Foster is top marathon runner

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32476, 10 December 1970, Page 30

Foster is top marathon runner

(By our athletics reporter)

When the Rotorua runner, J. Foster, went to Japan last week to race in the annual Fukuoka marathon, one of his aims was to better the unofficial record by a New Zealander for the 26 miles 385 yards event. He wanted to average at least smin miles but there were few who seriously believed that the age of 38 he could do it. However, Foster, who did not begin running until he was 33, an age when most have retired, surprised by taking fourth place against some of the world’s finest marathon runners in a time of 2hr 12min 17.8 sec. . This was exactly Bsec faster than the previous fastest by a New Zealander, set by D. C. McKenzie (Greymouth) in the same race three years ago. , It was a phenomenal per- ' formance by a man who

should be well “over the hill” as far as world-class athletics is concerned. But Foster, a sft 9in costing clerk weighing 9st 101 b, improves his

standard at almost every outing and his age has certainly not caught up with him., Earlier this year, Foster’s selection ahead of McKenzie for the Edinburgh Commonwealth Games was widely

criticised. He had beaten the West Coaster in the national championship but McKenzie's best time for the season was faster than Foster’s. Subsequent events have upheld the wisdom of the New Zealand selectors, although there is plenty of evidence to suggest that McKenzie should have gone as well. A place in the Commonwealth Games team was the big break-through for Foster. He celebrated it by finishing fourth in the marathon in 2hr 14min 44sec. He followed it a short time later by winning the Canadian international marathon in Toronto, held at night, in 2hr 16min 23.8 sec. The multiple New Zealand champion, J. L. Julian (Auckland), was third in 2hr 18min 48.2 sec, to give New Zealand an easy win in the teams event. Back in New Zealand, a short time before setting-out for Japan, Foster ran over a i 15-mile course in Tokoroa .in lhr*l3min 48sec—an average ' of 4min 55sec a mile.

After this, he admitted that 1 he would like to run the Japanese marathon in 2hr llmin, 1 “or faster.” He did not quite 1 succeed in this but he evi-1 dently believes that he has 1 not yet reached his full poten-1 tial over'the distance. . i Foster came to New Zea-1 land from England, where his main interest was cycle rac-1 ing. He found here that he 1 could not afford to buy a ! racing bicycle, and so he took ( up distance running instead. One honour which has so far eluded the 1970 Bay of Plenty "sportsman of the ( year" is the New Zealand marathon championship. This season, when the event isheld in Invercargill on March 6, he hopes to put the record straight. Julian, the title-holder, is now living in England, but Foster will have to resist the claims of McKenzie and M. R. Ryan (Waikato), whq are both capable of world-class times and are both overdue for a New Zealand championship win.