Athletics of To-Day 1929

~--- - - - ---- - --- - -- -- Athletics of To-day As a professional Shrubb ran some amazing and amusing ~~freak" matches. On the road he beat two horses, each going five miles, in a ten miles match, and, indoors on board tracks, he took on a relay team of five men, each to run two miles, while he himself went the full ten; and again taking on three men, each to run two miles, while he ran six miles; and in every instance Shrubb emerged victorious. Shrubb caused something of a sensation and a good deal of amusement when he met Billy Sherring, who had won the rgo6 Marathon at Athens, in a fifteen miles match at the Baseball Ground, Buffalo, U.S.A. In that race Shrubb broke the tape six laps ahead of his Canadian opponent, dashed off to his dressing room to secure his camera, and strolled back to take a snapshot of his opponent finishing. The crowd were delighted, and the newspapers made much good ,, copy " out of the incident. The late Sergt. G. W. Hutson showed every promise of prov– ing himself a worthy successor to Shrubb, but a German bullet cut short his career in the early days of 1914. He was English four miles hampion in rgr2, 1913 and 1914, and I shall always remember him for the amazing race he ran in 1913 when he reduced the championship record to rg mins. 32 s cs., a per– formance never since approached, and ran the last quarter mile lap of sixteen laps in 6o secs. flat. Meanwhile America had tak n up distance running, but not with the same enthusia m as was accorded to sprinting. In r8gg, tw nty-three year aft r both championship meetings had start d, A. Grant, Pennsylvania Univ rsity, won the first Inter-Coil giate two miles in ro mins. 3t secs., and the first national (indoor) title in ro mins. 4t secs. In r88o the A.A.U. of America instituted a five miles, won by J. H. ifford, Irish-American A. ., in 27 mins. 51 secs., and in r8 9 Sid Thomas went over from Engl nd to win the first Am rican ten miles in 53 mins. 58! secs., a time only once beaten or ev n nearly approa hed for the next twelve years, except by E. C. Carter, N.Y.A.., who returned 53 mins. 40! secs. in 1893.