Jipcho joins top runners in Timaru meeting

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33434, 16 January 1974, Page 28

Jipcho joins top runners in Timaru meeting

(By R. O. DEW)

Eighty-two overseas athletes from nine Commonwealth countries had entered the pre-Garnes track and field meeting at Timaru on Saturday when the deadline was reached last evening.

Among them were several reigning Commonwealth champions and a large numbet of others who will be leading medal contenders in the Christchurch Games just, nine days away.

the feature event of the meeting. Among his opposition will be five members of the Scottish team, including lan Stewart, who will be the defending champion in the Games over this distance. Scotland’s other distance gold medallist at the last Commonwealth Games, Lauchie Stewart, is also competing. He won the 10,000 m at the Edinburgh Games.

Other Scottish athletes in the 5000 m are D. McGregor, J. Knight and N. Morrison. .Marathon winner

England’s most notable entry in the 5000 m is Ron Hill, the winner of the marathon at Edinburgh, and among the most strongly favoured for this event in Christchurch. Another prominent marathon runner in the field will be M. Mustfa, of Uganda.

The Commonwealth 400 m champion, Charles Asati (Kenya), who showed great form in the Ashburton meeting last Saturday, will race over 600 m — an event he must be highly favoured to win in the absence of the top-ranked Scot, David Jenkins.

English quartet The 1500 m has drawn an entry of 11 overseas athletes. Among them are four outstanding English runners, Brendon Foster, David Black, A. Simmons and S. Rollings. Foster is ranked seventh in the Commonwealth for this distance, although the 5000 m is the event in which he is expected to succeed at the Games. Black is also a 5000 m

specialist and holds fourth ranking.

Another prominent competitor in the 1500 m is John Kipkurgat (Kenya), who showed good form in winning the 1000 m event at Ashburton. This is a distance beyond his best of 800 m. In this he is ranked eighth with a time of Imin 46.75ec.

The giant English policeman, Geoff Capes, who holds the Commonwealth record in the shot, and two of England’s hammer throwing prospects, Howard Payne and lan Chipchase, will also compete. They are ranked fourth and second, respectively, in the Commonwealth, with best performances far in excess of 200 ft.

Payne's wife, Rosemary, who is representing Scotland, will compete in the shot and, if the opportunity presents itself, the discus as well. She is the top ranked discus thrower in the Commonwealth with a best performance of 56.40 m.

The main events on the programme will be the 100, 300, 600 and 1500 m for both men and women, as well as the 500 m for men. Three jumping events and other selected field events will also be held for both sexes.

Because of the great interest in the meeting — at one stage it was thought that entries would be limited because the grass track was less than 400 m in circumference — three aircraft have been chartered to carry athletes to the meeting.

Ben Jipcho. the world re-cord-holder for the 3000 m steeplechase, and a contender for medals in three track events, is one of a large contingent of athletes from African countries keen to use the grass track at Timaru under competitive conditions as part of their Games preparation.

Jipcho will race in the 5000 m, which promises to be