AMERICAN ATHLETES’ VISIT

Taranaki Daily News, 13 February 1931, Page 12

AMERICAN ATHLETES’ VISIT

R. A. ROSE TO MEET KISER. KEEN CONTESTS PROMISED. In the past there have been some brilliant teams of overseas athletes featured on athletic programmes in New Plymouth. It is not until the present season, however, that amateur athletics has been such an important sporting item with the public, and accordingly when the world-famous American athletes “step out” at New Plymouth tomorrow (Saturday) night some sterling contests will be staged. The best of Taranaki’s talent is entered to compete io-ainst the Americans in a lengthy programme of cycling, hurdling, lunmng, Jumping and field events. The three American athletes are university men, Harlow Rothsrt, of Stanford University, George Simpson, of Ohio State University, and Rufus Kiser, of the University of WasUingtin. Rothert who is captain of the team, is magnificently built and stands about 6ft. 2in. Simpson is not as tall as the Stanford star, while Kiser is of slighter build than either of the others, and looks the typical middle-distance man. Rothert’s athletic career in the United States began at high school, when he took up football, but in his last year he developed a flair for shot-put-ting, which placed him second man in the team. At this time lie was not fully developed, and weighed only about list. 71b. He was a freshman at Stanford University in 1926, and began to play football and basketball, as well as becoming a regular performer on the track and field. With a record of 9 2-ssec. for the 100 yards event, George Simpson was clocked at 9 4-ssec. at both Gisborne and Auckland. In the 220 yards event at Napier, Gisborne and Auckland he broke the New Zealand record of 21 l-sscc„ this being three-fifths of a second better than the record established by J. V. Scholz on a circular track in 1926. Simpson is 22 years of age and of medium build. With these three stars of the athletic world appearing together in New. Plymouth, Pukekura Park should be hardly big enough to hold to-morrow night’s crowd. New Plymouth athletes are capable of putting up a good showing against the visitors, and the opportunity for comparing the abilities of the athletes is a unique one. R. A. Rose will definitely meet Kiser in the mile. Interviewed yesterday, Rose stated that he was in much better form than at Auckland, and he expects to turn the tables on Kiser, who beat him last week by a very narrow margin.