David Bedford (athlete)
David Bedford OBE ( David Colin "Dave" Bedford ; born December 30, 1949 in London ) is a former British long-distance runner who was one of the world's best in the early 1970s.
Life
In 1969 he won the junior race of the Cross of Nations .
In 1971 he won the Cross of Nations in the adult category and set two European records: on June 12 in Edinburgh over 5000 m (13: 22.2 min) and on July 10 in Portsmouth over 10,000 m (27: 47.0 min ). At the European Athletics Championships in Helsinki he led the 10,000 meter race until shortly before the end, but then had nothing to oppose the phenomenal final sprint of Juha Väätäinen and Jürgen Haase and fell back to sixth place.
The following year he became English champion over 5000 and 10,000 m and set another European record over 5000 m with 13: 17.2. At the Olympic Games in Munich he was twelfth over 5000 m and sixth over 10,000 m.
In 1973 he set a world record over 10,000 m at the English championship with 27: 30.8 minutes . Starting for England , he finished fourth over the same distance and eleventh over 5000 m in the British Commonwealth Games in 1974 . After that, injuries meant that he had to end his career.
David Bedford is 1.83 m tall and weighed 66 kg at competition times. He started for the Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers and was trained by Bob Parker. His weekly training volume was 320 km (200 miles) per week. Nicknamed “Bootsie”, the athlete's hallmarks were long hair, a mustache, and red socks. He has worked for the London Marathon since 1989 , where he currently holds the post of Race Director.
In 2014 he was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire .
Personal bests
- 2000 m : 5: 03.16 min, July 8, 1972, London
-
3000 m : 7: 46.4 min, June 21, 1972, Leuven
- Hall: 7: 53.4 min, January 29, 1972, Cosford
- 5000 m: 13: 17.21 min, July 14th 1972, London
- 10,000 m: 27: 30.80 min, July 13, 1973, London
- 3000 m obstacle : 8: 28.6 min, September 10, 1971, London
Web links
- David Bedford in the database of World Athletics (English)
- Athlete portrait on The Power of Ten
- Entry in the Hall of Fame of United Kingdom Athletics
- David Bedford on sporting-heroes.net
- As tough as old Bootsie , interview with Alan Hubbard in the Independent , March 19, 2000
- Dave Bedford in the Sports-Reference database (English; archived from the original )
Footnotes
- ↑ YouTube : Dave Bedford 10,000m World Record, 1973 . Listed on April 22, 2010
- ↑ Arnd Krüger (1998): Many roads lead to Olympia. The changes in the training systems for middle and long distance runners (1850-1997), in: N. GISSEL (Hrsg.): Sportliche achievement im Wandel. Hamburg: Czwalina, pp. 41-56 .; http://www.activetrainingworld.co.uk/news/2014/05/13/dave_bedford_looks_back ; http://www.insidethegames.biz/articles/16590/dave-bedford-race-director-for-the-virgin-london-marathon-wont-be-an-easy-act-to-follow
- ↑ European Athletic Association : David Bedford CV (PDF; 17 kB)
- ↑ https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/269031/New-Year-Honours-2014-PM-list.pdf
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Bedford, David |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Bedford, David Colin; Bedford, Dave |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | British long distance runner |
| DATE OF BIRTH | December 30, 1949 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | London |