ATHLETICS.

New Zealand Illustrated Magazine, Volume 1, Issue 8, 1 May 1900, Page 619

ATHLETICS.

By The Judge

WN 1889, the year of the Dunedin Exhibij tion, a big Aihletic Meeting was held I! in that city, and as a team from New A| South Wales was present, this fixture ranks as the first one of an Intercolonial nature held in the Colonies. A return visit was paid to Sydney by New Zoalanders in the following year, but the first Australasian Championship was held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in November, 1893. In this New South Wales was successful, with the home team second, and New Zealand third. Lancaster Park, Christchurch, was the convincing ground for the second meeting, which took place in January, 1896. New Zealand easily proved victorious, New South Wales coming second. In October, 1897 a third meeting took place on the Sydney Cricket Ground, when New South Wales was declared the victor after a keen fight with New Zealand.

The Amateur Athletic Union of Australasia was formed in 1898, Mr. li. Coombes being unanimously elected President, and it must be honestly admitted that the honor was well deserved, for no one has done more for the cause of athletics. In his day a great walker, a fine oarsman, a good shot, and a cross-country runner, Mr. Coombes has worked untiringly for the last fourteen .years, and, as far as the present generation is concerned, has been aptly termed the father of amatenr athietks in the Colonies.

In writing of athletics it would seem, judging by the very poor attendance at every sports meeting of recent years, that such sports are slowly, but surely, losing their hold on the affections of the Anglo-Saxon race. This very regrettable state of affairs

is duo to numerous causes, but possibly the two most serious arc the plethora of athletic meetings, and also, 1 am afraid to say, the rigid efforts made to stamp out betting by the governing bodies of clubs generally. It seems a curious thing to state, but unfortunately it is but too true, that tho very efforts to purify the sport seem to re-act most disastrously from a financial point of view on the promoting clubs. Tho tendency of the present day is towards gambling, so that if the public are debarred from having a bet on a foot race, then they will go somowhore else, where there is no such prohibition. If no betting wero allowed on horse-racing I suppose the attendances at tho big oquino carnivals would not be one-tenth of what they are at present. It is possible that the utter apathy now shown in athlotics may gradually pass away, and encouragement bo given to the various manly exercises ; but at present such a levival is out of sight, and, as purely amateur clubs cannot for a moment be expected to lend their support to tho betting evil, they must be prepared to put up with the consequent non-attendance of the speculative public, and just "grin and bear it " till better times dawn. In the various branches of amateur athletics the colonies arehardly in a Hue with England or the States, that is to say as far as the performances of their best exponents go, although the general management of meetings, such as those held in Melbourne, Sydney, or Auckland, leave nothing to bo desired. Here and there, however, a bright particular star has shone out above the mass of mediocrities, such men as Macpherson, Hempton, Holder, lloseingravo, Smith, arid

Rowley being at their best quite in the first flight of the world's greatest athletes. If a census of opinion could be taken a? to who was the greatest sprinter the colonies have produced during the last twenty years, possibly the largest number of votes would be cast for J. H. Hempton (Wellington A.C.), W. T. Macpherson (Eastern Suburbs A.C.), and S. Rowley (Sydney Harriers). No doubt there would be plenty in favor of " Billy " Ring, and possibly F. Meenan, H. M. Reeves, A. J. Patrick, and a host of others might be mentioned, but the three first-named would

doubtless get the verdict. If this trio could have been got. together fit and well, what a magnificent race would have resulted. I fyn&seon all these at their very best, and am of opinion that Hemptou— a wonderfully quick man off his mark— would have been in front up to ?5 yards, but from that point up to twice that length of .ground I should pin my faith to the Sydney Harrier. At anything over these distances " Billy Mac" would have certainly defeated his doughty opponents. The hitter, a remarkably free au4 natural runner, holds the World's

Amateur Record of 243-ssocs. for 250 yards. Possibly one of the most exciting races ever seen on the Auckland Domain was when Macpherson met J. Hutchinson in the Quarter Mile race for the Championship of New Zealand. The Sydney man was considered a " good thing " for the race, and he jumped away in front, but Hutchinson hung on to him in the most determined fashion, being only beaten by less than a yard in 50 2-ssecs., which for ten years has stood as a New Zealand record. The scene of excitement among the immense throng of spectators

when these two runners were fighting out their gruelling finish will be remembered for many a long day. At present, Stanley Rowley is, beyond question, the fastest sprinter in the colonies, having respeatodly proved his title to be considered such, not only in his own colony, but also in New Zealand and in Queensland, against the very best who could be brought against him. "The flying Welshman " will represent Australia at the Olympian Games, at Paris, this year, and all will hope that a goodly proportion of wins will fall to his lot,

Rowley was born at Young, N.S.W., and is 23 years of age, bis height being sft. 10in., and his weight list. 21b. For four years in

succession he has won the Hundred Yards Championship of his own colony, and in all, has competed in twelve championships, being only once beaten. The popular young Australian, when he arrives in England, will train at the famous Stamford Bridge Grounds, London, and will make his first appearance in the Old Country, at Huddersfield, on Jane 23rd. He will compete in the English Championships on July 7th, and then cross to Paris for the Olympian Games, which follow shortly after. A fine natural runner, of great courage and most determined finishing powers, Rowley can safely be relied on to keep his end up with credit.

In New Zealand, probably, the two speediest men are A. J. Patrick, of Wellington, who has proved himself but little inferior to Rowley, and George Smith, of Auckland, but, although the latter holds the New Zealand Championships for 100 yds. and 250 yds., it is as a hurdler that he will be

chiefly remembered. Smith's recent porformanco in Wellington, when ho won four Championships, viz. : 100 yds., 250 yds. Flat, and 120 yds. and 440 yds. Hurdles in ono afternoon, was a marvellous tost of ability and stamina, and equals, if it does not surpass A. H. Holder's great deeds in the Auckland Domain In .1897. The

Wanganui man, it may bo remembered, in a two day's rncofcing bcafc Martin and Roberts in the 120 yds Hurdle Championship, run in 16seos., repeating this in the 440 yds. Hardies, when he accomplished the distance in 58 4<-sseos., a world's record. Ho also won the 250 yds. Championship in 25 2-ssocs., the Quarter in 52 2-sseos., and was only boateu by Patrick in the Hundred by half-it-yard in even time.

Curiously enough, there has been no long distance runner to distinguish himself particularly, but the best men, such ;is 1\ Morrison, J. L<\ Grierson, D. Wood, VV. A.

Low, W. J. Buvk, and others of note havo all hailed from the South, 5 other instances being Kingston (our best middle distance

m|p) and Malthus, the present champion ovfer a long journey. A very similar state of affairs exists on the other side of the Tasman Sea, where Victoria can always be relied on to take the distance events, Sydney

not having produced a champion worthy of the name since the days of Dalrymple. In Hurdling,: Greo: Smith is without a peer to-day, and he is quite in a line with Or. B. Shaw, H. W. Batger, W. J. Moir, and A. H. Holder of the past, and M. Roseingrave and J. English of the present day. Smith is

credited with being an ugly jumper, but, I fancy, he has greatly improved in this respect, and, as he is very fast between the sticks, he takes no end of beating. Opinions differ as to whether Smith is a better man

than Roseingrave, of Sydney. Although he has always been anxious to meet the exIrishman, the Aucklander has never yet done so, but I should certainly deem the latter the more reliable, as Roseingrave seems unable to stand a preparation. When coming to the subject of walking

the first thing to be noticed is the utter lack of interest taken by athletes and the public generally in this once popular pastime. Not

only is this the case in the Colonies, but also in England and the States the same thing is noticeable, the inevitable result being that races of this description are being deleted from club programmes. This most regrettable State of affairs has been brought about chiefly by the want of good judges, who will not allow liberties to be taken with them. It is not generally understood by the spectators of a walking contest what an extremely thankless task the judge has to carry out. It is by no means a pleasant thing disqualifying a competitor in a race for which he may have been training for weeks, with the almost certain result of getting abuse from the friends of the man so ordered off, and also possibly the jeers of the public, yet if a judge is worth his salt he must, at times, be called on so to act. Unfortunately, many judges, whether from incompetence, want of backbone, or under leniency, overlookglaring

breaches of the rules, and the result has boen that the art of walking has gradually gono out of favor. The old time walkers wore, almost without exception, men whoso mode of progression was never called into question, but, from causes before stated, a generation of "heel runners " has gradually been evolved, and naturally the public has lost intorost in a sport which it no longer understands. Some of our latter day records would bo an absolute impossibility if a stand were made by those called on to decide as to tho fairness of the track walking of tho men who registered them. Tho Board of Control of the Amateur Athletic Union of Australasia recently came to the conclusion that a determined effort should bo made to grapple with the evil. Tho President, Mr. R. Coombes, a noted walker in his day, was asked to draw up a code of rules, with a view of clearly stating what really constitutes fair walking. The result of this gentloman's

labors are now being considered by the various Association, and if these rules aro approved, as seems likely, there is a prospect

of walking once again taking its true position in public favor. Now-a-days, there are rarely more than four or five competitors in a race, while in years gone by it was no uncommon sight to see twenty or more. I remember once seeing W. E. N. Coston in a thirty miles' walk beat thirty competitors. If memory serves me aright, it was at the Boxing Day Meeting of the London Athletic Club; Squires being second. Would such a race attract a single entry now ? To-day, a walker will tell you that unless he goes in for what a well-known writer has aptly described as "ambling within the definition " it isutterly impossible to concede the immense starts at present allotted, but

the walkers of some years back had to do so. I have see.v H. Webster, of Kuotty Ash, give away enormous starts, and yet win easily from scratch, while R. Coombes, the old L.A;C. champion, when walking at Stamford Bridge, where the handicaps were then allotted by time, frequently had the limit men lap him before being dispatched on a two mile journey, and yet these men's style was never called into question. The same with A. W. Sinclair, J. E. Dixon, and a host of others in the Old Country in years gone by. In New Zealand exactly the same state of affairs has obtained. No fairer walker ever douned a shoe than A. Brady, aud he

was exceptionally fast too, as witness his great performance on November 24th, 1894, when from scratch he hoisted the then Few Zealand record of 6m in. 41secs., beating A. J. Pople (110 yds.) and F. H. Creamer (scratch), yet Brady, good as he was, could not have won- now-a-days in some of the marvellous times i*ecorded. Other fine walkers of the past were : T. Kerr and E. J. McKelvey (Danedin A.A.C.), A. F. Burton (Auckland A.A. and 0.C.), R. N. Thomas and H. S. Cocks (Canterbury A.A.C.), and A. Bain (Ounedin A.C.).

Coming down to the present time it must be readily admitted that the city on the Waiteraata has rather more than her share

of speedy track walkers. F. H. Creamer was, without question, one of the finest exponents of the art in the Colonies, and I am told that when accomplishing his great Three Mile record of 21min 37secs. he went very fairly throughout. I have only once seen him don the shoes, and his style then was beyond reproach. D. Wilson, the chief opponent of Creamer, and a very fast man, holds the sensational record of 6min. 27 2-ssecs. for the mile, but his method of progression leaves much to be desired. Another pedestrian with a somewhat similar action is J. Dickey (Auckland A.C.). Should the proposed new regulations come into

operation I am of opinion that both these latter walkers would have to considerably modify their styles, or disqualification would be probable, it the same time, although there has been much discussion as to whether Dickey does, or does not, walk fairly, it is impossible to detect him actually " without contact." On more than one occasion I have induced a photographer to take a snapshot of this heel-and-toe man when going at top speed, but owing to insufficient sunlight on each occasion the result has been a failure. Probably the best heel-and-toe exponent in the colony to-day is H. A. Goodwin (Wellington A.C.), a very sterling performer, who holds the One aud Three Miles Championship of New Zealand. Many uphold the opinion that 0. McAffer, of Auckland, the One Mile champion of Australasia, would beat the ex- Sydney man, but it is somewhat doubtful, although a contest between the two would prove most interesting. The Aucklander possesses an exceptionally neat style, and when going at even pace is one of the fairest walkers I have seen, but when sprinting occasionally lifts. He had hard luck to miss the Three Mile Championship in Brisbane last year, sudden indisposition ruining his chance when the race seemed at his mercy. T. P. Nolan, of Melbourne, has put a mile behind him in 6rain. 52 2-ssecs, so is very speedy. Barrett, the best Victorian expert, has apparently retired from the track, as also have the Aucklanders, Creamer and Wilson, while the veteran Field, of Sydney, although scrupulously fair, is not too fast ; so that, probably, the best man in the several colonies remaining on the track are Goodwin, McAffer, and Nolan. In the art of Pole Vaulting, Auckland has apparently completely outdistanced her rivals. This was by no means the case a few years ago, when W. M. West, of the Canterbury A.C., and H. L. Kingsley, of the Wanganui A.C. were the best of their time. With the advent of the Native lads, Hori Eruera and James Te Paa, an improvement in this particular brauch was immediately noticed, and when the former cleared the bar at lift. £iv., he easily secured the

Australasian record— and this lino performance remains uubeaton. When it is considered that the time Hori was little more than a school boy the achievement appears particularly brilliant. To I'aa learned his jumping at the same training college, and is, probably, the more consistent of the two, being of a more robust constitution. He has frequently got very close indeed to the best figures hoisted by his rival. Yet another Maori lad, Ratene Wimo, has now appeared, and in his initial effort cleared 10ft., which, with a somewhat lenient handicap, gave him an easy win. Ratene very palpably suffered

from nervousness whon jumping, so that it seems probable, when ho overcomes his " stage fright," that he will do a lot bettor, although his style is hardly as clean as the record holder. The only serious rival to the Native lads is C. C. Laurie, and it has always seemed to me that if this pole vaulter were to persevere ho would do even better than in the past. He has cleared IQft. 9in., and may yet improve on theso figures. All four of those athletes belong to the Auckland Club, so that without some now star arises it would seom that the Northern

city will lead the way in this department of sport for some time to come. It seems almost a pity that competition for distance jumping with a pole should not also be encouraged. In fen countries, where the pole is chiefly used, ifc is to clear wide drains and ditches that it is carried, and it is, therefore, somewhat curious to find that at athletic meetings the pole is put to a different use. It has been argued that the competitors would risk injury in a long jump of the kind ; but, surely, if the trench to be

jumped were sufficiently wide and deep, there should be no greater chance of accident than as at present dropping from a height of ten or eleven feet.

At both High and Long Jumping, New Zealanders appear to have never particularly excelled. In the former branch, probably the best exponents have been T. M'Naught (Dunedin A.C.), *'• Meyrick (M.A.A.0.), and H. S. Bailey (Wanganui A.C.) in past seasons, while Brownlee, of Dunedin, and G. G. Laurie, of Auckland, stand at the top of the tree in the colony bo-day. The results,

however, compare very unfavourably with English and American performances, and are also a good deal below the standard of the Australians — Roseingrave, English and others. A very similar state of affairs exists with the champions of the Long Jump. None of these have managed to place on record any really good figures, although, now and again, some fair performances have been accomplished. T. F. Upfill (Auckland), R. Gore (Wellington), J. L. Ryan (Hawkes' Bay), and W. Mendelson (South Canterbury) were all good men, especially the latter, and the jumpers of to-day — such as Brownlee, Laurie, R. Good, J. Moir, Madill, and otWs — have not been able to improve to any extent oa the good deeds of the men mentioned.

Chiefly owing to the action of the President of the Athletic Union, field sports, such as Throwing the Hammer, Putting the Shot, and Throwing the Discus, have been introduced. As far back as the age of Homer the latter was a favorite pastime, and in the British Museum, to-day, there is a splendid copy of the famous statue, by Myron, of a Discobolus in the act of throwing the discus. It has only recently been introduced in Australia, but has so far not reached New Zealand. T. O'Connor, 0. McCormack, C. Louisson, and W. H. Madill, have done best at the other field games — the latter having performed exceptionally well with the hammer. Greorge Hawkes, of Queensland, and W. A. Reilly are at the top of the list in this respect in Australia.

Before concluding, and in view of the fact that Australia will be represented at the second revival of the Olympian Games to be held this year in Paris, a brief account of this old time carnival will be found not altogether devoid of interest. The Olympian G-ames, the chief national festival of the Greeks, were said to have been established by the great Theban hero Hercules, in honor of Zeus. After continuing for many years they fell into disuse, but were re-organised by Lycurgus of Sparta at the instigation of the Delphic Oracle, and then was also established the sacred " Truce

of Grod," which insured a safe conduct at the time of the festival for all strangers resorting thither, even when passing through hostile territory. For over a thousand years the games were continued, and were not abolished till A.D. 394, in the reign of Theodosius. They were held on a sacred precinct at the foot of Mount Cronus, and took place every four years, the sports lasting a period of five days.

At first, running only was indulged in, generally over a distance of slightly more than two hundred yards, and to this day the

parallel grooves in the slabs of stone at each end of the Stadium show the spot where the feet of the competitors in the footrace were planted immediately preceding the start. The competitors ran in heats of four, and then the winners in each heat competed together, the first in the final heat being proclaimed the victor. The list of winners was always scrupulously kept, the first recorded champion of the Stadium being Corcebus in 776, B.C. All taking part in the games were compelled to take a solemn oath that they had gone through ten months preparation. Other sports were gradually added, but the five chief items which carried

the championship were as follows:— (1), Running; (2), Leaping, including high and wide jumping, generally with Halteres or dumb bells ; (3), Wrestling, the great event on the programme ; (4), Discobolia, or throwing the discus ; (5), Throwing the Javelin. It was necessary for a competitor to win all five events before being crowned with a wreath made from the leaves of tho sacred wild olive — the symbol of victory. The very greatest honors woro awarded to the champion of the games, lie being drawn home in state, and awarded a largo sum

of money, and allowed all sorts of privoleges. Among the Romans also athletic sports were greatly encouraged, and were held from the earliest times in the Campus Martius. The great games were revived at Marathon four seasons ago, the sports being held in the presence of the King of Greece, the Duke of Sparta, and an enormous multitude of spectators. The Victorian distance runner, B. H. Flack, did well on that occasion. Although we should much like to see New Zealand represented at this year's meeting, yet all will hope for the success of Rowley in Paris.