SWIMMING.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 136, 26 October 1912, Page 7

SWIMMING.

LONGWORTH'S RETURN. I ® Australia's champion, Longworth, is back in Sydney again—back after his-un-fruitful visit to Sweden, a mission which, when he left here, appeared to be pregnant with promise (says the Sydney Referee). But Canada's remarkable champion, Hodgson, was .not reckoned upon. Hodgson stands easily and well out from the next best Canadian or . American swimmer. We also had not reckoned upon the meteoric appearance of the Hawaiian Kohanomuku, who had for some time been wasting his swimming sweetness upon the desert air of his home, that little sea-girt plot in the Pacific. Both Hodgson and the Hawaiian were' clangers to' the acquirements of world's supremacies at their distances, as far as Longworth was concerned. Longworth tells us how that for a week ■before : the opening of the swimming section of the : programme he suffered severely from e<ar trouble, and yet faced theJ first'''event^—the-100 metres race—and ' finished* ! second to the flying man-fish frorh Honolulu." Kohanomaku's performance was ah eye-opener. And mat'ters'Svere not assisted at'all when Longworth, on the same day, faced the task of endeavoring to "down" the Canadian -marvel, ■Hodgson, 1 in the 'ISOO . metres event. : Once' more did the Australian -have to play second fiddle, and against a world's ; record performance. The semifinal on the second day of the 100 metres saw him a competitor. .That effort ■ prov'edUhe: last "crack at doing anything -r-it : was to lied,''and tho ordeal of an operation'"for-; Kim'.immediately after'waiils. " ■'•'■'.' "::..'

. Longworth • speaks in high praise of Hodgson;and 'Hatfield: (the young Englishman) 1 'distance swimmers, and says •HodjJSori is 'Without' equal at the present moiiieiit. - Tlic.tr'iidgeon .stroke is the ; -Method'.of -prripulsion-i adopted by the 'Camtdiam"and it is: Tised'in such a man'her fcha'tJ lie seems, to glide along with almost' ithe grace r a'ncl •absence! of the dis-turbance-of kheAvator; of a porpoise, and the pace acquired and the hiding of effort aJie'hiarMelWi'i.7 Tlow different the progress of thc-Hawaiian! His is the movo<nijeiiit!O i f|fai]iig,!:'scrpy" propelled boat, ami •Mb Ipg'oWWiji.nsf.thfiifCi'USK'. .. He gets all ptfwer possibleithrough: the well studied use'of a .pair'.of abnormally large pedal :ext,tt»n»tio*J.;wlilc.l) -tookrlike so much of his nether. jijlibs./i'iirned up at right angles; 4h*y. extend, so far from'the end of the shin. And the legs are very' much; monv in per.vicc than the arms—that is'to "say.'the kicks are several to the one movement of the upper helps to movement.

: Jn.passing, the.;returned athlete said that though Kohanomaku put up a •world's..record (hyiin 2.i3-.sscc : ) in ilic 100. metres at Sweden, lie improved on that achievement at Hamburg with Imin 1 3-ssec. Hardwiek's showings were. .Longworth says, an improvement upon anything he had done prior to leaving hoine, and Cecil Healy certainly rose to great occasions, in a surprising manner, Cecil, never appen.rs to grow old as a swimmer, and but for that late in the day comer. Kolianomaku, he must have carried off the" sprint swimming honors of the Games.