ATHLETICS.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 787, 9 April 1910, Page 12

ATHLETICS.

■';..',-It';must be;; unique in,-our athletic annals that an event at a sports meet- : no -claim to even the most local championship rating—has .vied-with,/ and actually outdone, :in public' interest, a world's championship /..fixture-'taking , place within■ the Dominion, on the same. day. Yet this was the case last Saturday; : In Wellington especially was tho interest in the Kdrr-Wilson match intense, and speculation.as to the result seemed far more rife than did it regarding the Whelcli v.; Arhst:' fixture. tOf course, .as re-: gards this latter contest, it must be conceded that the man in the street regarded it .as.over : and"-.done with : as soon, as it was. arranged, for the writer doubts, whether (outside of'j.Akaroa, where the wish may have been father'to'; the thought) anyone; really considered 1 that the race could go other than one ■way. With the walking match it was different./ The issue hung-in the gravest doubt. Moreover, it was considered, to. be a case wherein- a popular public performer-was being given a chance to "square, up'' an injustice; 'and. more-.: over, from'a local standpoint; it was ; :"4-Uckland; versus.' Wellington''—quite' as"'- .much so, .'in fact, - as .-.''Wilson .v. Kerr.":' Again,' for a large number of athletic'enthusiasts, not only in the two cities immediately concerned', ■ but all ever:. New Zealand—and,' it - is too ranch to :say,' also in athletic circles" in Australia—a' larger matter was involved than.simply, a' race between two good performers. , To. these it'was not/so ranch a matter' of pace as a matter of style.;,: - M ..-'.-"■•. '■''''■ '■ : ':;',' : :'■■•■ X The contention raised after Kerr's,defeats in the. recent championship meet; Mg/Was hot as to which-was/the faster' walker of tho as to whether

Wilson's' mode of progression /was <in accordance with: the rules laid ■ down. ■And. this is the'phase- of - Saturday's match that so' much accentuated the

public's: interest in the' affair'. : There was a double result to wait for—Would Kerr'beat Wilson?.: and Would, Wilson's ■gait be/passed?:''•: ..."'. -.'■';' '.'." ."•'/;' . ./It was- this question 'of. rules that .madejthe- result, so gratifying ,tb Wcl-. , Ungtoniaris.- --'Had'Kerr beaten /Wilson without.the latter's disqualification the; /matter of fact /would _. still: have been, 'gratifying, but to nothing like the same extent.r .And -it • is .in..' this, .point: that, there lies one of .the 'chief charmVthe event .'.has;to distinction. _ Usually in any contest/a disqualification- is ana-, thema' to the 'public; it is a spoil-sport, a ibugbear, something, to be and', if T hecess'ary, jeered at; but inthis case- it'wasi "in AVellirigtbn, arid also to some, extent -in "Auckland,-, actually: looked 'for: \ /In 'fact; :the consensus:' of opinion appeared /to -be' that, if/Kerr was /to., win / were' better that /he should win through Wilson's disqualification..; Had he won. through 'generalship', or' : extra pace" the main question wduld s ( tilT have been unanswered;.'; Now ; ,'it"; is" known/: that Kerr lost the/New Zealand /.championships through no fault, of .his own—which is wnat his frierids have "held ever since his defeat..

./.'. /"There are. some, matters in conhec- • / tipn, with: the 'event ■ that. call for ■ some; - /' ,mMtio£- ,;First''' 'and - foremost: stands -/'/Ithe.'action 'of sStWF.'.'■ W- Coombes; rthe' ,-'■: - / Sudge, m-, so. 'fearlessly doing his duty] .'-. ■/an'.the'face'offsUch a large:and excited. -/•/-crowd—there .wire about 3000 present, //;and?of 'theseV about' 2999 "were - calling upon -Wilson -in .the most, frantic fash-, //.'ioriiwhen: the Aucklander ,was .taken /.-. off; Of course, it can be said that' this '•";'.is;what Mr.' Coombes was- there'for—in ; ,:'. short,-that it was his "job." .'.Certainly :■'.''■.■■ it/-was, but there/are: some' jobs/that, /-..; take;'a deal of'nerve in tho doing,/and- .;,.,. this .was- one: / Mr. /Coombes.: deserves .';,/all for his. fearlessness. ./ /' Anpther feature", worthy/0f,.:, note/ lies .',/ along the same lines,'and,it'-is.one that ::,.; affords "great' • sportsman-' .like'.spirit in which -both: Wilson and '■..;:■■.' the'. Auckland crowd took, what "must /. hav.o, been-a .bitter, .disappointment. ,;■: From an onlooker the writer has learn- .'.... «3 'that the ./scene .at./the moment'of / the! disqualification was one\of the wild- : est; excitement. ' Kerr bad ■ led up to /...,the,; time, that Wilson transgressed— about:; seventy/ yards from the tap'e^. and ; here •the, 1 , .Aucklander ; : started'^'to!

-•/;','gain-':upori-.'-b4m';<. ; .'--Ther©-WM;: , , : bn^'', i '?a ':'••, smaH; gap/to'be : closed'-upV. arid : Wilson. / .had-'all:; but. worked it off,■■'■. urged;; arid' :,-. spurred on by:a,yelling", crowd, that had ';.. surged;on ,to/the'.'grriuid, and/was in .a :'-:delirium of/excitement. ',iSuddenly-.the: ../.blow/fell;./'Mr.,.Coombes spoke'..td;Wil-. ,; s6n;-;,:and;. -he( quietly stopped; There 'was-: a momentary, silence,; then. ,a"vast ; / "Oh!" :,pf.'-dismay, 'and ;theri--nothing,-;'.or,rather:nothing that was-..not credit; able ..and; praiseworthy: on the. part of :. the Aucklariders.-'.-; Kerr.-'received: a good- •:: ovation,'-the judge wais.'complimented :; .on all' hands-on a good'decision, arid Wilson was carried, shoulder high to : ; ';his quarters after' his excellent fight. /> ' - -'-.• r ? ' a another" matter-in connec- -■ ;tion/with this match that has'-rather been lost sight of in the excitement of ;. ;tbe .struggle, and that, is ;the genero's- ;. ity.of the, gentleman: by whom the contest was mado possible. This was Mr. ■■■ F. S. Ballin, a vice-president .. of the ; Auckland A.A. 'and C.C., who donated' V v a: special/trophy-of £10,. the maximum .allowed: by the. rules, 'for the event.. Mr. Ballin: appears to be nothing'if not : a sport. According ,to an Auckland ex- ,' change he 'has expressed ' his : .willing- ; -ness to donate: a 'trophy of equivalent value for. a meeting between Kerr and /Wilson' next November at- the, club's ; spring meeting. Mr. Ballin considers that, as'Kerr and Wilson have each . secured a victory under two different '.; Dominion judges, .the services of Mr. ■'■■- R. Coombes, of Sydney, considered the ; most competent judge of: walking: in 'Australasia, should So ob'tained..; Mr. -Ballin. is' willing to defray -'that gentle- . man's:expenses. . .-..-..,. . -~, '; ; .':This. is indeed '.the true sporting spirit.. ■-'At the. same time it. is ilnlikely' that v ;another match will take place; Wilson, ■-.', -only came' out again. on this; occasion.

.owing to its special circumstances.:' He is a dairy farmer at Papakura, and is too tied down by his vocation to do real justice .to a' continued preparation, besides which, he is far from. being as young .'as ho uacd to be., He informed Mr. CoQmbes after last Saturday's race that he had finished; so it ..is unlikely that .the men .will. come .'togetheri again, .and if they do : surely it is .Wellington's: turn. ~ '■'...' ,: Of the other events at the Auckland meeting, the most outstanding .was tho. mile walk handicap.'., Tho inclusion,of this race.on tho_ programme was a great mistake, and, indeed, it nearly fell through. ' Coming as it did after the last race, it was anti-climax of tho : worst order. .. ' Neithor .of the cracks wished to start,'their task was done. Each felt the effects of the gruelling two miles,. Eerr especially so. However,'for "tho sako of the public, they went out, with the result that, as.is known. Wilson.won by a .small, margin. Tho display of walking was not pleas- . ing. Both men wero at fault in tho straight, tho time was slow, and generally it was not a success.

Of tho running ovents, perhaps tho best performance was the run of Neville Hill, the New Zealand mile champion, hi the 1000 Yards Handicap, which he won front scratch by three inches, in 2miri. 24 l-sscc. Tho two-mile run was rjran Oasilv by C-,?. Iteid off 120 yds.,

virtual scratch, in-10n)ih. 2sec. In fact, it appears to have been rather a scratch man's day.- The 120 Yards Hurdles was won from tho book mark, owe 12 yards;' by J. Walker, who figured in this, event at the championship meeting, and the high jump produced a dead heat -between• the old-timer, C. C. Laurie,' on 3in., and A. G. Marshall, scratch, at sft. sin. • Writing of a recently-established Australasian record, "Harrier," of "The Australasian," says:—"There are times when the tipster likes his tip to lose, and I should have_been right glad had I proved wrong with regard to G. A. Wheatley's' attack on the half-mile record last Saturday. I see it announced that, he succeeded, the provious record being Iniin. 56 4-osec., and his time last Saturday lmin. Sfijsec.; but I have a note of his doing lmin. 56sec. on the same track on January 27, 1906. The slower time was put up in a handicap "in Sydney. 'Unless the ■ 1906- has not gone on to the books,. it remains the Victorian and Australasian record, but Wheatley. did enough last Saturday to prove that he retains all his old ability. The field'numbered 21, including practically every,, half-miler of any class, with starts up .to 60 yards j he was rather badly blocked at one stage, he ran'; a foot over the distance, and he only failed by two feet to win the race. The pace was" made very solid by F. Scott (30), till the last, hundred was reached,/when the order was Bowers (25), Hollow (10), Scott, Wheatley. The last-named went up second, but Bowers drew away slightly, and won .by two feet, third three yards away. 'The 'winner was not timed, but Wheatley's time to two watches was lmin./56jjsec., and : a third time lmin. 56isec."

The same,authority.also says:—E. K. Russell, the holder of the Australasian •high-jump record, left this week' for England and the Continent. \ He takes with him letters to the English A.A.A;', London A.C., and Polytechnic A.C., and assured me, before leaving, that, given half a, chance, he' would do a little .training, and- 'start in the- English championships in■: July. It will be remembered that Jt.r .was •: Russell who cleared 6ft. in the '.high.'-jump at the recent carnival.in, Tasmania. ,'

' . It is ■ with, great regret 'that ,"Mer : cury" lias to chronicle that. Wellington is to lose the services, of "Tom".' ;her representative.mfler. He is under to Fijij jwher© he has been 'dispatched by the Bank: of New South Wales,, and .he' leaves on ' Monday. Heffer's career on', the track has been short- but brilliant.■;'He started as a novice .this• season; .was unable to give any ..time to: training on, account of. his lowing engagements until, the. end of .January, and wound, up by' running second in the Dominion's milechampionship: His best performance, was his winning of .'the mile provincial championship'on the Basin Reserve in 4min. 29 i'4-ssec —a sterling /.'performance. Since then he.has oh several- occasions run,4min. 32sep.,and better,, and all through the season his '.track performances have been,extremely creditable, and have given promise. of, great things. next year. In addition'Heffer is popular with: public ,and .performers alike, andho will be much missed from athletic circles. He is to be, /accompanied by Mr. ,L. Cook, also an amateur athletic enthusiast, and'one of the Brooklyn Harriers' delegates to the Wellington Centre, who is also under sailing orders in the same'service, and to the same Pbrt.-/'. .'■.•.'.■; . ;./.', ,/ /, -.•.

Harriers,indulged in 'ap'informal.run last-week/ arid to-day 'bbgin the ~ winter's •'• -operations"', in earnest. The following. is, the' syllabuß. for .the current month:-—April 9, Cliff House; .Island Bay, official, opening of the season; April 16, Eullford's Hall, Brooklyn,' combined run with Brooklyn Harriers; April 23, Karori; April 30, invitation run from residence of Mr. H. A. Lamb, 106. Coromandel Street. As.was done last winter, "Mercury" will endeavour to give notes and com-' nients. on the weekly-, runs . in..- this column..-..:".;., ', I'-,-.,.'.."-

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