SCULLING CHAMPIONSHIP.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLIII, Issue 2289, 14 June 1921, Page 1

SCULLING CHAMPIONSHIP.

ARNST DEFEATS HANNAN.

A GREAT RACE,

The world’s sculling championship was rowed on the Wairau River, Blenheim, on Saturday, bctween R. Arnst (champion), and Patrick Hannan (challenger), and was witnessed by about 12,000 spectators.

The stake was £250 aside, and the loser was guaranteed £250 from the gate, a proportion of which also went to the winner, which worked out, on the revenue actually taken, at about £4OO. Without any untoward incident the scullers got away •to an even start, in fairly rough water. Each started at a. rapid stroke. Arnst g6t his boat moving at 20 to the minute, Hannan was soon registering 30 strokes -to the minute, hugging the right bank. There was nothing between them for the first furlong. Hannan, though rowing very hard, seemed to be having trouble with his right arm, boring in close. Leaving the first bank, pulling against a. strong wind, both settled down hard, straining for the lead at the new sandbank near the halfmile, where the advantage of positions gave an opportunity for milder water and a big tactical gain early in the race.

The champion drew out, it length to the good at the quarter-mile. Hannan was still doing a fast driving stroke, but his direction was faulty. Arnst drew out two lengths to the good, and swung across the river to the commanding position, dropping his stroke to 24 as hemlock 1 lie sheltered water. Hannan turned immediately, pulling across diagonally, and lost nearly a length by ’taking too wide a sweep. At the half-mile post Arnst was leading by three good lengths, which lie gradually increased. At the three-quarter-mile Arnst settled to

a uniform 22 strokes, which he maintained throughout the race. Hannan’s sprinting was beginning to tell on him, and his timing was now down to 25. The first mile was covered in 7 min. 45 see., and Arnst had established a haul of eight lengths. He was still doing 22 strokes to Hannan’s 25.

Hannan kept his stroke at 2(1, and got to within four lengths of the champion. The heavy water began to tell visibly on him, however, killlie kept at. it gamely. They reached' the two miles, the time being 15min. 55see., the second mile being done in 8 min. lOsec.

Startled by Hannan's great effort, the champion responded by throwing greater weight in everywhere. Within a dozen strokes lie shot his boat, eight lengths away. Hannan answered again with a brilliant sprint.

Cheers rang from the thousands massed oil tho bridges as the contestants swung into view, in water as calm as an artificial lake, threequarters of a mile from home. Hannan had got the interval down to six lengths. Inch by inch the challenger drew up on Arnst, and a scene of riotous enthusiasm prevailed at the bridge-head. At the 24 miles, the champion made one of his rare errors, swinging too sharply into the real straight. Hannan seized upon it, and put half a length less between the boats. Only for a moment, however, for Arnst, with a couple of terrific drives, made up the lost way, and the pair raced for home, with four lengths between stern and bow.

Half a mile from home the pace became terrific. Hannan leaped to 30 strokes a minute, his fastest timing in the race. Arnst responded with 245.

The last quarter-mile was passed, and the interval was the same. Hannan made a desperate exhausting effort, sprinting with every ounce of him, but the great propelling power of the champion’s drive held him off, and, in a scene that will linger long in the memory, Richard Arust passed the judge's post a clear four boat-lengths to the good, victor over Patrick Hannan, and retaining possession to his title of world’s champion. The time was 22min. 34 l-ssec. The last mile was done in the very fast time of Gmin. 30 2-sscc.

■STORY OF CHAMPIONSHIP

The genesis of the sculling championship on the "Wairau River, at Blenheim, between “Dick” Artist and “Paddy Hannan, lies in the sculling matches some eighty or ninety years ago on the Thames among the London watermen, so graphically described by Charles Dickens, Captain Man-vat, and other novelists of the period. From 1831, when C. Campbell beat J. Williams

f? on the Thames and became the first champion, to 1876 the premier sculling event was' known as the race for the Championship of England. It was Trickett who started a wider movement by winning the honours for Australia, in 1876. Hanlan beat Trickett in 1880, Beach beat Hanlan in 1884, Cliff of d 1885 Gaudaur and Ross .1886, and. Hanlan 11gain in 1887, and then retired unbeaten. Kemp assumed the title and beat Hanlan for the second time in 1888. In the same year he was defeated by Harry Searle, who died after a brief meteoric career on his return from England. Peter Kemp assumed the title, and beat off the challengers, Neil. Mattersoii and Jack M’Lean, until December, 1890, when in a second race M’Lean won. M’Lean, who had previously beaten Stanbury, was twice beaten by him later. Tom Sullivan, a New Zealander, gave Stanbury a great race on the Parramatta in 1892, and all but beat him.

Then Stanbury visited America and lost the title to Gaudar, who beat him again later twice, for the last time in 1890. It was not till 1901 that another race took place, when George Towns, who had como to the front in Australia,, tried in vain to,get Gaudaur to race on the Thames. Unsuccessful in this, he rowed Gaudaur oil the Lake of the Woods in Canada, right where Gaudaur lived, and beat him on his own terms. Returning to Australia, he beat Tressider in 1904, but twelve months later was outrowed by Stanbury after a great race. Exactly a year later he won his challenge against Stanbury, and again assumed the title. ,In the following year he beat Daman, of Canada, on the Nepean River. Next year he forfeited Hie title or challenge to his brother Charles, who was soon afterwards challenged by W. Webb, of Wanganui. Webb won on 3rd August, 1907, on the Parramatta. For the first time the championship was in New Zealand. Webb was not left- to hold the title without a contest. lie defended it successfully in February, 1908, against R. fressicTcr, of New South Wales, but in December admitted defeat by ‘‘Dick” Arnsl, who only, two years before bad forsaken the wheel of the racing cycle for the seat of the racing skiff. Webb gallantly tried again six months later, but could not “come hack,” and once more Was beaten. Arnst, after easily defeating Wlieloh at Akaroa, in April, 1910. met tho first English challenger for many years in Ernest Barry, of London, on the strange tropical waters of \he Zambesi. The New Zealander won, but when it came to a match on the Thames in July, 1012, Barry’s knowledge of the ancient river stood him in good stead, and skill beat strength. Tim championship w«is now hack m England after nearly forty years’ absence. Barry continued to hold it, successfully defeating Durnan, of Canada, and Pearce, of Au-tralia, and subsequently Paddon.

The war now intervened, and it was not till 1919 that Barry was again challenged, this time by Felton, another Australian, who had concluded his war service. Felton had the advantage of rough water, and won. Barry followed the championship out to Australia after Felton, and carefully trained on the Parramatta, where in August last lie, after a line race, had a most popular win. Feltons' appeal for a foul was disallowed by the veteran umpire, ex-cliampion'W. Beach. It was Barry’s last race. Arnsl challenged immediately, and lodged a deposit in accordance with the rules. Barry failed to accept, and (he title automatically reverted to Arnst.

ARXST’S RECORD-

Richard A nisi has been a great figure in at least two branches of sport for nearly twenty years. Born at Taitapu, in Canterbury, lie was a champion road-racing cyclist, until in 1900 he took up sculling. His magnificent physique attracted the attention of sculling enthusiasts at the time when sculling was even more popular than it is now. He was practically floated on to the river by a small syndicate in New South Wales. After a period of training he began to enter for various events, and quickly drove his way to the front. His chance came in a match against Harry Pearce in August, 1908, for £2OO a-side, which he won, and on the 15th December of that year he rowed away from the world’s champion, W. Webb, on the Wanganui River, after a great race. The timr for the three miles worked out at 19 nun. 51 3-ssee. Six months later Arnst repeated the performance. His next race will always lie remembered from the novelty of the scene and the strangeness of the circumstances. The challenger was Ernest Barry, of London, a Thames waterman, already of great reputation. The venue arranged was the waters of the Zambesi River, in South Africa, within earshot of the famous Victoria Falls, close to where (he Cape-to-Cairo Railway bridges the gulf below. The South African Chartered Company arranged the race as an advertisement, and scored. Arnst won the race easily on 3rd August, 1910, standing tlm climate better than his English opponent. Next year Arnst, ,ja cked in Australia, beat Pearce on the Parramatta, but twelve months later lie lost the championship to Barry on the Englishman’s home waters, the Thames, where watercraft counts for so much in a com-petition-with physical strength.