ATHLETICS.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 645, 23 October 1909, Page 12

ATHLETICS.

(By Misnount.).

FIXTURES,

November o.—Wellington Centre's Marathon (Basin Reserve' to Taita and back); and' ■ • W.A.A.C. Spring Carnival (Basin Reserve). January I.—Wellington Provincial Champion..ships (Basin Reserve). ' February.—N.Z. Championships -(Auckland). Fobruary.—Port Nicholson' A.A. : Meeting - (Basiii- Reserve).. '. : ;.;

From New Plymouth Mr. L. n.:'("Pat") Webster sends his quota to tho "starting" discussion as under:—"lt is admittedly a big'subject, with mnuy sides, open to both attack and defence/ The rule to begin with is: perfectly clear—there can bo ho tw6 ways of reading it—and is oflo with which lam quito in accord. The contributor, to the 'Athlotio Times' is quite'correct when ho says that the direct consequoncoof the hands-on-thc-ground method is that ;inon run a bit beyond tho proper "distance, but this even is only in. few .instances, for most, men Can, With . constant practice, manage-to get off well With thd hands at the toes,whilst thoso placing the feet a few inches, -behind tho hands hold that tho extra support thus given not only compensates for the few 'inches which ho goos back) but considerably steadies him whilst ott the mark. It has often ibecn my.lot to train with professionals,.and :ono well-known runner in New Zealand, whfcn -asked why ho reached out so far when Starting, replied that ho would, go further if his arms would allow hiffl, thus showing, I, think, that With equal practico at both (which'in his case was possible), the stretched-out otylo was advantageous. Again, tho 'Athletic Times' contributor,: fews that ho cah see no reason.why a man should not bo allowed to put his hands in advance of his mark providing that his feet are not" beyond it. It will, I .think, bo agreed that by: So doing a dooided' advantage is obtained. Jlf it wore not so, why do wo see all leading'professional runners (who arc bo permitted); .taking advantage of the 'lean forward,' and I Would ask! How many of our leading amateurs would not take tho same advantage" if so permitted? The argument that a man does not run on bis hands, and has;to get up from a Stooping position, and ' therefore the hands do not count,' I think .is quite .'out,' for any old runner with 'experience will agreo that the lower a man can get and keep without" checking" himsolf, the' greater will be his paco—all. going to show that the 'hands-in-fronf position does materially affect tho ohanccs. Coming back to Bnlo 13 and our own on:'page-' W, N.Z.A.A.A; Rule, Book, which aro identical, I fail to see any subtlety about it. I think that it was framed to make a man run his distance without getting, in somo instances,: 18' inchC3 to 2 feet advantage at tho start." -.'''" •''■• -'.'."' ' ,':'', '■■ "Mercury" and His readers aro indebted to Mr. Webster for his interesting littlo nrtiolo,' but ■ is -"not the genial "Pat" begging the question a littlo P The: issue raised was not as to the advantage aoeruing to thd runner who used the-crouohing "Bet" with his hnnds Over tho mark, as against tho runner using the samo -"set," but with his hands on, or bo> hind, tho mark. The point lay in whether a runner, pormittcd to start in the former manner,, would or would not have an advantage over tho old-time runner who "got set" standing. Briefly thus: The old-timer started with his too on the mark, and, in the,majority of cases, with ibis body inclined well forward, thus bringing at least his shoulders and head in front of his mark. 'Should not, thorofore, the modern;- sprinter be permitted 'to; "sot" with his toa : on the mark, aii'd with:liis'TiSnds" in front of it-to equalise the', one-time leaning forward advantage? ,*- ' '■ .■■■:'■"■'

The Labour Day sports meeting in Auckland vn3 a great success. in every way, and the attendance ,was so much greater than was anticipated by the - that: the cf.Ottd could not be coped with, and surged' over.tho running orea time and again, with tho result that the - runners in the Marathon—tho principal event—finished in afl-alloy Way;.of humanity, with Scarcely elbow-room. Local, executive please note for the November 8 Marathon.';. "'' , '■' ,■',-

. By v the way, it lis quite time that 'sports promoters became':'aware of the -stupidity: of calling suclban affair, as tho Auokiahd which, after nil,'Ms only a ton mild'road race, a Marathon;:.'-::There::iias,' So .fan only been one, true Marathon in New Zeal and — that held in'Southland'some'-little time back— and the Wellington Centre's contest oh Nevem-ber--9.m1l bo the second of the series. ..How., eyer, the. race "under,, review was run four tiroes round} the'track' in tho-Domain, thence to Newmarket, back to thd Domain, and four more times round the track; Fourteen sthrtod,' but N. Hill, ■ the winner of the big Auckland , Marathon (so-called) last... season, was not among thorn.. .The winner turned up in C. Hill, of whom by tho good Margin .of ,4min.,..sGseo. •in .BCmin.- 54sec. ' '~;.

The rest of the programmo-was made up of amateur and professional events', mixed,-;bnt none of the performances oalls for special men* tion." -. -..-■'.■ " ■.:;':■.■■;■:.'. .-■: ;.- ■ : .:-.

Matters in conneotioh ; with the local Marathon on November 9 are being pushed ahead with celerity.'' .'The route: has been chosen' and surveyed,; and'a", man in now- in the hands of thd printers, and will bo.available fot oirdulahon shortly.: It'is intended that the l-nnncrs will be stnrtcdf'Ot 1.30 p.m. in front'of'the clock on tho Resoi-ve. Thfey will.run'.6ns lap of the track,, ont: tho. northern cato to a poiht near Mason's. Gardens at Tnita,' arid, back through ..tho - same' "gate. The path will bo', roped ■>. off, arid, 'if-: possible, a panel of the picket'■ fence around tho enclosure removed So as to provide a cleav run'through on. to tho track again. One mOro lap of tho track and ft finish :in the Usiial place will comploto tho'distance. ..The route. is a good, one, and is absolutely.lovel all'tho way,: and the event has been timed to finish shortly be-fore-5 o'clock'.'-''■-. '■:''■<'_ .:' ■' ' : ;:;■ ". : ,-

Adviqo has been, received :f t om Auckland that C. Roid, the winner of the.ton-mile road race dealt with above, has been selected by the Auckland A.A.C. to represent the'northern contro'in the Wellington Marathon.' Keid is described in.the papor making,the announcement as being a runner with a free and taking style, better ,on the. road, than the.track. Ho is twenty-one years.of age, and won the Labour Day event with the utmost ease. - At present ho is reported as being at the top of his condition, and has been.doing a preparation consisting of ■seventy-five"Miles".running weekly, a task that his trainer has very rightly resolved to lessen for the Wellington fixture. .'.- .; Mr. P. Simpson,: tho.'Now Zealand, crosscountry, champion and Australasian three-niile record-holder, is practically a sure starter in tho Wellington Marathon on .the- King's Birthday. •...: : , ■ ;::.■'. ,-.., , Tho following paragraph appeared in'this week's ,'•" Press " . and " Otago Witness " and calls for some correction:—" At a meeting of tho Council of the New Zealand Amateur letio Association on October 11, a report was received from the manager of the team which recently, visited Brisbane; ' Tho • expanses totalled • J155 Js, ! Gd< Ho complained , that the ' accommodation and food provided at Brisbane were unsatisfactory, and' that' the prices charged were exorbitant." ■'.''',' The manager, like so many of our politicians, has been misrepresented. No complaint of the abovo nature was made in tho report. ( The manager stated that tho team, bore the discomforts of over-Crowded accommodation without murmuring, until better' arrangements could bo made, and mentioned the poorness of this 'accommodation as the reason for the team's transfor to other quarters whilst in Brisbane The better arrangements were madeon the second stay and, thenceforth, the team and its'manager wore more than pleased with the manner in which they \rere looked, after' by the good folk'of It is in fairness to them that this correction, is made by request of tho local, members of the touring party. A shrewd blow was struck for amateurism at the annual meeting of tho Caledonian Society ..' of Otago last week. In the "Star's •' report of tho proceedings appears tho follow-, ing:—" In 6peaking to the motion' (moved by the president) for the adaption., of tho report, Mr. J. Brown said their sports were" taking a trend' towards a huge professional gathering. Professionalism ato like canker into the heart of sport. It was made a business' of.'What .the Sbciety should do was to encourage the love of athlctids, whioh was innate in. tho human breast. Their own sons did not enter the Cfimpotitions.because it was a professional gathering. Ho wc-uld.bo in favour of running the risk of putting' a stop to tho existing system and making it purely an amatour gathering. .The public did not support the /rathcrinct as well, as it .might bo supported. Their officers had to go round, hat in hand, in ordor to prevent tho gathering from resulting in'-i loss; By abolishing professionalism they would ho fosttring the health and tho interests of their own lads. Lot tho society see that : their sons' muscles were devolopod, and they'would bo'doing a .vast amount of good in their own city." ; Several other speakers.endorsed theso rcmarksVnnd.lhc motion was carried. , , Two items of'interest from an Auckland exchange;—"C. Laurie, ex-nple jump champion, is'again in training, and will probably be a competitor. at tho December sports." "The Auckland Amateur Club will probablv invite,-Miles iDiokfon, present Now Zealand and Australasian champion over three miles, to 1 take part'in tho December snorts. A race between Uioltfloh and G. N. Hill, Auckland Mara, i thofl 'winner, would be sure to attract' cbnsiderable attention/' ■■ ■ , ■.'■.'•".■■; ■.•■". The Wellington' College sports were set down i for yestorday-too..late, therefore, .for:theso. paUs, ' TAd lailo w&a jus, «..

Wednesday afternoon, and as sporting a race ns one could wjsh to see resulted. Thero were thirteen Btarters, from whom Childs was the first He made the'pace for the first lap, followed by Gallie, Stewart, and M'Coll. In the second round Cla'chnn hopped out from the ruck, and assumed control, only to bo displaced by Poolo when thebell went, lhe others wore all bunched up close handy. Coming round the homo bend Childs, 'Stewart, and M'Coll; who had been, nursing ' each other throughout, camo away with a rush, and led into the straight. Hero Childs and Stewart put in a liard dash, and a groat finish resulted in tho former getting the worsted by half a yard, with M'Coll ten yards away third. The time'was given as smin. 7sce.—a smart per-fofmanco-considoring tho wind. . By this win Childs annexes tho Oram Cup, as he had previously scored a second in tho oross-countxy run recently won by P. Reid. Stewart and Clachan tio for socond honours with thrco points each, as against tho winner's tour points. The athletic writer in tho "Otago Witness" has been much perturbed by tho proposal of the N.Z.A.A.A. Council to replace the Walker visit, should it bo definitely abandoned: by a tour of- tho Dominion by Wheatley and Davis, the Victorian cracks. Tho southern scribe waxes most indignant over the scheme, but fails to givo any.reasons why. Lack, of space prevents the matter being dealt with more fully, this week, but, next Saturday,'if space'permits, his comment will be published and replied to.