OLYMPIC CHAMPION BEATEN

Evening Star, Issue 23378, 22 September 1939, Page 4

OLYMPIC CHAMPION BEATEN

AMERICAN WOMEN'S SWIMMING TITLES YOUNGSTERS PERFORM WELL

[By Hooker.]

Prom Professor John A, Jackson, well-known San Francisco swimming instructor, comes' news, of the American senior outdoor women’s national championships, which were held at Des Moines some sis weeks ago. Marjorie Gestring, of Los Angeles, finally lost her senior outdoor threemetre diving title. Miss Gestring is only IG, but she was an Olympic champion at 13, and she dropped her title to Helen Crlenkovich, au 18-year-old San Francisco girl, who took oyer Marjorie’s indoor title earlier this year. The margin was a matter of less than two points. Miss Gestring won the title three times and was beaten only once previously in such competition. Esther Williams, 17-year-old Los Angeles Athletic Club representative, won the ] 00-metre, free style championship in Imin 9sec, and 14-year-old Mary M. Ryan, of the Lakeside Civic Club, Louisville, Kentucky, won the senior women’s one mile free style championship She finished nearly 25yds ahead of Nancy Merki, a 13-year-old swimmer representing the Multnomah Athletic Club, Portland, Oregon, The winner’s time was 24min 12 4-ssec, which is a little more than 2min slower only than the New Zealand men’s record. Nancy Merki won the 400 metres free style title in smin 29 3-ssec, only 1 l-10sec above Olympic champion Helene Madison’s American mark of smin 28 5-10 sec. Fujiko Katsutani, 14-year-old Hawaiian swimmer, won the 200 metres breast stroke in 3min 16 l-10sec. The New Zealand record for 22I?yds, which is slightly more than 200 metres, is 3min 19sec, and is held by Miss Winnie Dunn, of Otago.