HARD WORK BY ATHLETES ONLY KEY TO SUCCESS

Greymouth Evening Star, 8 October 1948, Page 4 (Supplement)

HARD WORK BY ATHLETES ONLY KEY TO SUCCESS

Australian athletes should train longer and harder,' Jack Metcalfe, athletics manager of the Australian Olympic team, said on his return from London recently. “In the 200 metres at the Games, John Treloar faded under pressure mainly because of insufficient long [work early in his preparation.. He should have had more preliminary training over 300 and 400 yards,” 'Metcalfe said. 1 Guarding Against Boredom

“There is a tendency to nurse our 'athletes because of the fear they will .burn themselves out. Actually, what is wrong is that many athletes are 'driven to boredom by too much of the 'same type of activity. I “It would be wise for a runner to 'mix some form of field game, such as I javelin-throwing or high jumping, ■with his running, and for field I games performers to turn to running. “These sidelines, used as mental refreshers, could be mixed in advantageously until actual competition was near, when the athletes could concentrate exclusively on their main events. „ , “This practice had been followed by several top-ranking Americans who appeared at the recent Olympics,” he said. Metcalfe said Australia s athletes, taken all round, had done an excellent job at the Games, particularly considering most of them had been handicapped by a break of about a month in training at the end of the Australian track season. Ran to Best Form “'A lot of people were disappointed at John Treloar’s showings, but to my mind ho and most of the othci I Australian athletes ran up to thenbest Australian form,” he said. “John clocked 10.5 for the 100 metres at the Games, and that s his fastest official sprint ever—a tenth of a second better than his Australian 100 metres figures. I “He got away badly in his semifinal, otherwise he probably would |have qualified for the final, and, I think, finished fourth in it.”