AMERICAN ATHLETES.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XIII, Issue 21, 8 January 1923, Page 3

AMERICAN ATHLETES.

FINE PERFORMANCES IN WELLINGTON. Wellington, Jan. 7. Close on 7000 interested spectators witnessed the competitions between tho American athletes, Kirksey, Krogness and Merchant, ami the best athletes of the Wellington centre of the New Zealand Amateur Association at Athletic Park yesterday. The visitors, put up splendid performances, though m the sprint event did not run into first place. They have proved themselves to be true sports, particularly in coaching the New Zealanders who were to oppose them. Merchant scored heavily in field events, winning tho hammer-throwing with 154 ft 7in. In an exhibition throw his distance was 155 ft 7in (beating the Australian and New Zealand record). Munro with a 45ft handicap, was second. Merchant also won the Jong jump, 22ft 9in (Krogness, 22ft 3.1 in was second) and javelin-throwing, 153 ft 4in (Munro 145 ft BJin). With the discus Munro registered 125 ft and Merchant 124 ft. In tho sprint events the visitors showed great speed and beautiful action. but were meeting champions. In the 120 yards hurdles invitation Wilson just beat Krogness after a splendid race, both taking the hurdles simultaneously. Time 15sec. In the 100 yards invitation handicap Paris (3yds) just beat Kerksey (scr) in ten seconds. In the 220 yards Kerksey (scr) won his heat in a brilliant fashion in 22 3-5 sec., but in the final Tracey (lyd) and Hill (14yds) just beat him. Time 22sec. The relay race resulted. —Victoria College 1, Wellington 2, America 3. Kerksey. the last man. was blocked. The most outstanding feature of the meeting was the sportsmanlike attitude of the visitors. When Kerksey found that he had beaten the pistol in the 100 yards and thereby gained an advantage, he pulled up instantly, enabling the starter to recall the field before they had gone far enough to purejudice their chances. Had Kirksey continued he would assuredly have won. In the 220 Kirksey gained rapidly. He looked a winner, but in the last 50 yards Tracey came away with a sensational burst of speed, while Kirksey seemed momentarily to falter and he could only get third. Krogness, the wonderful high jumper, gives a peculiar little jump half way in his run and then, increasing his speed to the bar, leaps in the air. When above the bar he shoots his legs out similar to /a pole-vaulter, crossing the bar in a horizontal position. Then, with a clever twist of the body, he faces downwards, dropping on his hands and knees. He hurdles well, of course, but was up against a champion, Wilson, at his best in the finest hurdling seen in Wellington for years. Krogness jumped well in the loner jump, but Merchant shoots through the air like a shot from a catapult. In one fine effort the judges decided no jump because they said the hands touched the ground back where Merchant landed, but to many it appeared a fair jump. Merchant, at hammer-throwing, was a revelation. The trio should improve the New Zealand standard of athletics and when they strike true form records will so in other events. There was a great race in the three mile. Rose ('Masterton') winning from scratch in 15mins 15secs. Barclay (60) second.