AMATEUR ATHLETICS

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXIV, Issue 80, 16 March 1934, Page 13

AMATEUR ATHLETICS

HASTINGS CLUB’S SEASON Concluded With Champs. COMMENTS ON MEETINGS (By “Spike.”) The Hastings Club completed their 1933-34 season last Tuesday evening when various club championships were decided in addition to three handicap events. Taken by and large, the season can be regarded as a successful one in every way with the exception of public patronage. In point of view of the season’s triumphs—and there have been many—the feat of Frank Sharpley in annexing two national titles is something for any club to be proud of, more especially as it was due to the club’s existence that Frank, as a schoolboy, was given his first experience of track athletics. Looking ahead, it can be said with a degree of certainty that we have yet to see his best. For club championships there were several very close finishes on Tuesday night and in the 80 yards hurdles Miss R. Tong was given a victory over Miss A. Pearson by two inches. It would have occasioned no surprise had the official decision been in favour of Miss Pearson, who has improved considerably as a hurdler, although Miss Tong’s exhibition in this race was considerably below her earlier season efforts. Miss Thow was a very close third. The best performance of the evening was Sharpley’s hurdles in 16secs., his fastest effort this season. He attempted to better his time of 26sees. over the 220yds. hurdle course but ran off halfway down the straight. Sharpley did not appear in the 100yds. and furlong flat e u «nts and the opportunity was provided for Les Taylor to prove that he was next best but the times in each event were not flattering, for he has run much faster earlier in the season. Miss G. Symes is now at her peak and she had no difficulty in winning the sprint title with Miss E. Baker next best. In the handicap 100 yards Miss Baker appeared unfortunate in being placed second to Miss Symes, who was conceding the former 4 yards. On Tuesday’s running Miss Baker is next best to Miss Symes in Hawke’s Bay. Two of the cycling titles were annexed by Manning, the most energetic and improved rider in the Centre, although in the half-mile event, Attwood appeared over confident. Toby, however, made amends in the two-mile championship with-Manning chasing him home. There was some rough riding in the two-inile handicap and a fall was the result. Strict control during the racing is an absolute essential and the club should have four officials stationed at different points of the circuit while cycle races are in progress. The revived Caledonian sports were staged in Napier last Saturday afternoon and evening providing amateurs with any amount of competition, but the fields were by no means large. Dick Bird again had a run of success chiefly in the field events, but he won the 440 yards handicap by sprinting into the lead early and then having a breather. last 100 he was thus able to hold off all challenges. Driscoll’s Record Walk. The most interesting event was lan Driscoll’s attempt on the long standing two-mile walk record of 14min. 12 3-ssecs. The Damievirke man was a trifle behind schedule for the first half-mile but picked up in the next. From then on it was a matter of how much he would get under the existing record by. He finished with a great spurt and the official time by four watches was 13min. 58 3-ssecs. or 14 seconds under the previous record. One of the judges, Mr. A. Findlay, himself a New Zealand title holder in 1898, stated afterwards that Driscoll was the fairest and fastest walker he had ever seen. It is Driscoll’s intention to make an attack on F. H. Creamer’s mile record of 5 in in. 27 2-ssecs., before this season ends. The Rev. Alley, of Taradale, a keen runner favouring middle distances, but his duties prevent him taking an active part until the approach of the autumn. This autumn lie has enjoyed his greatest run of success, winning at Takapau and Napier. Last Saturday he took the half-mile and the pace lie applied in the early stages broke the field up and paved the wqy to victory. The Decathlon competition run by the Napier Club was completed last week, and resulted in a victory for George Phillips—a : very popular one too! Only four members contested the event but it serves the purpose of deciding who is the best all rounder and after all there are not many qualified to compete in the whole ten events. Puketapu sports to-morrow and the trophies are very good. Especially is this so for the women’s running events, a generous donor having supplied a valuable prize for each race A reminder i» given athletes not t<

forget the closing dates for nomina tions for Tikokino and Havelock North. , New Zealanders’ "Athletic Sense.” The remarkable "athletic sense” of New Zealanders has particularly impressed the visiting AustralHo athletes, Messrs. J. P. Metcalfe, E. W. Barwick and T. E. Hampson. Barwick told a Christchurch journalist that all three members of the team had marvelled at the athletic sense of everyone they met, whether he was the manager of a business firm, a politician, a team conductor, or a labourer. It was an appreciable change, he said, for them to sit in a carriage, street car, or in an hotel and hear the person next to them discussing times and distances accurately instead of talking about the breeding, times, and performances of thoroughbreds, a type of conversation which was much more common in Australia. Hence amateur athletics was achieving the aim for which it was established. There was a much larger percentage of the New Zealand population following amateur athletics than in Australia. There appeared to be no class distinction in New Zealand, and they thought that the feeling of mutual respect and sympathy they noticed had been brought about by the penetration of amateur sport into the community. “Without doubt,” Barwick said, “New Zealand was stronger in distance running than in any other branch of the sport.” This he attributed to the invigorating climate of New Zealand. It was therefore interesting, to compare the Finnish type of climate with New Zealand’s, and then to discover the similarity between the types of runners in New Zealand and in Finland, which had produced the famous Nurmi and countless other fine distance runners. He thought also that there was some similarity in the styles of the runners in the two countries. Notes. Five hundred men and women from all parts of the Empire will compete in the British Empire Games, held principally in London from August 4 to 11. s • • During the coming English summer there will be held at the White City, London, the Women’s World Games, at which strong teams from many countries will compete. America is sending a strong team, including Miss Stella Walsh, a lady of Grecian symmetry, who holds no fewer than three world championships. Germany and Czechoslovakia are expected to vie with England and America for supremacy. At the conclusion of the Australian cycling championship carnival, delegates met and selected the riders for the coming British Empire Games. Fflur were named, and it is to bo hoped all will be sent. Those nominated were: E. L. Gray, first choice; Horace Pethybridge, second; Reg. Goodwin, third; and R. Porter, fourth. • ' • «■ It will be pleasing news for all athletes to know that A. J. Elliot is now recovering splendidly from his most unfortunate leg injury, and he will probably be out competing again before long. He is very keen to be fit for the Australian meeting next month, and, if he is, there will 'e a wonderful tussle between Kim and Hampson, who is proving himself a really great sprinter. • • • During the 1932-33 athletic season the Napier Amateur Athletic and Cycling Club arranged a series of relay races between teams representing the various football clubs. A trophy known as the Duff Cup was presented for competition, and a team representing the Pirates Football Club was runnersup last year. This trophy was the subject of competition this season, and Pirates won the cup. The final relay of the 1933-34 season was run last evening, and was th 6 most exciting relay ran during the season.