Julian badly treated by Olympic selectors

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31724, 6 July 1968, Page 11

Julian badly treated by Olympic selectors

TF sufficient finance can be "*■ found, the New Zealand marathon champion, J. L. Julian (Auckland), should be included in the team for the Mexico Olympic Games. His unexpected omission has once again highlighted the fallibility of the present selection system. It is clear that an injustice has been done to Julian, who recorded the fastest time (2hr 15min) ever achieved on New Zealand soil last December and followed it up with a fine win in the national championship at Whangarei. He must be wondering just what he has to do to win the confidence of the selectors, and nobody could blame him for that

Obviously Messrs P. N. Robinson. J. W. Holley and R. O. Johnson placed more importance on Julian’s previous performances overseas than on his current form. His age, now 32, should have been of very secondary importance, but this too may have counted against him. The New Zealand athletic selectors have always emphasised the importance of winning New Zealand titles, a view which is apparently not shared by their counterparts on the Olympic selection panel. Julian won the New Zealand championship this season in very humid conditions and M. Ryan (Waikato) finished in second place about a mile and a half behind. On this day Julian was very much superior to both Ryan and D. C. McKenzie (Canterbury), the two who have been chosen ahead of him.

McKenzie, regarded by many as the athlete with the best chance of winning a gold medal for New Zealand, was ill during the national event and could be excused for not finishing. His previous win in the Boston marathon and world class time of 2hr 12min achieved in the Japanese open were sufficient to label him as a certainty for the team. Ryan, however, must consider himself rather fortunate to have been chosen. Since his win in the Japanese open in 2hr 14min two seasons ago, he has done little of note in New Zealand and if anybody should

have been eliminated from the marathon nominations he should have been. His 2hr 15min 41sec for fifteenth in the last Japanese open probably saved him from the fate which befell Julian. Everybody concerned with athletics had been confident that all three marathon nominees would be included in the team for this was obviously where New Zea-

land’s greatest strength lay. All had run world-class times and could perhaps have provided one another with a mental uplift at difficult stages of the Mexico marathon. Unfortunately for Julian, the selectors must have finally decided that three men for one event was too many. One had to be dropped and they picked on him. On the evidence of the last season Julian should have been a first choice. He has a considerable amount of experience behind him and this would have been invaluable at Mexico. His whole attitude towards the Olympic goal was one of complete dedication; and given a reasonable amount of luck he could have done well at Mexico.

His build-up for the games was probably the most im-

pressive of any athlete, and he showed time and again that he was running better than ever before. After a year of rest, he returned to the limelight in October last year with a brilliant win in the New Zealand 10-miles championship at Hamilton. His time of 47min 55sec was the fastest by 22sec recorded in New Zealand on track or road.

A month later he recorded 2hr 15min over the full marathon course of 26 miles 385 yards—again in record time. When he won the New Zealand title in difficult conditions last March his ticket to Mexico seemed assured. He was certainly far better qualified for a place than some other athletes who were chosen. It is of course not too late for the selectors to change their minds. Whether they will do this and openly admit they made an error of judgement is questionable, but there is no doubt whatsoever that Julian has been treated shabbily. If his case is not reconsidered immediately, he may decide it is useless for him to carry on and New Zealand would

lose one of its finest longdistance runners.