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Many middle and long distance runners record fast times, and even world
records, but fail to reproduce this form in competition. However, in
Fermin Cacho's case it was quite the reverse. Cacho established an
enviable competitive record in the 1500m, but it wasn't until late in
his career that he produced a time of corresponding quality. Cacho's
first major international competition was the 1987 European Junior
Championships, where he finished 12th in the 1500m.
The following year,
he finished third in the 1500m at the World Junior Championships in
Sudbury, just behind second placegetter Noureddine Morceli (Algeria),
who would remain a thorn in Fermin's side throughout his career. In
1990, Cacho finished second in the 1500m at the European Indoor
Championships in Glasgow, and then in the outdoor season, he finished
11th in the 1500m at the European Championships in Split. At the 1991
World Indoor Championships in Seville, Cacho finished second in the
1500m behind Morceli, who had set a new world record for the distance
nine days earlier.
In September that year, Fermin competed in his first
World Championships at Tokyo, where he finished fifth in the 1500m
which was comfortably won by Morceli. Cacho's form in the lead up to
the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona mirrored his ranking of the previous
two seasons, where he had been amongst the top runners in the world,
but not considered a serious gold medal threat. Cacho's best result
prior to Barcelona was a fifth-place finish in a mile race at the
Bislett games in Oslo on 4 July. The Olympic 1500m final at Barcelona,
held on 8 August, was run at a very pedestrian pace, but Cacho
positioned himself perfectly in the final lap, and out sprinted his
rivals to win (see photo above) the gold medal in 3min 40.12sec. (Ron Casey)
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