ATHLETIC CONTEST

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22434, 2 June 1936, Page 7

ATHLETIC CONTEST

BELAY RACE IN PARIS BRITISH TEAM WINS CUP THIRD SUCCESSIVE VICTORY [from our own correspondent] By Air Mail LONDON', May 13 By winning for three successive years the cup offered by the Paris newspaper Le Jour, British universities' runners have become possessed of the trophy. J. K. Lovelock, A. 0. K. Brown, and many other well-known British runners took part n the crossPa i •is relay race on April 2G. Considering the bad conditions — pouring rain made the streets slippery, and there was a certain amount of interference by the crowd, in spit»> of the admirable organisation—the British time of 1 hour 52 2-5s for the course of 15}. miles, was very good. Last year the British team's time was Ih fil a-os. The Stade Francais team finished second in 111 59 2-ss, the Belgian team was third and the Swiss team fourth.

The race began at the Pare des Princes and then continued along the right bank of the Seine through the city to the Pont do Bercy, over the bridge, and down the left bank of the river, over another bridge, and back to the Pare des Princes.

Lovelock, who took the first lap of 625 metres round the Pare des Princes track, had the bad luck to be crowded out, but by means of a magnificent spurt he managed to hand over second. The British runners took the lead at the third lap, R. Elcock (Loughborough) going off with a lead of 20 yards. This was steadily increased, and at the seventh lap F. S. Thompson (Fulham) was 150 yards ahead. By the time the Pont de Bercy was reached the British held a lead of about 450 yards. The Stade Francais team, which had kept its best men until the last, gradually began to draw up, but it still looked an easy British win until the last five laps. The French team then gained magnificently, entering the track for the last lap only 25 yards behind. In handing over, however, .the Frenchman slipped, which delayed the last man, and in spite of strenuous efforts he was unable to finish better than some 70 yards behind. Each team consisted of 50 runners.