Sorry but I didn't really enjoy this book, maybe it was too technical for me but there seemed to be so much on the stats that I would switch off to what I was reading

As a running addict during the great time when Mary Decker and Alberto Salazar were among the luminaries of track and cross country this book brings back many memories. It highlights the lives of Zola Budd and Mary Decker and the one event/incident that simultaneously made them household names and objects of constant scrutiny. This book shows the impact the incident had on their lives and careers. While those close to the sport heard all the rumors and stories about what these two were really like, this telling opens up their worlds for all to see. I truly enjoyed reading and reliving some really interesting times of sporting history.

OLYMPIC COLLISION by Kyle Keiderling chronicles the lives of Mary Decker and Zola Budd from birth, through growing up and finding running each in their own way, to their infamous encounter at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, to their careers post-encounter and how that moment forever impacted their lives as athletes and people.
Keiderling jumps back and forth between the two women as they grow into elite athletes, often reminding us of the political climate around each of them, Decker with banned drug use and how different athletic associations deal (and don't deal) with it and Budd's challenges with the apartheid issue in South Africa putting limits on Budd excelling as a public figure in the world of running. Keiderling is careful to detail the important events in each woman's lives, from their romantic relationships, to their families, to their coaches over the years. It does shine through that Keiderling carries a clear opinion on certain issues, but he still does a good job of considering both sides. It's a little slow and a bit dry towards the middle of the book, when Keiderling is narrating each woman's life after the 1984 incident, but in the end the reader learns to appreciate Decker and Budd for who they became.
As a recreational runner myself, I really enjoyed reading about these women and I learned so much about them and what it means to be a professional runner. I think OLYMPIC COLLISION provides not just a history of these women and women's middle distance running in the 1980's, but also takes a closer look at how politics and drug use clouded the purity of the sport in that time.