World Track and Field Championships : Aouita Still Isn’t Ready to Take a Cram Course

The organizers of track and field’s World Championships have accomplished something no one else has been able to do in more than two years--arrange for the world’s best middle-distance runners, Morocco’s Said Aouita and Great Britain’s Steve Cram, to be on the track at the same time.

Unfortunately, the organizers have not arranged for them to be in the same race.

Cram has entered the 1,500 meters, Aouita the 5,000.

Through the first four days of the World Championships, which resume today at the Olympic Stadium after Wednesday’s rest day, we already have seen Ben Johnson against Carl Lewis in the 100 meters and Edwin Moses against Danny Harris and Harald Schmid in the 400-meter intermediate hurdles.

Still to come, before the meet ends Sunday, are Innocent Egbunike against Butch Reynolds in the 400 meters, Heike Drechsler against Jackie Joyner-Kersee in the women’s long jump and Lewis against Robert Emmiyan in the men’s long jump.

But none of these matchups, not even Johnson against Lewis, is as compelling as would be a race between Aouita and Cram. Johnson and Lewis, after all, have met 15 times outdoors since 1980. Aouita and Cram have met only three times, not at all since July 16, 1985, at Nice, France.

They ran the fastest 1,500-meter race of all time that night, when Cram had an eight-meter lead going into the last 100 but barely survived Aouita’s charge, winning by four-hundredths of a second. Both finished with times below the previous world record, Cram in 3:29.67 and Aouita in 3:29.71.

Cram set three records within 20 days that year--in the 1,500, the mile (3:46.32) and the 2,000 (4:51.39).

Although Cram still is best in the mile, Aouita has taken away the records in the 1,500 (3:29.46) and the 2,000 (4:50.81). This year alone, he has set records at 2,000 meters, two miles (8:13.45) and 5,000 meters (12:58.39). He became the first man to break 13 minutes in the 5,000, in a meet at the Olympic Stadium here six weeks ago.

But just as British contemporaries Sebastian Coe and Steve Ovett, the best middle-distance runners of the late 1970s and early ‘80s, avoided one another for years, so have Aouita and Cram, who were born 19 days apart in 1960. Both are 26.

No promoter since 1985 has been able to provide either the incentive or the money to match them, although Al Franken of Los Angeles has gotten their attention with his tentative offer for next year’s UCLA Invitational at Drake Stadium.

Franken, who stopped in Siena, Italy, on his way to Rome, to meet with Aouita’s manager, Enrico Dionisi, is attempting to gather $1 million to lure the world’s best milers to Westwood.

At least until then, we will have to be dissatisfied with their brief encounter on the track here Friday. Cram will be warming down from his 1,500-meter semifinal at the same time Aouita is warming up for his 5,000-meter semifinal. Cram’s final is Saturday, Aouita’s Sunday.

“It’s true we get a lot of criticism for not running against each other,” Cram said during a news conference this week. “But I don’t know whether it’s valid.

“We’re going down separate paths at the moment. Every now and then, the paths might cross. There’s no reason they have to. It’s more important to win a gold medal than settle anything about who is best.

“Once the World Championships are over, it might happen. But it would be because Said wants to do it, not because (reporters) or some promoter wants it. When we do it, it will be special. It’s not something we’ll do every other week.”

Two days later, Aouita had his news conference at the Grand Hotel Beverly Hills in one of the most exclusive areas of Rome to announce his decision to run the 5,000 here.

Aouita, who does not lack for confidence, once said he could hold every record from 800 to 10,000 meters. When the preliminary entries were announced here, he was listed in four events--the 800, 1,500, 5,000 and 10,000.

“I thought about it for a long time before choosing what to do,” Aouita said through an interpreter. He spoke Italian, one of his five languages. He also speaks Arabic, French, Spanish and English.

“I was very attracted by the 800 and the 1,500 double. Then, I thought, ‘In the 5,000, I’m the Olympic champion, I’ve got the world record, I’m more than ever No. 1.’ I understood, to sum it up, that to definitely close the book on the distance, all that was necessary for me was the world title.”

Four other men were at the head table with Aouita. Three of them wore sunglasses, and all of them smoked one cigarette after another. As Aouita spoke, he was hidden behind a cloud of smoke.

Anyone who has not been around Aouita might have thought he was blowing some of that himself, but, according to all accounts he is sincere in praise of himself.

The 5,000 meters here?

“My most dangerous rival is the clock. My world record (12:58.39) has (a short time) to live.”

His competitors?

“I don’t know who they will be. I’m not even interested in knowing. I don’t know who will finish second because, unfortunately for them, my rivals will all be second.”

Kenyan John Ngugi, considered the second-best runner in the 5,000?

“Ngugi? Who is this Ngugi? I’ve never heard the name. Has he beaten anybody? Can you repeat the name for me?”

Ngugi.

“I am sorry. I’ve never heard this name.”

The 1,500?

“Cram will win. I’m not there.”

Aouita may be there next year in the Olympic Games at Seoul, South Korea, where he said he plans to run the 800 and the 1,500. But he obviously was irritated when a reporter told him that Cram said they might meet a week from Friday in the Mobil Grand Prix finals at Brussels.

“That would be convenient, huh?” Aouita said. “Why don’t we race each other in the 5,000? I’ve been preparing for a month for the 5,000. I should go to meet Cram at his distance?

“I have to say that this year, the Englishman and I aren’t going to run together. But you can read the results to know who’s stronger. I ran 3:30.69 in Oslo (in July). I have the world record. I’ve always done better than Cram. You know that.

“If Cram wants to run the 1,500 against me, I’ll be ready at any time.”

Next May in Westwood? Franken, get out your checkbook.