The IAAF World Championships, Moscow 2013, which takes place from 10 to 18 August, will be infused with memories of the last global athletics championship to be staged in the famous Luzhniki Stadium: the 1980 Olympic Games.
It was a very different era politically and several major athletics nations boycotted the Games – including the USA, West Germany and Kenya – but there was still a plethora of stunning performances from the 70 countries and 960 athletes who participated.
Six World records and four Olympic records were set over the nine days of action.
Looking back to 1980, it is also worth reflecting on how much has changed since then; not just in the political landscape, but also the athletics programme, and especially in the women’s events.
The longest running event was the 1500m and there was no Pole Vault, Triple Jump or Hammer Throw for women.
The very first IAAF World Championships was also three years away, having been agreed in 1978 at the IAAF Congress in Puerto Rico.
This August, when almost three times the number of countries and competitors will converge on the Russian capital than they did in 1980, many medallists from those Games will be present and able to provide a physical link between now and the events of 33 years ago.
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