Athletics of To-Day 1929

Throwing the Discus extraordinary luck to win at rro ft. 3 ins. In Ireland, however, P. J. Bermingham, a colossal Dublin policeman, who had been battling with P . Quinnsince 1919, was gradually establishing the mastery; while in America the I.C.A.A.A.A. had at last taken up the event, and Glenn Hartranft threw 158ft. rl ins., while Clarence Houser beat 150 ft . The former did not get his record, because a high wind was blowing when the throw was made. Both these were big men, as was the Norwegian, Ketil Askildt (No. ro, Plate 49), who was also in the 140 ft. class. At Paris just before the 1924 Games, I personally measured a practice throw of Bermingham's of over 152 ft., but in the Olympic competition he was a dozen feet or more behind this, while Hartranft and Askildt also lost their form. Houser took the gold medal with a new Olympic record of 151ft. 5 1 1 -u ins., with Niittymaa throwing 147 ft. Si ins. for second place. In 1927 Bermingham won his seventh Irish Championship, but was deprived of the English title he had held for three years by a comparatively small Hungarian, K. Marva]jts (No. 2, Plate 46 and No. 9, Plate 49), who put up a new British record of 145 ft . 8! ins. Bermingham, however, at the Leinster Championship of that year, took the Irish record up to 153 ft. 6! ins. In Hungary, Marvalits and Karl Egri, the latter a man of the Taipale build, both beat 150 ft. In America lifford Hoffman (No. 4, Plate 50) did the same, and Houser increased the world's record to 158 ft . ri ins., thus bringing even r6o ft. within the range of probable new records. Germany, too, so intent upon Olympic honours that she even v ent the length of importing an English professional golfer to teach her athletes swing, was making marked progress. The discus average of the best ten Germans of 1926, headed by H. Hoffmeister, 145 ft. (No. 5, Plate 48), and ending with E. Paulu , 129ft., was 135ft., but in 1927 Hoffmeister improved to 154ft. 4 ins., aulus had come up to third place, 145ft. 71 ins., while teinbrenner, tenth, reached 134ft. and the average was raised to 141ft. Hoffm i ter in 1928 was said to have beaten r6o ft., but this was not officially confirmed, and Paulus, who had been steadily improving for