Athletics of To-Day 1929

Cross-Country Running 171 and in the two latter years led England to victory in the newly-established International Championship. The International Championship has been decided at different times in England, Scotland, Ireland, Monmouthshire for Wales, France, and Belgium. From 1903 to rgzr England remained unbeaten as a team, although Jean Bouin, France, was first man home from rgrr to 1913, and]. Guillemot led France to her first team victory in rgzz, France winning again in 1923, rgz6 and 1927. No other countries had gained the championship up to I927. The Oxford and Cambridge Cross-Country Race was founded in r 88o, the same year that the Amateur Athletic Association was formed, and the National ross-Country Championship r ceived its first provincial entry. For fourteen years the Oxford and Cambridge event was decided at either University in alternate years. In r8go a neutral course was agreed upon, and in r8g5 the fixture was moved to the Roehampton-Bev rley Brook-Wimbledon ommon run. The first race in the new surroundings nd d, like the first attempt to run a National hampionship in r876, in complete disaster through the runners of both teams losing the trail. o such calamity occurred again in the thirty years that followed. During that p riod the course was slightly varied three times. By 1925 the Roehampton-Wimbledon run had lost its real cross-country character, and it was decided to seek a new locality. An excell nt course was discovered at Horton Kirby, near Farningham in Kent, and to that neighbourhood the race was mov din rgz6. The present course is harder and more hilly than the old one; but, curiously enough, that made no difference to the time in which the winning Oxford team were able to traverse the 7! miles of stiff country. That year Oxford were superlativ . Ivor Thomas, W. A. M. Edwards and L. A. . ooke, indeed, started out at such a pace as broke up most of the Cambridge men in the first mile or two. Edwards reached the winning-po t first in 44 mins. rr secs., with other Oxford men finishing second, third, fourth and fifth, the team thus returning the lowest possible score.