The Allan Wells syndrome

[FLHIBS]

For all you young ones out there, Allan Wells was the Scottish/British Olympic gold medalist in 1980 in the 100m in Russia (his famous big mouth missus Margot....caaaaaamonnnnn Allan, was my PE teacher back then !), however, he will always be remembered as the champion who didn't have to run against the USA sprinters, who had boycotted that Olympics, back in the days of the cold war. Therefore, by his own admission he will always have the 'what if I had ran against them, would I have still won Gold' question over him and perhaps it took something away from the gold medal win.

Anyway my point is, if say Hibs, Motherwell, Aberdeen, Inverness did actually win the league this season(a reality the way Smeltic are playing domestically) do you think the clubs and fans would have the same question of "what if the huns had been still in the SPL, would we have still won it ? and it might mean a little less ?

[SouthMoroccoStu]

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For all you young ones out there, Allan Wells was the Scottish/British Olympic gold medalist in 1980 in the 100m in Russia (his famous big mouth missus Margot....caaaaaamonnnnn Allan, was my PE teacher back then !), however, he will always be remembered as the champion who didn't have to run against the USA sprinters, who had boycotted that Olympics, back in the days of the cold war. Therefore, by his own admission he will always have the 'what if I had ran against them, would I have still won Gold' question over him and perhaps it took something away from the gold medal win.

Anyway my point is, if say Hibs, Motherwell, Aberdeen, Inverness did actually win the league this season(a reality the way Smeltic are playing domestically) do you think the clubs and fans would have the same question of "what if the huns had been still in the SPL, would we have still won it ? and it might mean a little less ?

Hmmmm, very interesting point.

But it is Rangers own doing that they are not in the SPL to compete for the championship this year - no one else is to blame.

Like the USSR in 1980, it was there own doing. You can only compete against those who are there / that challenge you.

History is written by the winners. IF we win the SPL, it will be our success, not the Huns down fall.

[pedroorange1875]

Alan Wells beat who he had to not who he couldn't.history states he was the gold medal winner..end of

[FranckSuzy]

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For all you young ones out there, Allan Wells was the Scottish/British Olympic gold medalist in 1980 in the 100m in Russia (his famous big mouth missus Margot....caaaaaamonnnnn Allan, was my PE teacher back then !), however, he will always be remembered as the champion who didn't have to run against the USA sprinters, who had boycotted that Olympics, back in the days of the cold war. Therefore, by his own admission he will always have the 'what if I had ran against them, would I have still won Gold' question over him and perhaps it took something away from the gold medal win.

Anyway my point is, if say Hibs, Motherwell, Aberdeen, Inverness did actually win the league this season(a reality the way Smeltic are playing domestically) do you think the clubs and fans would have the same question of "what if the huns had been still in the SPL, would we have still won it ? and it might mean a little less ?

Were you at Firrhill by chance?

[Peevemor]

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Were you at Firrhill by chance?

Must have been! I was there too at that time although I never had Margo as a teacher - although I did give her a few "C'MOAN ALLAN"s in the corridor.

[FranckSuzy]

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Must have been! I was there too at that time although I never had Margo as a teacher - although I did give her a few "C'MOAN ALLAN"s is the corridor.

My brother was there 84-88 and she was his teacher. He has a letter from Allan outlining his training regime after he once feigned an interest in athletics

[KWJ]

While it doesn't matter as Celtic will still win the league comfortably, it would not be a tainted title. The last few won by rangers on the other hand ...

[Hibbyradge]

Celtic are struggling domestically because of 3 factors:

1. The Champions League. They have always dropped points after playing in Europe during the week.

2. Rangers are not in the league so the pressure to win every game is less than usual.

3. Rangers are not taking points of everyone too so it's easier to stay in touch.

Most likely, Celtic will start to move away from the pack over the next few weeks so I doubt the Alan Wells dilemma will come to pass.

However, my answer the direct question would be that no doubt Rangers fans would say that the league was weak without them.

But that's tough!

[ballengeich]

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For all you young ones out there, Allan Wells was the Scottish/British Olympic gold medalist in 1980 in the 100m in Russia (his famous big mouth missus Margot....caaaaaamonnnnn Allan, was my PE teacher back then !), however, he will always be remembered as the champion who didn't have to run against the USA sprinters, who had boycotted that Olympics, back in the days of the cold war. Therefore, by his own admission he will always have the 'what if I had ran against them, would I have still won Gold' question over him and perhaps it took something away from the gold medal win.

Anyway my point is, if say Hibs, Motherwell, Aberdeen, Inverness did actually win the league this season(a reality the way Smeltic are playing domestically) do you think the clubs and fans would have the same question of "what if the huns had been still in the SPL, would we have still won it ? and it might mean a little less ?

In the Olympic final Wells finished ahead of Sylvio Leonard, a Cuban who was rated ahead of all the USA sprinters at the time. A few weeks later he then won a race in Koblenz, Germany against all the top USA athletes. His results after the Olympics removed any suggestion that he gained his gold due to the absence of others.

You have the right to support Rangers (old or new). Please stop insulting a great Scottish athlete because your club's financial failings has removed it from our country's top football divison.

[Teuchter Hibbie]

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For all you young ones out there, Allan Wells was the Scottish/British Olympic gold medalist in 1980 in the 100m in Russia (his famous big mouth missus Margot....caaaaaamonnnnn Allan, was my PE teacher back then !), however, he will always be remembered as the champion who didn't have to run against the USA sprinters, who had boycotted that Olympics, back in the days of the cold war. Therefore, by his own admission he will always have the 'what if I had ran against them, would I have still won Gold' question over him and perhaps it took something away from the gold medal win.

Anyway my point is, if say Hibs, Motherwell, Aberdeen, Inverness did actually win the league this season(a reality the way Smeltic are playing domestically) do you think the clubs and fans would have the same question of "what if the huns had been still in the SPL, would we have still won it ? and it might mean a little less ?

It depends if you mean the huns team of a year or two ago, or the huns team of today. The current huns side would be imo around mid-table in the league just now, although there's a school of thought that says players like Shiels, Black, Sandaza etc would up their game considerably for the SPL.

I don't think it would detract from the achievement of winning the league, especially when it contains a side in the last 16 of the CL, who turned over Barcelona. And aside from anything else, The Rangers are in Div 3 by the financial doings of their old club, it's nothing but their own fault. You can only beat what's put in front of you.

Anyway, it's a moot point, as once Celtic are knocked out of Europe, they will more than likely stroll what remains of the league.

[magpie1892]

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For all you young ones out there, Allan Wells was the Scottish/British Olympic gold medalist in 1980 in the 100m in Russia (his famous big mouth missus Margot....caaaaaamonnnnn Allan, was my PE teacher back then !), however, he will always be remembered as the champion who didn't have to run against the USA sprinters, who had boycotted that Olympics, back in the days of the cold war. Therefore, by his own admission he will always have the 'what if I had ran against them, would I have still won Gold' question over him and perhaps it took something away from the gold medal win.

Anyway my point is, if say Hibs, Motherwell, Aberdeen, Inverness did actually win the league this season(a reality the way Smeltic are playing domestically) do you think the clubs and fans would have the same question of "what if the huns had been still in the SPL, would we have still won it ? and it might mean a little less ?

And if, you know, your history...

From (and properly sourced) Wikipiedia: "Following the Moscow Olympics, there was some suggestion that Wells's gold medal had been devalued by the boycott of the games. Wells accepted an invitation take on the best USA sprinters of the day among others at a track meeting in Koblenz in Germany. Less than two weeks after the Moscow gold, Wells (10.19) won the final that included Americans^[2] Stanley Floyd (10.21), Mel Lattany (10.25), Carl Lewis (10.30) and Harvey Glance (10.31). At the end of 1980, Wells was awarded Scottish sports personality of the year.
1981 including Golden Sprints and World Cup victories

In 1981, after a successful tour of Australia and New Zealand, Wells won the European Cup 100 metres, beating East German Frank Emmelmann. Wells also finished 2nd in the 200.
He then demonstrated his calibre by finishing first in the "IAAF Golden sprints" in Berlin; which was the most prominent Sprint Meeting in the World that year. Although finishing second to the Frenchman Hermann Panzo by 0.01 secs in the 100, Wells emphatically won the 200 beating the top four American sprinters Mel Lattany, Jeff Phillips, Stanley Floyd, Steve Williams as well as Canada's Ben Johnson in the 100/200, 10.15/20.15 (200 wind assist) for Wells to win the event in an aggregate 30.30.
To add to this, Wells won the 100 metres at the IAAF World cup in Rome, beating the American Champion and world's fastest 100m performer of the year which was 10.00 by Carl Lewis; Wells then finished 2nd in the world cup 200.
Afterwards, he beat the top Americans Mel Lattany and Stanley Floyd again, when he won a 200 in the Memorial Van Damme meeting in Brussels, Belgium."

***

And I'm English FFS.

[basehibby]

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For all you young ones out there, Allan Wells was the Scottish/British Olympic gold medalist in 1980 in the 100m in Russia (his famous big mouth missus Margot....caaaaaamonnnnn Allan, was my PE teacher back then !), however, he will always be remembered as the champion who didn't have to run against the USA sprinters, who had boycotted that Olympics, back in the days of the cold war. Therefore, by his own admission he will always have the 'what if I had ran against them, would I have still won Gold' question over him and perhaps it took something away from the gold medal win.

Anyway my point is, if say Hibs, Motherwell, Aberdeen, Inverness did actually win the league this season(a reality the way Smeltic are playing domestically) do you think the clubs and fans would have the same question of "what if the huns had been still in the SPL, would we have still won it ? and it might mean a little less ?

Not at all - it would still be an imense achievement for any of these clubs to beat Celtic to the title considering the disparity in resources.

Of course it would be twice as hard with a strong Rangers in the SPL - but there ain't and that's nobody's fault but their own

[jabis]

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In the Olympic final Wells finished ahead of Sylvio Leonard, a Cuban who was rated ahead of all the USA sprinters at the time. A few weeks later he then won a race in Koblenz, Germany against all the top USA athletes. His results after the Olympics removed any suggestion that he gained his gold due to the absence of others.

You have the right to support Rangers (old or new). Please stop insulting a great Scottish athlete because your club's financial failings has removed it from our country's top football divison.

spot on.

[Twa Cairpets]

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Must have been! I was there too at that time although I never had Margo as a teacher - although I did give her a few "C'MOAN ALLAN"s in the corridor.

Firrhill seemed to have spawned a few good Hibbies - I was there '77-'84.
Margot Wells was a fairly unpleasant women if I remember rightly. So far up herself it was unbelievable.

But as for the OP, no nothing tainted. In fact almost the opposite - it is for the first time in years a clean sporting competition. Sevco caught and dealt with, HMFSevco on the rocks. Teams competing on the basis of relative parity cannot be seen as in any way tainted.

[oregonhibby]

You can only beat what is put in front of you. A solid gold from Well's.

[jamiehibee]

On a side note, Mr and Mrs Wells now live in Surrey, and she is one of the UK's top sprint coaches and helps
rugby and footballers fix there running techniques

[.Sean.]

I don't think so, I think we're all pretty united in our dislike for the Old Firm. If Hibs couldn't do it, i'd be delighted to see any team outwith the Celtic, Rangers or Hearts win the SPL.

[Part/Time Supporter]

Only in the delusional minds of Huns. By that logic, were Hibs and Hearts titles from the late 40s to early 60s tainted by the fact Celtic were almost completely guff during that period? Or were the Aberdeen and Dundee United successes of the 1980s diminished by Rangers being pisspoor?

[givescotlandfreedom]

It wouldn't make any difference to the achievement. When we won the league cup nobody cared that we didn't play the old firm clubs on our way to winning the trophy. Equally had we won it a few years before it wouldn't have meant any more even though we knocked both of them out on the wy to the final.

[TrinityHibs]

Nothing to do with Football as you can only beat who you are playing against but I have always felt Wells' success was tainted and it had nothing to do with who he was running against. For me the best, naturally talented Scottish sprinter at that time was Cameron Sharp and he didnt win a gold medal at the Olympics. For what its worth I also think that Valeri Borsov, Ben Johnston, Carl Lewis and Linford Christie's success was tainted as well. Opinions huh

[blackpoolhibs]

I have always thought those titles that were won when we had been relegated, were tainted titles.

[--------]

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Nothing to do with Football as you can only beat who you are playing against but I have always felt Wells' success was tainted and it had nothing to do with who he was running against. For me the best, naturally talented Scottish sprinter at that time was Cameron Sharp and he didnt win a gold medal at the Olympics. For what its worth I also think that Valeri Borsov, Ben Johnston, Carl Lewis and Linford Christie's success was tainted as well. Opinions huh

George McNeill? Of course, he was a professional, which in the ethos of Olympic athletics in those days meant he was an unperson.

I don't see how you can say what you say about Sharpe (sp) - his competitive record doesn't bear any sort of comparison to that of Allan Wells. You said it yourself - he didn't win a Gold medal at the Olympics. He didn't win any medal at the Olympics. And he didn't do better than bronze in the individual sprints in the Commonwealths - his only Commonwealth gold was in the 4 by 100 relay at Edmonton in 1978 - in the same team as Allan Wells ....

The meeting at Koblenz where Wells defeated what amounted to the entire US 100 metres squad - Floyd, Lattany, Lewis and Glance - took place two weeks after the Olympic 100 metre final. If Wells wasn't "that" good - how come not even one of those Yanks was able to put him in his place?

Why do some Scots have this uncontrollable urge to put down their successful fellow-countrymen and women?


In regard to the OP, of course the absence of "The Rangers" from the SPL doesn't devalue the competition.

Whatever one thinks of the way the Scottish football authorities handled the situation, the demise of Glasgow Rangers was self-inflicted. What WOULD have devalued the competition entirely would have been the inclusion of "The Rangers" - a new club just established - into the SPL in breach of the SPL's own rule book.

If it were to to transpire that Hibs or Aberdeen (for example) were to finish top of the SPL, neither the Hibs fans nor the Dons fans need feel any embarrassment. Their team would have beaten all the other teams they had been asked to compete against - end of story.

[Phil MaGlass]

Surely sellik and the buns title wins must also be tainted, they buy up all the competitions best players and sit them on the bench or put them in the reserves giving them an unfair advantage due to weakening the rest of the league unfair yes, tainted in my eyes yes..

As for Wells, I will never forget the open top car through Edinburgh, if anyone deserved Gold he did, fantastic for the city and Scotland.Still gives me goosebumps.

[Peevemor]

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Firrhill seemed to have spawned a few good Hibbies - I was there '77-'84.
Margot Wells was a fairly unpleasant women if I remember rightly. So far up herself it was unbelievable.

But as for the OP, no nothing tainted. In fact almost the opposite - it is for the first time in years a clean sporting competition. Sevco caught and dealt with, HMFSevco on the rocks. Teams competing on the basis of relative parity cannot be seen as in any way tainted.

I was 79-84.

I can remember her being crabbit but, as I said, I never had her as a teacher so I don't really know.

[LeighLoyal]

Deadco got at least 20 points a year from bent refs, sorry, "honest mistakes." The sporting equivalent of sprinters loaded on peds, and when you add their financial doping they won by cheating.



Wells beat all those Yanks in the golden sprint in 81, different era obviously as he'd need to be filled with peds to compete now.

[--------]

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I was 79-84.

I can remember her being crabbit but, as I said, I never had her as a teacher so I don't really know.

She ranged from 'focussed' to 'crabbit' to 'seriously bowel-meltingly terrifying', IIRC.

And I only saw her at Meadowbank at Thursday evening training sessions ....

[Phil D. Rolls]

I've always wondered how people who take steroids feel when they win things. It must take some of the shine off it, unless of course you are a complete tool to start off with.

[FLHIBS]

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Were you at Firrhill by chance?

Correct 1977-1982, place was full of Hertz basas !!

[FLHIBS]

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Must have been! I was there too at that time although I never had Margo as a teacher - although I did give her a few "C'MOAN ALLAN"s in the corridor.

She got it tight from all the kids after that, although she was not one to mess with !

[FLHIBS]

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While it doesn't matter as Celtic will still win the league comfortably, it would not be a tainted title. The last few won by rangers on the other hand ...

Yes totally agree