ATHLETICS.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXII, Issue 16, 19 January 1901, Page 4 (Supplement)

ATHLETICS.

The Athletic and Cycling Carnival held in Sydney in connection with the Commonwealth celebrations is stated to have been the most successful sports meeting' yet hekl in Australia, so far as the sport provided was concerned. Yet so small is the interest in athletics just now that not more than 2000 people assembled to see the sports. The meeting started at 10.30 a.m., and lasted till 5.30 p.m., and 76 events were decided. There were foot races, cycle races, throwing the cricket ball, jumping, gymnastics, kicking the football, baseball and lacrosse competitions, and a tug of war. To successfully conclude the programme in good time, it was often found necessary to have three, and even four, contests going at once. For this reason alone the carnival was a unique one, for Sydney, but there were other and more important, factors to make it the biggest meeting of its kind held in the colony. Competitors came from all parts of Australia, New Zealand, and some there were from England. The Victorian schools sent H. IT. Hun+or. C. H. Gardiner, and A. ,T. Penrce, all of whom proved successful. West (Australia, for the first (time, was represented by a team of six men, including Max Law, R. Burt, and S. K. Smith; W. F. Simpson came all tin: way from New Zealand, and annexed the' three miles running championship; the one mile cycling championship fell to W. Shrimpton, of Victoria; while in IT. IT. Thompson, who won his heat in the one mile cycling event, D. Smith, who gained first place in the mile professional footrace, and C. Campbell, who was variously successful, Queensland wa« well to the fore. The English competitor" were the cyclist. .T. Chamberlain, and a team. Corporal R. Mncheel. Cimeron Highlanders, and Band-Serffejint Tt. H. Cooksey, 2nd Highland T.iffht Infantry, creditably unheld thfl honour of the visiting British soldier* by securing the second and third places respectively in the 100 yardß* champion foot-race of the army.