ATHLETICS.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume XX, Issue 1120, 28 September 1911, Page 13

ATHLETICS.

RETURN OF NEW ZEALAND’S CRACK SPRINTER.

Ronald Opie, who represented the Dominion in the sprint events at the Festival of Empire Sports, has returned to New Zealand, and when interviewed expressed his disgust at the way in which this world’s championship sports meeting was managed. •’There’s no mistake,” he remarked, “we fell in over it. Nobody knew of the Festival sports. They know of the Festival of Empire just as they do of the White City, but you couldn’t hear a whisper about the sports, and nobody cared. I suppose that there were about 300 people at the meeting altogether. Our amateur athletic meetings are immeasurably superior in management and in every other way to the average amateur meetings .at Home.” Asked how many times he ran whilst at Home, Opie replied: “Only five times, and what bad luck we had! The first was the 100 yards event at the Festival of Empire Sports won by the Canadian Halbhaus in 10.2. •Of course, you know what happened

to me. A muscle went at the back of tne knee, and I went to the post limping. I came third. I ran in dreadful pain, and only did so because poor old Woodger was knocked out. Pictures of the race show that I was suffering. Halbhaus who won —a very decent chap—-told me that he was not a 100 yards nor even a 220 yards man —his * distance was 440 yards. I feel confident that Woodger or I could have beaten him if we had not been as we were.”

Questioned regarding New Zealand’s long distance representative, Guy whom inany regarded as the ‘weak spot” in the Dominion team of athletes, Opie had the fo.lowing to say:—

‘‘Haskins would have beaten any thing in England. He arrived from America in great form, as fit as a fiddle, and was running like a two-year-old. Nothing that I saw could nave looked at him.' Then,, as you know, his tendon Achilles went, and bis ankle became puffed up very badly, but, as far as the committee here were concerned, they were more than justified in sending him to England, considering the wonderful condition which he showed before his tTtHible. What with Haskins, Woodger, and myself, we were a lot of ‘crocks.’ It was hard luck, as we were all triers. I don’t think that Haskins will come back to New Zealand.

‘‘The 20'0yds. at the Festival Sports was also won by Halbhaus, I was third. At Crewe —a well-managed meeting— I won the 100yds in 10 l-ssec., against D’Arcy, Stewart, and Murphy, the amateur champions of England, Scotland, and Ireland. At the English championships I won my heat in the 220yds, but, owing to my leg, could not start in the final. The only other race which I ran was at the Press Charity Sports, held at the Stadium. I won my heat in the 150yds, and was third in the final. It was only a fake meeting, and I had not had a run for three or four weeks.”

The 13 oyds championship of the world was run off on Saturday in Sydney, when Donaldson succeeded in beating Holway by 3yds in the phenomenal time of 12 secs, which constitutes a new world’s record. According to the cable Hol way secured a slight advantage at the start, but Donaldson quickly overhauled him, and led by a yard at the eighty yards’ mark. He increased his lead to three yards before the end. The result of the match proves beyond all doubt that Donaldson is the fastest sprinter in the world over 130yds, and Postle, Reg. Walker, Holway and Taylor must now surely be satisfied that he is their master over that particular distance.

A. B. Postle, the well-known Australian sprinter, created a world’s record on Saturday at Brisbane, by running seventy yards in 7secs. The previous world’s record was also held by Postle, who on Boxing Day 190 8, ran 70yds at Johannesburg in 7 1-16 secs.