PREOLYMPIC MEETING GAMES OMEN? High-Altitude Distance Runners Take Honours

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31803, 7 October 1968, Page 24

PREOLYMPIC MEETING GAMES OMEN? High-Altitude Distance Runners Take Honours

(Special Correspondent N.Z.P.A.) MEXICO CITY. “Height” will be might when it comes to winning distance races at the 1968 Olympic Games. This became clear at the week-end when distance runners from highaltitude countries turned a two-day pre-Olympic track meeting into a private benefit.

Mexicans, Ethiopians and Kenyans were supreme in the 1500, 5000 and 10,000 metres, and the 3000 metres steeplechase.

The 10,000 metres, in particular, gave competitors from lowlevel countries a nerveshattering preview of what they can expect when the event is run at the Games on October 13.

The Ethiopian, D. Fekmu, won the event in 30min 3.Bsec —a slow time by normal standards but still good enough to beat the best by a competitor from a low altitude by nearly a minute. The Kenyan. P. Mose, was second in 30min B.4sec, and J. Adler, of Britain, was third in 30min 57sec. Lacking Strength The Australian champion, R. Clarke, who watched the race, was asked what he thought about it. “I’m trying not to think about it,” he said. Clarke was obviously worried that Adler had not

done better. “He’s been here long enough to be fully acclimatised, but look how far behind he finished,” Clarke said.

Adler told reporters he had not been able to find any “extra” to accelerate near the end of the race. “1 could have gone on running all day, but I didn’t have any strength to make myself go any faster,” he said. “I couldn’t do any better than run 74 or 75 seconds a lap towards the finish.” Bitter Comments Clarke had been even more bitter in his comments the previous day when he watched the Mexican, J. Martinez, score an effortless 5000 metres win in 13min 59.8 sec, with two others from highaltitude countries, N Temu. of Kenya, and M. Wolde, of Ethiopia, second and third. “Look at them,” said Clarke, who ran a 14min 7sec 5000 metres in training the previous evening. “All three of them are altitude runners. “It makes me mad. What I’ve been saying for so long has been ignored, but this proves it. Holding the Games in Mexico City is ridiculous. “The Olympics should be for all the people of the world, not just for the four main high-altitude countries (Mexico. Kenya, Ethiopia, and Colombia), unless you {take a year off to live at altitude.” Close To Record The two 1500 metres events went to a Mexican and an Ethiopian, and another event which requires sustained speed rather than a short, sharp burst—the 4 x 400 metres relay—was a triumph for Kenya. The Kenyan relay team was 2.lsec outside the listed world record. The crack American 400 metres runners, led by L. Evans and L. James, have not yet arrived in Mexico City. J. Neri (Mexico) won the first 1500 metres in 3min 49.8 sec, and H. Mathias (Ethiopia) took the second in 3min 56.25ec.

The teen-age Kenyan, A. Biwot, dominated the 3000 metres steeplechase. Biwot, who is about 19—Kenyan officials are not sure of his exact age—finished more than 100 metres in front of the Frenchman, G. Texerau, with the New Zealander, R. P. Welsh, about 50 metres further away, in third place.

Welsh Not Adjusted Biwot’s win highlighted the way in which Mexico City’s altitude helps runners who live in high countries. There are more than 20 runners in the world who have run better times than Biwot’s Bmin- 53.65ec, but those who have done so and who started yesterday finished well behind the Kenyan. Welsh was one of them. He clocked Bmin 40.8 sec in Sydney in March to beat the Australian, K. O’Brien, by the length of the straight. Welsh's time yesterday was 9min 17.4 sec.

It was obvious from his performance that Welsh had still not fully adjusted to the high altitude conditions. The New Zealand discus thrower, R. D. Tait, however, improved markedly on his per-

formance of the previous week-end with a throw of 193 ft 4in. to finish third in his event. It is one of his best competitive throws this year. The East German, L. Wilde, won with 201 ft Ilin. Both R. D. Johnson (400 metres hurdles) and Mrs S. Potts (800 metres) ran trials over 200 metres. Johnson clocked 21.6 sec to finish second in his heat, and Mrs Potts 25.75ec for a fourth placing. Outside Best Time However, in a special trial in his Olympic event, Johnson ran 400 metres hurdles in 51.4 sec—well outside his best time. He won his heat, but he was slow away and could not make the time he was striving for. L. R. Mills, in a good preGames trial, did 63ft 7in with the shot—his best effort since his 64ft lljin in Honolulu last year. One of the New Zealand distance runners, E. A. Maguire, has a further problem in that he has developed trouble with a calf muscle and can do only light training at present. He did not run in the week-end’s meeting. “No one among the distance men is yet properly adjusted or capable of reaching his peak performance at sea level,” the New Zealand track and field team manager (Mr L. O’Keefe) said. Hoping For Better “It is no use worrying about it. We will just have to continue with our training schedules and hope the adjustment comes with the next week. "All we know is that we are capable now of more than we were in the first few days How much more improvement we make before the games begin next Saturday remains to be seen.

“We can only hope for a big improvement this week.”