ATHLETICS.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1734, 26 April 1913, Page 12

ATHLETICS.

IBT "Meboubi."3

AMERICANS HERE THIS YEAR. An Astonishing Pleco of Nows, With tho conclusion of tho Sttto championships in Australia comes a slack timo in the athletics of tho Antipodes, and ono is'forced to go from home to find nows. 111 tho present instance, tho ijuest is certainly successful. Tlu following cable received through ihc Independent Cable Service, and published last week in Sydney, will certainly bring tho most up-to-tlnps of news, not only to our athletic public) b.it also to our athletic legislators:— San Francisco, April 18. Tho All-American track team which will visit Nov Zealand and Australia in November, returning in the following April, mil consist of four men. 'William Unmack, an Australian writer on the Sail Francisco "Coll," who is organising tho tour, says tho team will include a sprinter capable of a good performance over any distance iroui 100 to 100 yards, ;i distance man able to make a good race over half-milo to five-mile distances, and ail nil-round .athlete who can pole-vault, jump (broad and high), throw the javelin and discus, and put tho shot. Three men, and possibly the four; will come from .tho Eastern States.

This is anticipating matters with a yengeanco on the part of our American friends. As far as is lmown on this side, no team 3s being organised to tour* New Zealand and Australia, and certaiidy 110 dates have been settled upon 03 to its arrival and departure. All that lias beon done is that tho N.Z.A.A.A., acting with tho sanction of tho A.A.U of Australia, has written to Mr. .T. E. Sullivan, secre-tary-treasurer of tho American AtWetio Union, as to the prospects of getting n Small team oyer early next season. So far no reply lias been received to this communication, and nothing more has transpired as to its constitution or organisation. The rest is purely imagination, but it is to bo hoped that realisation will follow, and that nest season will isee tho Americans with us.

Tho Simple Life: What Food for Athletes.

Whilo <m tho subject of American athletes, it is interesting to nofco that in. tho States just ;iov a very animated newspaper discussion is going on—or rather, it was going on when tho last moil left as to tho amount and quality of foods that an athlete requires in order to i,ct the best Tesulhi. . Tho topic .vas set afoot by tho visit to America of 'Han.ucs lvohelmcinoin, the great Finnish Olympic winner, who is apparently a strict adherent to the ' sirnplo Iifo" regime that by forco rather than from choice, constitutes tho -diet of. ins peoplo in his Homeland. Tho great littlo Finn comes from humble stock—ho is a wheelwright b> trade— and according to press roports, lvis homo dietary consisted mostly of fish, smoked or fresh, and hard bread—hardly the ideal feeding for an athlete according to pio-sent-doy ideas. , , Tho paper critics aro endeavouring to tiaoe a c00.n.1-between tho wonderful staying power of the > champion and his countrymen and their plain, htjrd faro, and are drawing tho moral that the American athlete is inclined to overpnmper Iriinsolf at . the expenso of his 'Ae argument used in favour of this theory is that while the Americans more than hold their own in field games and short racing, which call tor doxt<?rity and dash, rather than enduronco, they fail both in long flat races -and cross-oouutry tests.'

who Tried Eggs—and Collapsed, As a result of tho discussion various good tests aro being hold by tho more enthusiastic reformers, and it can be safely presumed that ;ifter _ many _ exhaustive tests various papo r s will bo written on tho subject, and then matters will go on exactly as before. Ono test nad concluded when tho mail loft, and as tho result may be of interest to any of our athletes who.yearn for tho dimple life, tho mcssago is repeated as published:

A champion athlete at Pennsylvania University—ono of a party of students who volunteered to subsist on an allegg diet for experimental purposes— collapsed at the end of four days.

Dealing With a Record. At last Monday's meeting of tho Council of tho N.Z.A.A.A. an application was received from tho Auckland Centre for tho registration as o record of A. W. Dormer's time of 2min. 16 3-ssec., put up on March 1. The usual certificates came to hand testifying that tho track was properly surveyed, and that Donner was not assisted by the wind: also that tho time reported was corrcct, and that tho watches had been tested—in fact, everything was in order except that there was no certificate, that the testing of the watches had been done within the limit of tirno after the race sot down by tho council. The matter was therefore referred by tho centre for the missing certificate, and when this comes to hand tlio new figures will go on to the book as a "best on record." It will not figure on tho official list of records, as the distance, 1000 yds., is not-a chanipicmship ovent. This, howover, does not detract either from tho merit of the performance or the honour of holding it. Dormer's Now 'Domicile. "Mercury" has been informed that Dormer has left Auckland, and is now resident in Opotiki, but, of course, he will still bo eligible to run for the Auckland Centre, although the change will mean that ho will not get so much competition or tho benefit of much company in his training. Tho Rival Blues. On. March 14 tho annuai "meet" between Oxford and Cambridge Universities eventuated, and curiously enough resulted exactly as it did last year—in a tie, each scoring five wins. Tho hero of the day was H. S. 0. Ashingtou, of Cambridge, who won tire broad jump with a University record of 23ft. sJin., tho 120 yds. hurdles in 10 l-sseo., and the halfmile in 2min. ssec., a'queer mixture of performances. Appended aro tliß individual results and times:— 100yds.—Ii. M. Macintosh (Cambridge). Time, 10 2-ssec. Quarter-mile. —D. G. Davies (Cambridge). Time, 51sec. Half-mile.—H. S. 0. Asbngton (King e, Cambridge). Time, 2min. ssec. Mile.—A. N. S. Jackson (Oxford). Time, 4inin. 21 l-ssec. ' Threo miles. —D. N. Gaussen (Oxford). Time, Umiu. 37scc. , 120 yds. Hurdles.—H. S. O. Aslungton (Cambridge). Time, 16 l-ssec. lluuning high jump.—J. do B. Crosslty (Oxford). Height, sft. Bin. Running broad jump.—H. S. O. Asliinglon (Cambridge). Distance, 23ft. s}ui. Throwing lGlt>. hnmmer (7ft. circle).—\V O. Zeigler (Oxford). Distance, 142 ft.

Putting the 161b. shot (7ft. circle).—W. O. Zeigler (Oxford). Distance, 43ft. *Inter-'Vnrsity Tecord.