By David Moorcroft
My running career began in the streets of my home city of Coventry in the United Kingdom. From memory, it rained most of the time when I was a youngster, so running through the wet streets of Coventry might have prepared me well for arriving in Costa Rica in the rainy season!
Visiting Costa Rica is a trip my wife Linda and I have looked forward to for many months. One of the wonderful aspects of sport is international travel, and although my competitive years are well behind me, I am still fortunate to be able to travel, through sport, to some of the most wonderful countries in the world. I have been told Costa Rica is a fabulous country.
As a youngster growing up in the U.K., my dream was similar to that of, I imagine, many young Costa Rican boys. I wanted to be a professional footballer, but realized at a very early age that I lacked the necessary talent to make it. I certainly was no Paulo Wanchope or Joel Campbell!
On a wet, cold winter day when I was 11, I was sent out on a cross-country race at my school and discovered that I had ability and passion for running. That passion has remained with me ever since. I wasn’t the most talented runner in my city, but I was probably one of the most committed, and with great support and a good deal of luck, I went on to compete in three Olympic Games – 1976, 1980 and 1984. My proudest moment as an athlete was breaking the world record for 5,000 meters in July 1982, at the Bislett Games in Oslo, Norway.
I had plenty of ups and downs in my career and probably learned more about myself from the most disappointing performances than I did from my more successful races. However, to be at a point in history when you are the fastest person in the world at an Olympic distance is a wonderful privilege and one that I still cherish.
As a youngster, I watched the 1964 Olympic Games in Tokyo and the 1968 games in Mexico and found them inspirational. Now I look forward to being part of the games in my home country in 2012. The Olympic Games and Paralympic Games are the greatest festivals of sport and culture in the world. They celebrate excellence in performance, but they also celebrate diversity in so many different ways. All nations are represented with a rich mix of cultures and backgrounds. Able-bodied athletes and athletes with a disability are there with a common language of sport that cuts across many of the barriers our world faces daily.
I believe the London 2012 Games will be a great success, and central to that is the way the U.K. will reach out to welcome the world to our country. This includes those who are fortunate enough to visit London, but also the millions of people around the world who will watch or listen to the competition on their televisions and radios. I also hope that through my visit to your country I can provide a taste of what London will offer, and meet some of your younger athletes who have that Olympic or Paralympic dream. It is an amazing journey to make that dream come true, either in London in 2012, Rio in 2016, or any other future games.
I know that many of your athletes recently competed in the Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico. These games are an important stepping-stone to future Olympic Games, and I look forward to cheering on the Costa Rican athletes in London next year.
I am pleased to be in Costa Rica and experiencing pura vida for myself. I know I will meet many fascinating people from a variety of backgrounds, and I hope some of my experiences will be of value to your country and its communities.
David Moorcroft holds the U.K. record for the 3,000-meter run and formerly held the world record for 5,000 meters. After retiring from running, he worked in his home city of Coventry on youth and sports projects, as well as on radio and TV for the BBC.
