Record throw did not satisfy Capes

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33450, 4 February 1974, Page 10

Record throw did not satisfy Capes

rhe jovial giant of English field events, 24-year-old Geoff Capes, was untroubled to win the shot put with a tremendous throw of 20.74 metres (68ft Olin)— but even then he was unhappy with his performance.

It equalled Capes’s own Commonwealth (record, and bettered the Games record, held by .Dave Steen (Canada), by more than a metre and a half. But afterwards he expressed some disappointment, indicating that he might have done better if he had not had to stay in the Games Village for so long before the event. His best performance of ; 69ft 7in had been in (training I shortly after his arrival in New Zealand and since then his form had been slowly Talling away. His fellow-countryman, i Mike Winch, who took the (silver medal with a throw of ; 19.36 metres (63ft 6in), echoed these sentiments, saying (that he felt throwers should be allowed to join their 'teams in the village a week later. Nevertheless, even if there was some disappointment that the first 70ft shot put in New Zealand failed to materialise, there was much

;|to admire in the perform-' ances of the leading con-! tenders for the medals. Capes. 6ft 51in tall and 22: I stone, showed that he meant; business when he made what! was to be his winning put. ' on his first attempt. Although he exceeded 20 metres three more times he ' was unable to better his first ■ put. , On his fifth attempt he recorded 69ft sin, only to step out of the circle and have it ruled as a no-throw. The previous day, Capes, a policeman, received notification that he had been awarded a Churchill Scholari ship and he is now considering using this to travel to Amerifca in search of strong competition. He has his' sights fixed on the world record of 21.82 metres (71ft! ■ 7in), set by Al Feuerbach in California last May. Third place went to the ■th i r d-ranked competitor, Bruce Pirnie (Canada),; whose 18.68 metres (61ft • 3|in) kept him ahead of two; particularly strong chal- ; lengers, Bill Tancred (Engi land) and Robin Tait (New . Zealand).