ATHLETICS AT THE FRONT.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Issue 1385, 9 November 1916, Page 31

ATHLETICS AT THE FRONT.

N.Z. CHAMPIONSHIPS IN FRANCE. New Zealand has sent a great number of her best athletes to the front, while many more are at present in training, and that those at the front do not miss an opportunity of indulging in swimming and other athletic competitions during a lull in the fighting is borne out by a letter just to hand from Private George Hulme, of Hamilton, who .writes to his mother from “In the firing line’’ as follows: — “You will be delighted to read of my latest success in the swimming line. After a week of training and swimming hard every day, I succeeded after many trial swims in being one of the lour chosen to represent our 'first battalion in the N.Z. Divisional Championships, held somewhere in France last Saturday. There were nine to pick from up to Friday. 1 was fit, and was one of the lucky ones. One can hardly believe that in 16 days’ training I reduced my weight from 12st. 31b. to list. 41b. The team picked was* Les Smith (Waikato, a brother of Mr. W. Burns Smith), Henderson (North Auckland), B. Oxenham (Auckland), and G. Hulme (Auckland).. I had some hard racing in the 100yds. and 220yds., being second in both my heats, but only the winners raced in the final. The greatest race of the day was the Relay Race, of four men, teams representing every different unit in the New Zealand Division. We swam three times, and three times we won. There were 15 relay teams racing. In the semi-final our team raced the New Zealand Engineers. 1 swam fourth man for our team and raced Emmerson, the Christchurch crack. The finish was so close that two judges gave the win to me and one gave. Emmerson the win, but I was declared the winner. In the final we swam against Canterbury Ist Battalion team. I swam fourth again, and beat the Canterbury man by two feet. The band was playing and the crowd was chf.ering madly. General Godley presented the prize money. So now I can stick out my chest and say I am one of the four men of the Auckland relay team which won the New Zealand Divisional Championships in France, 1916, at a town not a long way from the firing line.” 7

Writing on September 23rd, Private Hulme had another success to announce. At a big sports meeting of the Auckland Battalion he von the 440 yards championship. The men were all on scratch, and Private Hulme won by a yard from Malcolm Stewart, while Fordham, of Auckland, was third, half a yard away. Private Hulme adds: “I also won the threelegged race with a chap named Douglas. My winnings were 50 francs, so now I am financial again.”

A returned South Canterbury soldier, who spent last winter on the western front - , was asked what gifts would be particularly "welcome to the troops who will have to spend the winter in the trenches in France. He stated that the greatest comfort was long stockings, as the gum boots which are worn continually in the wet trenches fail to keep out the cold. The long stockings are worn by the soldiers over their trousers. These novel garments can be very easily made by knitting feet on to the legs of woollen underpants, which should be of the largest size in order that they may go over the trousers, and should also be fitted with an elastic at the top. Few women could make many pairs of thigh stockings if they had to do all the knitting, but by sewing feet to purchased garments the difficulty can be overcome.