Olympic Cavalcade

OLYMPIC CAVALCADE A Swimming Stadium which seated 12,000 onlookers. A Rifle Range where there would 'be no disturbance for the competitors. A huge Bowling Green. Roque Courts. Tennis Courts. An Olympic Rowing Course on Alamitos Bay which accommodated 17,000 spectators seated and standing room for many more. The Riviera Country Club, where the Equestrian events would take place. Also the State Armoury for the Fencing contests, and just outside the City limits an Olympic Village of 550 cottages and larger buildings on a tract of 250 acres.· The feeding was so arranged that each team could be looked after by chefs of its own nationality. U.S.A., as the host and the home team, had the largest representation of more than 500 all told at Los Angeles. Japan was second strongest with a .team of 142. Thence the nations tailed off to th~ 1 .!ffian team of Haiti, Sylvio P. Cator, former holder of the World's record for the Long Jump, and Chung Cheng-Liu, the sole athletic representative of 4oo,ooo,ooo Chinamen. Finland sent a strong team which included Paavo Nurmi, but his amateur status was still under discussion and in the end he was not allowed to compete in the Marathon race, which he had been perfectly'confident of winning. In that year America had an exceptionally strong contingent, but their calculations were to be upset by Englishmen, Italians, Finns, Poles, Irishmen, Japanese and Canadians. U.S.A. had, ?t that time, the two fastest sprinters on earth, and both were Negroes. Eddie Tolan won the 100 metres Final from his fellow Negro, R. Met– calfe, in 10·3 secs., to equal the World's and make a new Olympic record, but Germany, South Africa and Japan were all placed and a couple of yards would have covered the first six men. . Tolan was again successful in the 200 metres with a new Olympic record of 21·2 secs., but this time G. Simpson, a white American, separated him from Metcalfe. At 400 metres British hopes were centred in the Gunner Officer, Godfrey Rampling; those of Canada in A. Wilson; but Rampling, who had suffered a long illness, failed to qualify in the semi-final stage of the 400 metres. · The Final was won by W. Carr, U.S.A., 46'2 secs., from B. Eastman, U.S.A., 46·4 secs., A. Wilson, Canada, 4T4 secs., W. J. Waiters, South Africa, 48·2 secs., J. Gordan, U.S.A., 48·2 secs. and G. A. Goulding, Australia, 48·8 secs. Great Britain's successes began at 8oo metres, which T. Hampson won in the newWorld's record time of 1 min. 49·8 secs, from A. Wilson, Canada;