Steve Ovett's Foot in Brighton, England

Steve Ovett, who won the eight hundred metres at the nineteen eighty Moscow Olympics, now exists in Brighton primarily as a right foot. According to Atlas Obscura, the original bronze statue honoring the hometown runner was installed in nineteen eighty-seven as Brighton's first and costliest public sculpture. Within six weeks, vandals had shattered it at the ankle. After being restored, the statue suffered a far more devastating blow in two thousand seven when thieves dismantled it entirely, likely targeting the bronze's resale value. When the dust settled, only the bronze base and one foot remained—fitting, perhaps, for an athlete whose feet carried him to Olympic glory. The discovery prompted a fundraising effort that raised fifty thousand dollars to commission an entirely new sculpture, which now stands on Brighton's seafront. In a clever nod to Ovett's legacy, it's positioned exactly four hundred metres from the Palace Pier—meaning a runner can complete an eight hundred metre round trip to visit it.

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