NAIROBI, May 11 (Xinhua)-- Sebastian Coe, once a legendary middle-distance runner and now World Athletics President, says it will take an exceptional talent and performance for anyone to break David Rudisha's world record over the two-lap race.
Speaking through Skype to Kenyan media on Sunday, Coe, who termed Rudisha's performance in the 2012 London Olympics as magnificent and that it was the most extraordinary piece of running he had probably seen.
"It was magnificent to see Rudisha run in front from gun to tape and set a world record of 1:40.91. It was the performance of the London Olympic Games, not just of track and field but of the Games," said Coe.
"It is rare to see someone win a race from the front and break a record," he added. Coe believes Rudisha's run will not be broken soon.
"It will probably be 65 years when that (another world record) happens as it is an incredible mark," he said.
"However, records are set to be broken and Rudisha will wake up one day and his record will be gone. We do not own records; we just hold on to them until someone else does better than us," he added.
Rudisha is still hopeful of defending his title and winning a third Olympic Games title in Tokyo in 2021.
The 30-year-old believes he has overcome his injury, which had kept him out of competition for three years and will be ready to compete whenever the health situation improves, and the world returns to normalcy after COVID-19 pandemic.
"I still feel like that the Olympic Games is where I belong. I feel like I'm not done yet. It's tough for me to watch from outside. I'm used to being on the track more than outside here," Rudisha said.
"If I could handle winning and breaking the world record in an Olympic final, these other challenges I can handle," he added.
Rudisha once thought his running career was over when he missed the Moscow World Championships in 2013.
"The last time I thought my career was over was in 2013. It was very painful. I couldn't even do 15 minutes of jogging. That's the time I felt I was done with the sport. It was all about staying positive and seeing things from a different perspective. I was supported by family, friends and coach.
"It was difficult, but I believed in myself. When I came back to training after rehabilitation, I was not as sharp as I used to be. I was losing some of the races. In 2015 a lot of people didn't even think I could do something, win major races, but I believed in myself," said Rudisha. Enditem
