 1,500 metres. It was some prediction to live up to. In 1979, Coe set three world records in the space of 41 days over 800 metres, a mile and 1,500 metres. His mass appeal seemed to be confirmed when he was voted BBC Sports Personality of the Year at the age of 23 and without a gold medal to his name. The following year, Coe was favourite to win the 800 metres at the Moscow Olympics in 1980. He was beaten by Ovett. Having caught his breath and contained his surprise Coe said: 'Tomorrow is another day, and there will be another battle.' The two met again in the 1,500 metre final a few days later. Coe won, Ovett took the bronze medal. It was the first and most famous example of Coe's ability to pick himself up after defeat, dust himself off and come back revitalised. In Los Angeles in 1984, Coe again won the gold medal over 1,500 metres, the only man to win the title twice, and took silver over 800 metres. He was the first athlete to address the IOC on the subject of drugs and has always been a fierce critic of doping in sport. He was, however, accused of blood doping by an American athlete called Jeff Atkinson. Blood doping (the removal and subsequent re-injection of red blood cells in order to boost oxygen flow to the muscles) was made illegal in 1985. Coe has been the subject of exhaustive investigation by at least one British journalist intent on proving that he was not as clean as he appeared, without any evidence being uncovered. In 1988, his training interrupted by illness, he failed to make the final of the British Olympic trials in Birmingham. Steve Cram and Peter Elliott were now at the forefront of middle-distance running and the British selectors decided not to include Coe in the team for Seoul. Juan Antonio Samaranch, a long-time Coe admirer and then president of the IOC, tried to get the rules changed so that defending champions had automatic passage to the Olympic Games. He failed and Coe did not compete. The following year, he retired from athletics. In total, he set 12 world records, including a mark for the 800 metres that stood for 16 years and is remembered by athletics experts as one of the finest pieces of middle-distance running ever seen. 'The great thing about athletics,' Coe once said, 'is that it's like poker sometimes: you know what's in your hand and it may be a load of rubbish but you've got to keep up the front.' And so it was that he decided to step from athletics into the world of politics. His accession was rapid and in the election of 1992, he became the Conservative MP for Falmouth and Camborne. He served time as parliamentary private secretary to Nicholas Soames and to Michael Heseltine and in 1996, just four years after walking into the House of Commons, was made a government whip. He never achieved his desired post of Minister for Sport. Perhaps if he had been allowed to play his strongest card, his constituents may have been more disposed to re-elect him in 1997. As it was, he lost his seat in another very public defeat. Cue the rubber ball and Coe bounced back as private secretary to the new leader of the opposition, William Hague. Throwing him on a mat as part of their judo sessions was one of the perks of the job but Coe could not perform miracles. An exhausting campaign ended in failure. When the Conservatives lost the general election of 2001 and Hague stepped down as leader, Coe also walked out of Tory Central Office to make more use of his recent elevation to the Upper House. When Coe turns his attention to something or someone, the full force of his personality and his considerable vigour are brought into play. It can be a cold and shadowy place when he is not paying attention but when the spotlight swings your way, it is impossible not to be caught in the glare. He is a man of great passion and energy, attributes which have combined with disastrous consequences to the long-standing relationships in his life. Asked to give a recipe for a cook-book some years ago, Coe offered oysters in lemon juice. 'As everyone knows,' he wrote, 'oysters are the most famous aphrodisiac and as Nicky and I have four children, I guess this speaks for itself.' Unfortunately for Coe, it spoke rather too loudly. His marriage to Nicky, a former Badminton three-day-event champion, ended in divorce in 2002. A handful of glamorous, beautiful and bright women have since been seen on the arm of a man who is aware of his power to attract but is perhaps most drawn to those who pose the greatest challenge. Not surprisingly for one endowed with so many natural talents and one to whom things seem to have come easily (this is the impression he creates, even if it is not true), Coe has made his enemies along the way. During a well-publicised spat with Linford Christie, he charged the sprinter with boorishness. Christie countered by saying that Coe never mixed with his fellow athletes, was aloof and superior. There may be some truth in both of their views. Coe is a ridiculously busy man. He has always felt the need to fill every second of the day and is in and out of international airports with the regularity of a customs officer. Consequently, he does not have the minutes in the day for people whom he does not think worth the effort or those he considers to be fools. If that means treating them with disdain, then that is what he will do, if only to save time. When he does relax, he listens to jazz or watches Chelsea, although only this season can the latter be considered 'relaxing'. His public life is a strange combination of altruism and self-interest. He has faith in himself and his ability to bring out the best in others. Coe believes in the London bid with the zeal of a disciple. Not only that London can win, but also that hosting the Games will be hugely beneficial to the people of this country. He speaks with passion about leaving a lasting legacy for sport, of inspiring the next generation of Olympians, of creating something that matters beyond who crosses the line first and who picks up the gold medal. 'Sport is a universal language,' he has said, 'building more bridges between people than anything else I can think of.' Coe speaks that universal language and while he may not be so hot on the detail, the nitty gritty of mechanics, he sells the pitch exceptionally well. If there is anyone who can bring the Olympic Games to London, it is Seb Coe. If the bid fails, it will hurt like hell but it won't be the end of him. Coe will be back in another guise, taking on another challenge, putting himself in the firing line once again. He doesn't do second place. It doesn't sit well and if it happens, he finds another contest and makes sure that he comes out on the winning side. Sebastian Coe DoB: 29 September 1956 Jobs: Peer of the realm as Lord Coe of Ranmore; Chairman of London 2012 Family: Was married to Nicola McIrvine - they divorced in 2002 (two sons, two daughters) Olympic golds: For 1,500 metres in 1980 and 1984 ENDS
