ATHLETICS

Evening Post, Volume CXI, Issue 74, 28 March 1931, Page 22

ATHLETICS

BY "3Pf)INTfI" AMERICAN ATHLETES

THE NEW ZEALAND TOUR

WHAT STATISTICS SHOW

The tour of New Zealand by tho three American athletes, Simpson, Bothcrt, and Kiscr, is over, and probably it will not bo out "of place in the notes this weeK to refer in tho space available to the tour in general and to tho performances of the visitors. It must be said at the outset that the trio provided some excellent entertainment and wore responsible for much more interest being taken in athletics in the centres at which they appeared than otherwise there would have been had the authorities had no special attraction to offer. And, too, from each of tho three Americans our New Zealand athletes should have received some inspiration, and, it is hoped, picked up some points that will be of assistance to them. In that respect Jies tho great value of tours by overseas athletes. The Americans had a. very strenuous tour; it was too strenuous in fact and should not be repeated. Kiser's Best Too Late. While there is no one who can say that Simpson and Bothcrt did not perform brilliantly, there arc no doubt some who wore disappointed with Kiser's running at some of. the meetings. Making due allowanco for tho fact that on the tour ho had the worst end of tho stick, Kiser, "Sprinter" agrees, was sometimes disappointing. Ho landed hero with badly blistered I feet, and then during the tour, after I having shown a touch of better form, seemed to suffer another setback. Towards tho end, though, he was going bettor than ever. "Sprinter" is satis- | fled, however, that we in New Zealand i did not spe this thin athlete, with the springy action, at his best. Ho is a cairn weather runner, and apparently mo amount of running on. grass would I make him prefer grass to cinders. It I was not until tho fourth meeting of the | tour that Kiser got his first win. That was in tho half-mile at Auckland, after having run third in the mile. Two meetings later, at N<sw Plymouth, ho was going better. For the second time he mot B. A. Eose, scoring a very comfortable win in the good time of 4min 22 2-ssec, which strangely enough was tho time he registered when he defeated Boso by two yards at Athletic Park this month with another slashing performance. Kiser did not better that time in New Zealand; his next best was his 4min 23 3-ssee in running second to G. Baync (4min 20sec) at Christchurch on 7th March. At Taihapo in tho mile in which ho defeated Don. Evans he turned in another good time 4inin 24sce—and then as another indication that ho was going very much bettor was his second defeat of Evans. That was in tho 440 yards event, in which, with an electric burst at tho finish, ho tore past tho New Zealand champion. Kiser's best time in tho Dominion for the half-mile, from the records available, was in the race at Wanganui on 19th February, in which Kiser was second to Evans, who covered the distance in the Australian and New Zealand record time of lmin 54 4-ssee. Kiser has good performances to his credit in America for tho quaTter-mile, but in this country he did not return much better than 52sec. It was in his contests in the mile with Bayne that Kiser attracted most interest, and in three Bayne was the master of the American, and had he , started in the fourth at Wellington probably also would have been the winner. Simpson's Fine Kecorfi. It was not very long before George Simpson struck form, and he has loft behind him a wonderful record of achievements. He is indeed a great sprinter; Nine times during the tour he equalled the New Zealand record of 9 4-ssee for the 100 yards; three times he ran 21 l-ssee for tho 220 yards, beating the New Zealand straight track record of 21 2-ssec; and at Wanganui he ran 21 2-ssee, which clipped a fifth of a second off the Australian and New Zealand furlong circular track record. There may bo^ some apt to placo too much value on Carlton's defeat of Simpson at Athletic Park on 21st | February, but, as Carlton himself said on his return to Australia, he had an advantage over the American. Carlton was a fresher man, and his strength gave him a better ehanco against the strong wind. Simpson had competed at seven meetings in the North Island which had entailed considerable travelling, and in addition he had weakened a leg at Wanganui three days before competing against Carlton. It was this leg that forced him to retire in the 220 yards event, and which subsequently gave him further trouble. It was a pity that this should have happened, more especially because it robbed the New Zealand champion, C. H. Jenkins, of testing himself out against Simpson in th© furlong. Jenkins undoubtedly established himself as the best sprinter in New Zealand to-day. Consistent Rotnert. Harlow Bothert proved himself a wonderfully consistent performer. He was in form with the shot right from the beginning of tho tour, and no one his like in this event has been seen in New Zealand before. At the fifteen meetings ho beat Peter Mun.ro's 1921 Australian and New Zealand record ot 46ft 04in. Kothert's best put was his 51ft 6Jin at Wellington, which was only lft O-Jin outside the world's record, and his worst 47ft, 2iu at tho Taihapo meeting. Three times he bettered Munro's discus record, his best effort being 144 ft 6iin at Waimate._Bothert's best with the javelin was 185 ft i)in_ at Motucka. He competed in the high jump seven times, his best clearance being his sft Sin at Gisborno. In the long jump, in which ho competed throe times, his best jump was 20ft 44m. At most of the meetings ho was seen in action with the shot, discus, and iavelin, or shot, discus, and high jump, 'but at Waimate and at Motucka he took part in five events—javelin, discus, high jump, long jump, and shot From Australia Eothert and Simpson are going on to Japan, so possibly they shall bo heard of from that part of the world. Kiser is not with Ins team mates. Ho left Wellington on Tuesday by tho Monowai ior tho Stales. "Dominion's Goa Child.' On his return to Sydney from New Zealand, Jimmy Carlton was generous in his praise of the treatment-ho received. New Zealand, ho said, treated him as though ho were "their god child." As to his contests with Simpson, C;n-lt'.ii wax »!'"'» full °(. praise for tliu Amii'Himii. " I ii.-i'l :i s!U;!il. advan-);i"-c uvci- Siini'sun, "■I in said, "for ho bad been travelling am1, his leg was] troubling him a little." Carlton stated, that his 10 2-swe against the gale in I the 100 yards felt like 9 3-ssoc.