AUSTRALASIAN MARATHON.

Auckland Star, Volume LVIII, Issue 212, 8 September 1927, Page 15

AUSTRALASIAN MARATHON.

Out of an entry ol 40 -for Australasian Marathon a select field of 25

faced the starter. The race carried with • it the- Australasian championship, but . New Zealand was not represented. The proved to be fine—too fine for JBHryr-and <the roads 'very hard. Hiyden and Gajnaford, both of New South Wales, were the first to show up, but, at ten miles, the latter retired with-leg trouble. Hay den, who is a veteran, stuck to his task, and, with-Roy'Bate-man and McMurdo, held the van. The veteran, running in great style, had a lead of more than five minutes at the 23-mile mark and it appeared certain that he would be the winner of another long-distance event. McMurdo, however, was far from done and soon began to close the gap and Hayden began to crack up, with the result that, with less than a mile and a half to go, he only held a minute's advantage and was very tired. Over the last mile McMurdo put u» a sensational run and was successful in, winning by over a quarter of a mile. Hayden struggled in second, with Bateman third. McMurdo, being a Queenslander, found the conditions to his liking end covered the distance in 3h 6m 235. Hayden's time was 3m 13s slower. Brilliant Runner. J* ot& nj'a brilliant distance runner, H. ("Micky") Hayden, has had a lengthy career as an athlete. One of the State's foremost road athletes he has been running well this season. Since 1912 he has scored the N.S.W. five-mile crosscountry title thrice, 10 miles five times and Manly Modified Marathon (10 miles) on five occasions. Twice in succession he finished first in the VHtarfcn Marathon, of 26 miles 385 yards. It is generally admitted that he is the best road runner ever po=«fs«."l \>\ X.S.W.