'chariots Of Fire' Runner Connects With Ioc Candidate Coe Through England's Olympic History

Only one Englishman who had a great Olympic career ever stood for the IOC presidency before Sebastian Coe, and Coe will try to win that job Thursday.

The previous candidate lost his election - in 1952 - yet his Olympic achievements spanned the 1920s to the 1980s, including 48 years as a member of the International Olympic Committee.

David Burghley ran at the 1924 Paris Olympics and was portrayed in the Oscar-winning movie of the games, Chariots of Fire, and in 1968 he presented medals to Tommie Smith and John Carlos seconds before their iconic raised-fist salutes on the podium in Mexico City.

Burghley also presented a gold medal to Coe at the 1980 Moscow Olympics when a then 23-year-old track star won the first of back-to-back titles in the 1,500 meters.

"He is a large figure in my life," Coe said last week before traveling to Greece for the IOC election. "When I was forging my career we met on a couple of occasions."