WORLD ATHLETICS

Hokitika Guardian, 22 September 1932, Page 3

WORLD ATHLETICS

at' LOS ANGELES. /V ITEMS FROM THE TEAM. WELLINGTON, • September 20. - “Very, Very .impressive,’.” !: was. .-the phrase used by Mr P. N. Rundle, manager of the New Zealand team’, ,tq describe the stately and magnificent opening ceremony of the Olympic Games at Ix>s Angeles,: which took place in the presence of 105,GPU spectators. “Quite a number -of people told me afterward,” he said, “that.'the spectacle of th 6 opening cepemotiy had given them;.'a lump iji their throats.” Two princes,' one Swedish’, and " ’ the other 'Japanese, wieTd among the com : petitors”, at'’the Gameii, According t 6 one of the New Zealand athletes. .Both were in the equestrian contest 5 ,; and the Japanese, who was a magnificent rider; with -a magnificent' horse, won the final competition.

Lord Burghiey, the 1 noted British hurdler made a happy impression on Mr T. ’W. Leslie, of .Wellington, the official starter. He had had' ■ gome .trouble in one of the' heats, owing to the speed of the track, and had touchtri some #h e hurdles. “By ,gad,” he said,' smilingly, to ’Mr Leslie/'- “it's a ■ pity they don’t run . these hurd e reces ipinus the hurdles.” Lord Burghiey was a great ’sportsman, Mr Leslie ,'sa id. ■ According to W. J.' Savidan, New Zealand’s distance irunner, ' th e second largest team at ' -trie Games r was the Japanese team, which , number about 3CK), to America’s 3feb.,:,.A.;jJ. E i ’liott). the sprinter, said ...that Japan whs undoubtedly .mailing a strong bid Tor supremacy .in world amateui; sport. They went" to enormous lengths in training’ and it was said that some of the Japanese competitors ..inhaled oxygen just before they, .took part in events! ' , „ i, , ■ ” When quartered in .Giymfeic Village the New ' Zealand team'' was,’, ipi''. . the happy position of being able tp. command -whatever fopd it. desired..' *Wb'-, had our own chef —a Scotsman—who knew how w r e . liked our , food,’ 1 said a member of the -party yesterday. “We set our own menus. ~We .were novei' denied anything.” the chef’s wages were paid by the team, but the cost of the food was - borne by the administration!

' One id the most remarkable ‘figures in Olympic Village,' where athletes of ajl nations, were quartered, was an official who 'spoke 20 languages. .. According to members , of the New Zealand team', the Games were re-: niarkahly free from accidents, even minor ones. Th e worst, perhaps, was that in which, a horseman fell and, hur. hji= back. But .the injury was,- hpt serious.

i Most of the ath’-etes 7 a.f. the Games spoke' fairly good English, according to Mr T. W. ’Leslie, tbe oficiaj sj tarter. The Hungarians, Swedes and Japanes. knew least English bn un average, but everyone knew- the- starting command- ; —“On your marks, get

There.. were]' Awb 'ktarters at. the. Gaines—Mr T. W. T ■ e We'Hngton, and Herr Fraiiz Mueller, of! Cifer* many. -According .'to Mr Leslie the gun was a first-class one—the best he ii"ad ever used. A long flex led awuiy from it to Sthe electrical timing apparatus, which worked in' conjunction witn a; cinematograph camera' to -.take ( h, pictorial •. record of the 'finish showing the time at each point of -thh film. In addition to this method of timing, which could also decide' difficult platings, there were five stop-watches r <>h every event. ’ .

: in urmi,, the famous Finnish ylopg-dik tance runner, and Ladoumegue, French runner who has clone a mile in world .record tim©, were spectators at the; Games. Both? Nurmi and Ladoumegue had 'been suspended for profesand hence ’ could not represent their countries. The interriationai committee examined ' Nurmi’s position 'at a -meeting- Which the New 1 Zea : land manager attended, but it had come to the conclusion, that the sus * pension had been. ' fully warranted.

How an immense crowd a| the ’Olympic Stadium stopped hooting and began to ci'.ieer. was recounted yesterday by a member, of the New, Zealand party. A Finnish runner reached the tape in one event ahead of an " American anil the crowd thought the American had been interfered with., It. accordingly began hooting, which lasted for ■some minutes until the announcer reminded Fe crowd through loudspeakers that, “these people are our guests.”. Thei e was a moment’s lull and the crowd' began; >to, cheer. “They turned round like the wind,” said the New Zealand©r. “It showed they were spores a I heart,” <■ •• . •■?'•

• When an athlete gets a “break” on his fellow-competitors at the start of an event by getting away l before the gun, it ie customary for the runner*; to be recalled by a second shot: of th - starting pistol. A good starter has .gome elusive quality of control which makes “breaks,” and, therefore, second shots, infrequent. It ?is inte're'tin,? to note that ifr T. W- Leslie, of Wellington, fired only one -second shot in,-/the course o f all the starting he did at the Games, ivhijp -Herr Mueller, the German starter,.fired about iu dozen second - shots. "

When the Games were over the New Zealand team, like others, saw quite a 1. '; n r Tlo’lvwood andi th e motion picture business. The manager of the V- ,p 'Bundle. visited the beautiful borne tm Beverly Hills of. ,ouglae Fairbanks and Mi-ry Bickford, irjhere he sp**. Ovaries Chaplin. ;.0 ! -'o,m a ft a r old Lloyd, “and scores of others.” •" ■ •=• ; ’ Tn spite of the wonderful and costly organisation, the Games had .paid, their wav and 'actually shown a -profit, according to IVCt B, v. fondle ■of the New Zealand team. Gat* ry-