NOTES BY AMATEUR.

Otago Witness, Issue 2730, 11 July 1906, Page 58

NOTES BY AMATEUR.

It will come as a great surprise to followers of athletics to learn that Nigel Barker, the speedy New South Wales sprinter, who is at present in England competing in the English amateur athletic championships, failed to secure a place in either the 220yd.s or 440 yds events. Barker could not have been running up to liis Australian form, or some cracks have been unearthed that we wot not of.

Matters athletic have been quiescent during the past week, but the cross-country runners keep the lia!l merrily rolling. On Wednesday the St. Andrew Club had a good field out in the One Mile and A-half Novice Race at Tahuna. There was a good race, some of the new men showing excellent form. I«aek of training told its tale on the limit man, Smith, who ssemed to have an excellent chance of winning for the greater part of the distance. Foster, who won, ran a good race, while Rutherford (scr) put up an excellent performance in running second. The time was Bmin 6sec.

There is, I am pleased to hear, more than a probability that a hint thrown out in these columns anent the Inter-club Crosscountry Championship on August 11 will be- acted on Inquiries havo b?en made from Timaru as bo thfe date and number included in the team, and it is to be hoped that our South Canterbury friends will be able to make the trip. The presence of outside clubs would add quite a colonial interest to the race. Regarding 1 the race, itself, rumour has it that all the clubs are busy coaching aspirants for places in the team. Some of the larger clubs ark expected to nominate at least two teams, so that the field promises to be larger than in any .previous contest. Are the Soutlilandeie going to bs represented?

The members of the sub-committee of the Otago Centre wiio are looking after the organisation of cluts in the provincial towns contemplate making an early visit to Palmerston and Milton with the view of accelerating the movement. Many offers of active support have been received. Although intimation, has been received from the council that ihe balance sheet of the recent championship meeting was being returned for amendment, I unders£axi<i -tKat £li« <2oo»xm«nt 3xa-s J»oi y-ot beon received. The point of difference between the council and the local body is that the latter consider that the payment for standard badges and cups should be made by .he governing- body in Christchurch, and should not te a charge against the profits of the meeting:

Owing to the foi*mation of the Southland Centre, the Southland Club's representatives on the local centre have retired. Among- them is Mr R. G. Anderson, who acted as delegate for Gore and who has taken an active part in any hard work that was going. Mr Anderson undertook the secretarial work of the la&t Schools' Championship 84 a time when the centre was rather iv a fix to find someone suitable. The duties pertaining to the position he carried out in first-class fashion, without, as far as I know, any recognition from the centre. Mr Anderson will be missed from his accustomed place among the workers on the local body. The Dunedin Amateur Athletic Club has broken fresh ground in deciding to celebrate its twenty-first anniversary with a ball. This interesting function will take place at the Victoria Hall or Friday next. The D.A.A.C. is wise in its generation, in thus giving the lady friends of the club an opportunity of ce!ebrating the club's coming of age and of being present at the function of presenting the prizes won during the season to the successful competitors. There is a deal of glory in receiving a trophy won, during the season in the presence of one's beet girl. The period during; which the. New Zealand Amateur Athletic Association decided it could not consider E. E. Fisher's application for reinstatement having expired, that runner is renewing his request for admission to the amateur ranks. The Wellington Centre recommends its being -granted. The American Marathon Race was run on May 5, at St. Louis, and resulted in a win for S. R. Hatch, of Chicago, who covered the distance — 25 miles — in 2hr 46min.

The Brisbane Harriers are the first to institute a "Marathon" road race on lines similar to the famous Marathon Race at Athens. The "Marathon" is to be decided on September 8, the course being from Ipswich to Brisbane. The Half-mile Flat at the recent international athletic meeting between the South London Harriers and the Racing Club do France was won by C. Pouillott, of the latter team, in the good itime of lmin 59sec. The Frenchman is said to be a very '.fine runner — as indeed he must be. to make such good time in the "Half." He possesses a beautiful style and stride, and is looked upon as a dangerous rival for English championship honours. Commenting on the Americans' showing at the recent Olympian Games, an American correspondent of the London Sportsman says: — ' 'Enthusiasts here are not altogether so jubilant over the showing of our athletes at Athens, although they did win the majority of the events. The N.Y.A.C. had hard luck in connection -with Jim Mitchell and one or two others, but it docs look as if Arthur was not altogether wrong when he suggested that influence more "than ability helped to send over, a number of men whom he rightly anticipated would be passengers. Had it not been for the Iri«h-American representatives, and especially Martin Sheridan, who only gofc away from his employment at the la»t moment, we would not be quite as 'cocky' as we pretend to be now." There were several capital performances pufc up at the dual athletic meeting between the Universities of Princeton and Yale. The 100 Yards was won by Robinson, of i Yale, in 10£ sec. England, of Yale, won the Mile Flat in 4n>in 36 4-ssec. The ! "Quarter" also went to Yale, won by Cobston in 51sec. Mooro won the "Half" for Yale in 2min 1 3-ssec. The 120 Yards I Hurdles was won by Armstrong, of Prince-

ton (no time). The Shot Put was won by White, of Yale, with a put of 40ft 4in. Marshall, of Tale, secured the High Jump with a leap of sft 11 3-sin. In the Broad Jump Sheffield, of Yale, cleared 23ft. Hale secured the Two-mile Flat in 9mim 56 2-ssec. The 220 Yards Hurdles was won by Armstrong, of Princeton, in 25 l-ssec. The Hammer went to Shelvin. of Yale, with 141 ft 6in. In the 220 Yards Flat Gamble, of Princeton, got home in 22 l-ssec. Gilbert, of Yale, won the Pole Vault with lift Bin.

A correspondent writing to Athletic News on the "Best Stayer," says:— "The best miler, I would say, was George Blennerhasseit Tincler. He could also run a clinking half-mile, as he proved in his race with E. C. Bredin, when the latter only beat him by 16in in lmin 56 l-ssec. Tincler was never extended in his mile races with T. P. Conneff (world's amateur recordholder) and F. E. Bacon (ex-world's champion). He defeated the former very easily in America in 4min 15 l-ssec. and the latter at Rochdale by 20 yards in 4min 16 2-ssec. He again defeated Bacon iv a two-miles race at Ashton-under-Lyne, winning by half a lap of a quarter-mile track in 9min 19 4-ssec. I would mention here that the track vran very sodden from previous heavy rain, having bfen laid in red brick dust. Tincler continually looked round in this race, and eventually v.-on wirhout an effort or without putting in a spurt. Ihere is. roughly, four seconds (aboui 28 yards of a difference) between. W. G. George's time (4min 12isec) and Tincler "& (4min 16 2-ssec) for the mile, but the latter was fully capable of lowering W. G. George's record had he been pressed at any part of the journey by Bacon. Deerfoot's hour record performance stamped him as being the best all-round stayer in the 'sixties.' His record for 12 miles — namely, lhr 2min 2^see — is still unbeaten. In the 'eighties' the famous W. G-. George created the present world's record for the mile in his match with W. Cummings, but failed to defeat Deerfoot's record for tho hour, dimming*, howeicr, proved himself a sterling all-round distance runner. His time for the mile was 4min 16 l-ssec ; one mile and_ a-half. 6min 43£ see {best on record); and in his 10-mile match with George he defeated the laitpv in the excellent time of 51min 6 3-5- - ec. The 'nineties' saw F. E. Bacon and H. Watkins both break the long-standing rocord of Deoriool for tha hour — the former beating it by 273 yards and the latter by 316 yards. But their performances were principally successful by the aid of up-to-date methods of training, and training has been brought to a fine art now ; the track, too, of the present day is better in every respect. Bacon and Watkins had the assisiance of alternate pacemakers, and in addition their pace- was regulated according- to a time-table made for the purpose of breaking the record. Sid Thomas failed to beat Deerfoot's record for 12 miles, his time Ixsinjj lhr Srrciri 43sec. Anjway, Trlio will deny that Deerfoot in his prime could not have surpassed these and other feats with present-day training? The present century has already provided us with a sreat distance-runner in A. H. Shrubb. He is the holder of several world's records from two to ten miles, and has proved himself a wonderfully consistent runner. In making a comparison between Shrubb and Cumining<* I find that tho lather's performances at one mile and one mile and a-half arc much superior, Shrnbb's times being 4min 22sec and 6min 47 3-ssec respectively for the distances. Cummings-'s professional record for 10 miles, made as far hack as 1885, is 26* ec 'lower than that of Shrubb. but I would mention that Cumin ings had a remarkably easy victory, as he led George by 30 yards after two miles had been traversed — the pace being very slow — and, gradually drawing away on every lap, eventually won by 420 yards. This raco proved Cummings to bo a rare stayer, and I have no doubt that he could have considerably improved on this time, as the distance must be taken into consideration, together with the faofc that a man is liable to 'slow' in a scratch race when making his own pace. In addition, it must be remembered that Cummings was not making at* attack on the 10-miles record in this race, and present-day methods of recordbreaking and training are entirely different. In summing up as to the best aH-rounrl stayer (from one to 12 miles), I would place them as follows : — Deorfoot, 1 ; Cummings, 2; Shrubb, 3." In view of the ordinary display by our athletes at Athens, in view of the &\yteping successes of the Americans there, in view of the fact that a great upheaval in the status of amateur running is threatened and is a vital necessity, and in view of the further fact that one-eighth of th« population, of England is_ deeply interested in athletics, is it not reasonable to ask (says a writer in Athletic Newe) if, under all these conditions, a tchool for athletic trainers is not a necessary thing? Track athletics are not easy to teach, because they are not sc easy to learn. The training instinct, coupled with that indeterminate ability to select an athlete on sight, is inborn. Certainly no amount of experience can make a trainer of a man who has nothing but hi« ability to adhere strictly to set rules that he has been taught. The good athletic trainer is a psychologist as well as a handler of athletes. He must know temperament in its individual mainfestations, he must be able to pick out the game yet discouraged athlete, who lacks experience, but who will make a good man over the head of the fleshy runner who shows a buist of early speed <md pretty form, but is beaten when a determined man moves up to his shoulder. He has to know a dozen different ways of teaching the same thing, because a dozen different men will have peculiarities that will make at necessary to approach the same subject from as many varied angles of vision. He must have indomitable patience, because every man he will handle when he is new at the game will do the same wrong thing time after time. It is a large contract being an athletic trainer, but it does not require an expert athlete to Jje one. Many a man can teach who cannot produce as good results from his own principles in his own case as with the man whom ho is instructing. This is true- in the case of instruction of whatsoever kind the world over.

Amateur Athletics in South Africa.— The following extract is taken from a letter written from Queenstown, South Africa, byMr G. J. Bruce, a well-known supporter of amateur athletics, to Sydney Referee: — "I am surprised and, of course, delighted to find how strongly amateur athletics are entrenched in South Africa. In this little town, about half the size of Goulburn, they run four sports meetings in the year. In South Africa I reckon amateurism, holds its proper place — well on top. The gate at Thursday's meeting, at 2s and Is, was

over £120 for the day, and aboui £50 for the open-air promenade concert afe night. The Queenstown ground is the best in South Africa as far as I've seen yet. It is clay and fine gravel screenings all over. They play football on this. I must admit they manage sports meetings here better than ever we were^ able to, in my time, in Australia. I've picked up a lot of points. Everything is got off to clock time, no matter who is not ready. Rules are enforced to the letter. I saw a cyclist retired because his attendant stepped over the mark while standing for the start. A leadiug runner was sent out of the ring because his number was only pencilled on. Correct costume was insisted on to the smallest boy competing. Strict discipline was everywhere evident. In the field games every accessory was in duplicate in case of accidents. There were 12 spare handles for the hammer (11 went), two sets of high-jump standards, with six spare crossbars, 160 hurdles for the hurdle races, and so on. White tapes wci-e iised for the sprint lines: shoes were examined for certain events — tug-of-war, etc. ; competitors were not allowed in the ring except when competing, and then only ■at their appointed marks. Every result was immediately telegraphed, by black writing on largo white sheets, to all parts of the ground, and mogaphones were ueed to announce non-«tai-ters. jumps, etc. When it was learnt that I was in the grandstand, the president and secretary vers kindly came and welcomed me as an Australian sport, took me into the ring, introdixced mo to all the chief officials, aird made me fe.^l quite at home. The officials were the leading men of the town. The sports attracted the farmers and all their household from surrounding districts, and seemed to bo the occasion of a much-appreciated reunion of friends. People drove to tho ground from 8 in the morning iv bullock waggons Cape carts, Scoter carts, and all kinds of vehicles, and stayed there till ' God save the King ' was played, then came back for the concert at night. A full military band of 35 performers in imposing scarlet uniforms kept the musical side up. To my mind, three features of tho day's- sportwere :— (1) The number and excellence of {he boys' event*. (2) The tugs-of-war— c-pecially the final between o light team of highly-trained Cape troopers and a team of heaxy Boers. The excitement was grenrj ns tlie Boers* flag went down twice in succession. (3) The general excellence of the cycling everts— no spilK keen contests, and rvciting- finishes. It is ' just lovely ' to know that nearly every town and village in South Africa has its amateur athletic club, and that all these farmers' sons and Boers arc amateurs. African athletics has a gi^at future. 'What they want is good coaching. There"? a heap of good i^oterial here. hv\ not a 'coach' anyvheie. Fancy an amateur club in a smaU town ■» ith 2QO live members. Australia will ha'.o to look io her laurels. Africa is eomii.g up with a rush in every branch cf sport. They hare the right climate here, too.''