FASTEST FOR NINE YEARS

Press, Volume CV, Issue 31000, 4 March 1966, Page 15

FASTEST FOR NINE YEARS

A 19-year-old first-year senior with his eye on competing for New Zealand in the Mexico Olympic Games, T. Mayhew (Southland), yesterday became the first 1966 national athletics champion.

He won the 20 kilometre road walk in the outstanding time of lhr 39min 17.8 sec.

This was the fastest time recorded for the event in New Zealand for more than nine years and was considerably faster than the time of Ihr 41min 9sec by the former Olympic champion, N. R. Read, when he won the event last season.

In fact, only three New Zealand athletes have been faster—-Read, J. Hislop (Canterbury), and D. McNabb

(Auckland). Read lias the best time ever recorded in the Dominion, at slightly more than lhr 37min. Mayhew, who won the New Zealand junior title last season and the one before, went through the tape at Rugby Park without showing any signs of deterioration in his style, but moments later the occasion became too much for him. His coach rushed over and he burst into tears on his shoulder, his legs began to buckle, and two men were needed to hold him up. However, he quickly recovered and later expressed considerable satisfaction with his time. “It was a terrific course—similar to the one I train on at home,” he said. He had no trouble, but between six and eight miles “felt a bit Sleepy for some strange reason.” 23rd At Tokyo His time yesterday would have given him twenty-third place in the Tokyo Olympic event, which was won in lhr 29min 34sec by K. Mathews (Britain). Mayhew’s previous best time was lhr 46min 47sec, which he did in training earlier this year. Mayhew completely dominated the race, finishing about half a mile ahead of the second competitor, C. Walker (Auckland), whose time was lhr 44min 6.4 sec. Walker was runner-up to Read last year. J. Trowell (Hawke’s BayPoverty Bay) was third, in lhr 45min 19.4 sec. From the start, R. Pilkington (Auckland), Mayhew and M. Hinton (Auckland) took the initative. As the field left the park after completing a lap of the 440-yard track, Hinton led from Mayhew and Pilkington. At the end of the first mile, Mayhew moved ahead, with Hinton a yard or two behind. They were already more than 100 yards clear of the remainder, led by Walker, Trowell, Pilkington, C. Harvey (West Coast-North Island), T. Lamb (West Coast-North Island) and L. Diack (Southland). From then on it was just a case of Mayhew moving further and further into the lead.