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New Zealand Listener, Volume 22, Issue 557, 24 February 1950, Page 5

Sir,-I have in the past read in your columns letters on the methods of New Zealand sports commentators, but surely in the six-mile race at the 1950 Empire Games they reached an all-time low ebb on what should have been one of the highlights in sporting broadcasts. Now, if listeners were told that Smith of Trinidad, a competitor in the threemile race, was dark skinned with a mop of blonde, curly hair, that he was thin but over six feet, and ran with a long, loping stridé, that he was running with his arm in a sling, that five years ago he had run the distance in 12 minutes dead, but that his best time last year was 18 minutes, and that half-way through the race he took his arm from his sling and threw the sling away, then the race could be seen by those gathered round the radios. You see what I mean. But not a bit of it. We know how we get our football matches and racing. For the 20 minutes of the six-mile race two commentators undertook in relays to make each lap seem like the last by an endless torrent of words consisting of names and distances in yards between tunners. Sorry-we were told that one runner had a snowy head; and this is practically my sole mental picture of the afterneon’s meeting. During the race a series of competitors in, the high jump, each no doubt with his particular style, were merely "having their jump." We heard plenty of what was going on, but never once did we "see" a thing. For the swimming in the evening the addition of an iuformed commentator made all the difference and kept me up until nearly midnight. It seems rather more than just a pity that such an occasion was allowed to go off under these conditions. The wrestling is perhaps better not mentioned. Is it the fault of the Broadcasting officials Or the Empire Games Committee, or are the announcers in league with the photographers to force the people to go and see the pictures?

J.

HEALY

(Rotorua).