FIN v GBR v ESP  

Lasse Virén trained in the Canary Islands during the winter of 1971–1972. The Munich Olympics were scheduled for September, so there was no need to push too hard at the end of June. He ran the 5000 metres at the Top Games in Helsinki in a stiff 13:37.0 during an intense training session.

Training eased up, and by the end of July, results began to show.

The international matches against Britain and Spain were held at Helsinki Olympic Stadium. The 5000 metres took place on the opening day, 25 July, a few days after Virén’s 23rd birthday.

In the race, the pace alternated until 3000 metres, clocked at 8:10.0, predicting a final time of 13:36. Coach Rolf Haikkola was frustrated on the sidelines as a truly great time was slipping away due to the leisurely early pace. Virén got tired of the pace set by Javier Álvarez of Spain, took control, and pushed the fourth kilometre to 2:39.0. The penultimate 1000 metres went in 2:30.0. Virén's final 2000 metres took 5:09.0 (the Finnish record for 2000 metres held by Matti Tuura was 5:08.8).

Virén’s five-lap sprint exhausted his competitors and stopped the clocks at 13:19.0, the second-best time in the world for 1972. The world record held by Ron Clarke was barely hanging on, just 2.4 seconds ahead. Virén’s previous Finnish record dropped by nearly 11 seconds.

“Devastating pace”

The usually restrained Helsingin Sanomat waxed lyrical in its next-day race report. The paper described Virén’s five-lap sprint as “devastating pace”. In its final remark, the newspaper stated without exaggeration that “Lasse Virén is now at the top of the world”.

However, the man from Myrskylä downplayed his chances at the Munich Olympics in the press conference, stating that “the kick might not be strong enough”. This statement was not necessarily a media ploy, as Virén gave the same assessment privately to coach Haikkola, according to his memoirs.

Virén’s run has never been replayed on Finnish television, although a delayed broadcast of the match was aired in 1972. The videotape was likely overwritten.

Athletics matches were highly valued in the 1970s, so the races were also televised in Britain. The video tape archive of the BBC contains a black-and-white clip of the last 500 metres of the 5000 metres race. In it, Virén’s smooth yet efficient stride overwhelms David Black of Britain, who has had enough of the man from Myrskylä’s pace and falls behind.

As Virén began his victory lap and the stadium roared, the BBC commentators knowledgeably noted that Finland had a new running star to send to the Munich Olympics, and the country was no longer solely reliant on European Champion Juha Väätäinen.