Her legendary mark celebrated another anniversary at the end of July, recalling the day she set it back in the days of Czechoslovakia at a meet in Munich. Since then, in almost half a century, no one has come within half a second of her time of 1:53.28. Yet at the current European Championships, it seems to be under serious threat.
This may be the biggest story of the Birmingham championships, and it has a Czech connection. Two challengers are aiming for Kratochvilova's record: home Olympic champion and indoor world record holder Keely Hodgkinson, and 22-year-old Swiss runner Audrey Werro, who climbed to third on the all-time list just a month ago, finishing 0.52 seconds behind Kratochvilova's mark.
Her super time has outlasted generations of rivals. The rest of the 1980s saw Ana Fidelia Quirot, who, at her peak, missed out due to Cuba’s boycott of the Seoul Olympics. The entire 1990s belonged to Mozambique’s Maria Mutola, a three-time world champion. The following decade was symbolised by Kenya’s Pamela Jelimo, still the African record holder. When Caster Semenya came close and even Kratochvilova herself was resigned to losing her record, the South African’s career was derailed by ongoing debates about her testosterone levels.
Now it’s the turn of Hodgkinson and Werro. The blonde Briton openly declared her intentions last year, but then suffered a thigh injury. "I think about that record all the time. The day it falls will send the athletics world into a frenzy. It’s a tough task. But from what I’ve seen in training, I know it’s there. I really believe I can run 1:53," she said, even though her personal best is more than a second slower.
This year, the Swiss runner with Ivorian roots has joined her, making the most of her tall frame (182 cm). She’s the sensation of the season, having stunned the Diamond League in Paris in June with the third-fastest time in history (1:53.80) and the quickest since Kratochvílová’s record.
She is the only woman ever to have run the 800m twice in under 1:54. "Honestly, I didn’t expect to be this fast this year," she almost apologised recently.
The two great rivals could push each other to an outstanding performance, and according to athletics experts, the record really could fall. At least, that was the prediction before the championships. So far, though, there’s been little sign of it. The home athlete has looked more assured, running fastest in Tuesday’s heats and cruising through the semi-finals. The same can’t be said for her rival Werro, who finished last in her semi. Yet she will still be in the fight for gold.
The jury reviewed her fall about 150 metres from the finish, when she was leading, and ruled it was caused by contact between a rival’s hand and her leg, allowing her to advance. However, experts believe she caused the fall herself by tripping over her own feet. "That’s quite clear. But OK, we all want to see the best in the final. And Keely wants Werro there too," commented former English mile star Steve Cram. So, there will be 10 runners in the final.
Will the mythical record fall in the final? It’s as if Hodgkinson senses she can’t break it alone and needs a rival of similar calibre. She believes at least four key factors must come together – mindset, form, weather, and pace. At these championships, where she’s aiming for a third consecutive European 800m gold, she’s been running slowly so far, still seconds off Kratochvilova's mark. For tonight’s race, she’s hoping for calm weather. "Maybe I’ll call one of those online fortune tellers to sort it out," she joked.
Kratochvilova's unassailable empire is only now, more than four decades after her era, beginning to show cracks. Last year, American Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone took her world championship record in the 400m, and Kenyan Lilian Odira (1:54.62) broke her 800m mark. This year, Karolína Maňasová erased her Czech 100m record.
It’s almost a mystery that a performance from a completely different era of sporting history—when training, science, nutrition and other areas were far less advanced—still stands. Only the 400m record, set two years later by Kratochvilova's East German rival Marita Koch, is comparable.
The Czechoslovak legend set her milestone in the history books almost by chance. She never focused on the 800m, being a sprinter who dominated shorter distances. But when she got the chance to travel beyond the Iron Curtain to the famed Munich stadium, just as she was struggling with muscle problems, she opted for the unusual 800m.
Her reasoning was that at least she could run without the pressure of high expectations. According to her, she even eased up in the home straight.
Perhaps that’s a good thing for athletics. Otherwise, her time would be even more out of reach for today’s runners.
Whether or not they can catch her is still the eternal question, the latest response to which will come on Friday night in Birmingham.